5 Simple Habits To Lose Weight And Keep It Off!

Losing weight is a challenge.

Losing weight and keeping that weight off is even more of a challenge.

In this blog, I am going to provide you with 5 simple habits to help you lose weight and keep it off!

These are habits I have seen help create success with my 1:1 coaching clients to help them on their journey to make some phenomenal progress and also be able to sustain the progress they have made!

These are not in an order of importance, but read they entire blog, and ask yourself what one or two of these really standout to you and start to put more attention toward 'em.

Before we get going...

I must say this as always, in order to lose weight and lose fat, you have to be in a calorie deficit. I don't care what your Auntie Karen or Crazy Uncle Larry told you.

There is no ifs, ands, or buts; you must eat fewer calories than you burn off in a day.

But these 5 simple habits I talk about are great for helping you get in a calorie deficit and managing your progress you make in the long run, which is your ultimate goal; to lose the weight and keep it off!

Anyways, just wanted to share and remind you of that to make sure I keep things simple and straightforward for you!

...Ok, habit #1, GO!

1. Walking

A wise man once sang, “Walk this way!”

This wise man was my good friend,Steve Tyler, from Aerosmith. 

(We are friends, he just doesn't know it yet!)

Walking is one of the most underestimated habits and forms of exercise, if not the most underestimated. It's not just a habit that will significantly impact progress as a calorie-burner; it's a game-changer for weight loss and keeping that progress on lock. Its impact goes beyond the physical benefits but also extends into the benefits of your mental well-being.

If you look at ways to increase your metabolic rate (EAT: Exercise Activity Thermogenesis, TEF: Thermic Effect of Food, and NEAT: Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis), your NEAT can make up a big portion of the calories you burn each day. Yes, it can and should be more than your regular, prescribed exercise (EAT). NEAT will be the calories burned during activities outside your training, such as walking and standing.

What makes walking particularly amazing is that you can do it anywhere and anytime.

Yes, it’s that simple. It doesn't require equipment or a gym membership. 

Whether it's a brisk stroll through the neighborhood, a walk on your lunch break, or even taking the stairs instead of the elevator, these consistent steps accumulate and contribute to your overall NEAT over time. As a result, walking becomes a habit that complements your diet, help aid in weight loss and weight maintenance.

Beyond the physical benefits, the positive impact on mental health cannot be overstated.

It provides an opportunity to unplug, clear the mind, and reduce stress. Walking has this therapeutic effect,  promoting mental clarity, improving mood, and opening up creativity. It gives you time and a chance to disconnect from work, relationships, and just life.

So, all in all, walking is not just a means of burning calories but also a great habit for an overall holistic approach to health. Its simplicity, coupled with its physical and mental benefits, positions walking as a must habit to help you lose weight and maintain the progress you make moving forward. It's a habit with an incredible ROI.

A great goal to strive for is getting to a point where you’re constantly getting  7,000+ steps a day.

One thing I love to do with my 1:1 Fat Loss Clients is set a daily minimum and a weekly target.

As someone may want to get 10,000 steps a day on average (70,000 steps for the entire week), it might be tough for them some days to get 10,000 steps. What I do is give them a minimum of 7,000 steps a day with the goal of 70,000 steps for the week. If they were to have a “tough” day of steps, at the very least, they still get that 7,000. They will have other days that usually got a lot better and end up exceeding 10,000 steps a day, which  still gets them at 70,000 total for the week!

2. Strength Training

Now, I know I said walking will be more impactful than your workouts, but that doesn't mean working out isn’t beneficial because the benefits of training are equally incredible!

Specifically, strength training stands as a cornerstone habit for weight loss and sustaining progress. Obviously, during a workout, you know there are going to be calories burned, but strength training is also what can help make improvements in building muscle, strength, and overall body composition. 

Engaging in strength training helps with not only building more muscle but also preserving the muscle you gain, which helps in sustaining your progress long term.

