8 Fitness Tips To Maintain Your New Healthy Lifestyle
saumya gaur 
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With the abundance of creature comforts of our 21st Century, a large chunk of our population has developed health issues such as obesity. Most of us lead a sedentary lifestyle, spending hours at an end on our desks, eating heavily processed food, getting little to no sleep. So, it’s no surprise that this unhealthy lifestyle has become a way of life for most of us.
Anyone who has tried to switch to a healthier lifestyle knows what an uphill task it can be. But hey, we are here to help you get on the right track. And when it comes to losing weight and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, there’s no such thing as too much advice. Every little bit helps.
If you are someone who has recently made the switch to a healthy lifestyle, you might be feeling very motivated and amped up about this change right now. However, as time passes it might be possible that you would be prompted to fall off the fitness wagon because you might not see immediate results. To prevent that from happening, we have compiled a list of fitness tips. These tips would help you maintain a consistent and healthy lifestyle and achieve your fitness goals. Here they are:
1.Remove All The Goodies From Your Kitchen And Pantry
It seems very extreme but trust us this helps in keeping you on the fitness path. While it’s okay to have a cheat day once in a while, we would advise you not to bring in those cookies or chips into your pantry. You might be getting them for the purpose of setting them aside for your cheat day, but once they are there, you would be tempted to indulge in them more frequently. So, the best way out is to chuck all those tempting goodies into the bin and go cold turkey on them.
2. Portion Control Should Be Your Mantra
Portion control is the key to a healthier lifestyle. We often end up eating beyond the requirements of our body because we eat to satiate our senses and not our body. Therefore, pay attention to the quantity of food on your plate. You can also try switching to smaller plates to measure your food. If you find yourself reaching for a second helping, ask yourself whether you’re really hungry or you’re just eating to enjoy the taste. This would help in bringing down the size of your portions substantially.
3. Prep Your Meals Ahead Of Time
There’s no doubt that homecooked food is not only light on your pocket, but it’s also the healthier alternative. And to make sure that homecooked food is your staple diet, you need to prep for your meals beforehand. This will save you a lot of time, and you would also end up consuming healthier meals.
4. Always Stay Hydrated
We all know how important water is for our body’s perfect functioning. But water also works as a hunger suppressant. It takes up space in our stomach, filling it up, and thereby, reducing our cravings. Drinking plenty of water also helps to cut down the number of liquid calories that we accumulate by drinking sugary drinks (1).
5. Get Plenty Of Sleep
Yup, that’s right. Getting in 8 hours of beauty sleep can help you get fitter! Studies have found that lack of sleep causes an increase in hunger and appetite, which makes one crave for calorie-rich foods (2). Lack of sleep also affects your metabolism, slowing it down, and causing you to gain weight (3). So if you want to remain slim and trim, you should also pay attention to your sleeping habits.
6. Set Realistic Goals
The key to achieving your fitness vision is to set achievable, short-term goals, that are grounded in your reality. Setting too ambitious goals, that too with undefined parameters can overwhelm you, and you can feel unmotivated. So clearly define your goals. Instead of setting a goal like losing 20 Kgs by the end of the year, define it by making an exercise plan whereby you aim to reduce a certain amount every month.
7. Mix Up Your Exercise Schedule
You would have noticed that when you first start working out, you lose weight quite easily, but over time, the pace of your weight loss slows down substantially, ultimately coming to a halt. This is because over time your body adapts to those exercise patterns and builds resistance to them. So, instead of sticking to a particular regimen, mix it up. If you are a yoga master, give Pilates a try. Or try pumping some iron to get those muscles to work.
8. When It Comes To Staying Active — Think Outside The Box
Don’t think of your fitness goals as a chore that you have to do. Incorporate elements like jogging, hiking into your leisure activities. This will allow you to reach your fitness goals faster, and it will also keep you from getting bored!
No one becomes fit overnight, it’s a gradual change that requires consistent effort and dedication. These tips will help you put in that consistent effort.
Try them, and let us know how they worked out for you. And if you know of any other tips, share them with us in the comments section.
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