One underrated benefit of developing strength training as a habit is it improves discipline and commitment. As we know, working out doesn't always tickle and isn’t always “fun,” but you know the value of it will outweigh those things. It allows you to practice and strengthen your discipline.

You learn the importance of delayed gratification vs. short-term gratification. You understand “suffering” now through feeling amazing afterward is way more rewarding than skipping the workout for quick comfort and gratification, only to “suffer” shortly after. 

Just like walking, strength training is therapeutic and has a lot of mental health benefits. Helping with things like stress, anxiety, and depression, which are also intertwined with weight-related challenges you face. 

The release of endorphins can improve your mood and serve as a natural stress reliever. Training will contribute to shifting your headspace to a more positive mindset and feeling more resilient, which can be huge for you in navigating through your weight loss journey.

Seriously, I have no research to back this up, but people who I see exercise regularly always seem to be more net positive and happy vs. net cranky and miserable.

One way to shift your mindset about strength training and exercising is to not look at it as a chore or an obligation but as an opportunity to create so many more opportunities in your life, from increase confidence to longevity and improved quality of life. 

Lastly, here is the thing. You don’t have to be doing 5-6 days a week or feel the need to do two a day. But set aside 30-60 minutes, 2-4 times a week, and you will still get all these fantastic benefits above!

3. Stress Management

Managing stress is vital for weight loss and maintenance. It’s often overshadowed by the spotlight on diet and exercise. The relationship between stress and weight gain is no secret; heightened stress can trigger responses that cause you to make choices that can challenge you to lose weight and keep it off. To succeed in your weight loss journey, you must seek tools to manage stress.

The role of stress management becomes essential if you struggle with emotional eating, always finding yourself choosing to indulge in food to comfort you.

Incorporating stress-relieving techniques into your daily routine can make all the difference in you staying consistent and managing your nutrition vs. saying “f*ck it” and going to eat an entire pizza with a pint of ice cream.

Here are some practical techniques to manage stress effectively during your weight loss journey:

• Meditation: Incorporate daily meditation sessions into your routine. Meditation can help calm your mind, reduce stress, and improve your overall well-being.
• Exercise: Continue with your exercise routine. Exercise releases endorphins, which are natural mood lifters and can significantly reduce stress levels.
• Walking: Take time to get some steps when stress is high. Going out on a walk can help reduce stress and improve your mood. 
• Therapy: Consider seeking therapy or counseling when needed. Talking to a professional can help you address the underlying causes of stress and develop coping mechanisms.
• Practice Mindfulness: Practice mindfulness in your daily life. Being present in the moment and mindful of your choices can reduce stress-related emotional eating.
• Sleep: Getting a good night's rest is critical to keep stress in check and give you mental and physical power. 
• Treat Yourself: Implement things that bring pleasure and joy into your life that make you feel good — things like getting your nails done, massages, haircuts, spa day, or some sort of experience.

Use these tools to help you navigate through your life challenges. Remember, managing stress is not just beneficial for your weight loss journey but also for managing your weight and overall health and well-being.

4. Sleep

Stop listening to Isaac, the Influencer who tells you that sleep is overrated or that you can “sleep when you're dead.”

First, tell Isaac to f*ck off!

Then make sure you get your sleep!

Sleep is a big deal when it comes to losing weight and staying healthy. It's not just about feeling rested – it can affect things like your energy, decision-making, and recovery. When we don't get enough sleep, our hunger hormones (leptin and ghrelin) can get thrown off. 

Ghrelin, which signals hunger, increases, and Leptin, which signals fullness, decreases, making you feel hungry and hungrier more often. 

But sleep is also where the magic happens. It’s when your muscle and tissue repair. Think of it as a construction crew coming in at night to fix any daily wear and tear. Without this repair and maintenance period, your body won’t recover as well. So, getting a good, quality night’s sleep gives our body the time it needs to rebuild and refresh.

Lastly, let’s talk about decision-making. 

Remember in college pulling all-nighters during finals for days (I mean, I didn't do this because I hated & sucked at school. I remember having a couple of all-nighters for other reasons... but we will save that for another day…).

Anyways... what happened the following days. You are left wanting to snuggle up in bed watching Netflix all day, or you go to the gym, look around for a minute, walk on the treadmill for five, and call it a day.

Sleep is your friend and the number one supplement you should be taking. Red Bull may give you wings, but sleep gives you all the Superpowers! (Not all the superpowers, so I don't get held reliable here.)

Take care of your sleep! Aim to get 7-9 hours a night. 

And if you are someone who works crazy hours or you are a new parent, I understand your situation may be a little different. Just do the best with what you got!

Some additional tips to improve your sleep:

• Keep your room dark (get black-out curtains)
• Keep the room cool, around 65 degrees Fahrenheit 
• Shut Phones and televisions OFF - Shut down Screen Time about an hour before bed 
• Set your Circadian Rhythm (Your internal bedtime clock) - Go to bed & wake up at a consistent time each night
• Avoid Caffeine 8+ hours before bed
• Avoid Alcohol consumption before bed
• Invest in a quality Mattress (you will spend ⅓ of your life on it)
• Do controlled a deep breath work (like Diaphragmatic Breath - 6-8 seconds in, 6-8 seconds out)

5. Planning

Always be proactive, not reactive.

The more reactive you have to be, the more you dive into your discipline battery, meaning the more you use it, the quicker it will die down. And the faster it dies down, the more chance you have of making these easy, comfortable decisions that throw you off your consistency. 

But the more you plan and be proactive about your choices and what things will look like, the fewer decisions you have to make in the moment, and the less you use the discipline battery!

Constantly planning and being proactive are staples in your weight loss journey and sustaining progress. Planning lays the foundation for success, enabling individuals to make informed choices about nutrition, exercise, and overall lifestyle. By anticipating challenges and developing strategies in advance, one can navigate these obstacles more confidently, resiliently, and purposefully. 

For instance, meal planning allows you to make mindful food choices ahead of time. 

After a long day of work, we have all been there and don’t have dinner planned out, so what do we do? We order some pizza, fries, and a soda, which throws us off track for the day.

Planning reduces the likelihood of impulsive, “off-track” options. It's a proactive measure to empower you to align your habits with your weight loss goals.

With exercise, create structure to your routines. Scheduling workouts in advance establishes a commitment and clear focus for the week. Even simply getting your gym clothes and bag ready the night before an early morning workout is much easier since you have fewer decisions and less mental energy to use.

Planning is just a tool for time and mental energy management, ensuring that priorities such as meal preparation and exercise are easier to integrate into your daily life. It establishes a rhythm and routine supporting the weight loss goal. This proactive approach transcends the immediate goal of becoming a sustainable lifestyle that fosters long-term success.

Ultimately, planning and being proactive is a proactive investment in one's health and well-being. It transforms weight loss from a reactive response to an active, intentional pursuit. By consistently integrating planning into the fabric of daily life, individuals create a roadmap for success, reinforcing healthy habits and fortifying the foundation for sustained progress.

Bonus: Pay Attention to Your Data!

Maintaining an idea where your data is at can help keep you aware. Staying aware of your weight, strength, body composition, or how your clothes fit can help keep you informed of if things are maintained, or maybe you have been a bit more flexible than usual and need to redial things back in.

Now, I’m not saying to be obsessed with it, but just having a general knowledge of these metrics provides information for yourself in case needed, so you know whether you need to adjust anything on your end to keep things in check. Staying updated with what's going on just help you stay accountable, stay mindful of things, and not let things slip to far back! 

There you have it. 

5 important habits to lose weight and keep the weight off afterwards.

Which one of these habits really stand out to you? Where you can start improving with these habits?

If you need help on your weight loss journey, or to have someone hold you accountable and help take the thinking out of it, click HERE to schedule a time for us to chat!

- Kevin

As I Am