5 Weight Loss Tips

How many of you watch "The Biggest Loser"? If you do, then you are familiar with trainer Bob Harper and understand that he knows his stuff when it comes to health and fitness. I was reading an article last night where he shared his top fitness tips. I wanted to share them with you all here.

1. Include protein in each of your meals. I wasn't surprised to see this as one of his tips. Protein is more satisfying than carbs or fats. It encourages fat burning while keeping you feeling full.
2. Load up on veggies. Love this tip because produce is low in calories and high in fiber. I remember reading somewhere that vegetables are ranked the number one food to eat for weight loss. I use to find it so hard to get my servings of vegetables in, but now I just make sure I add some to each meal... breakfast can be as simple as adding veggies to my eggs, a salad or a wrap for lunch, snack time can be sneaking in some carrots and hummus and then I include a side with supper. 
3. Don't drink your calories. Simply put, our body does not register liquids the same as solids.
4. No carbs after lunch. This is one I didn't know. I love my carbs so this would for sure be a hard one, but Bob says if you follow this, you will lose weight. I did look into it more and what I found makes total sense. Carbs are a form of sugar and sugar cues the pancreas to make more insulin. Insulin creates hunger hormones, which triggers appetite. The later in the day you  have sugar, the later you will get cravings, and I get that... late night cravings can make or break your diet! In fact, after researching this one, it makes sense that I have always found the night my hardest time to stay on track. Kind of curious to try this one out for a bit to see if I notice a change.
5. The 80/20 rule - Nobody is perfect, so this is probably my favorite rule that I read from his list. What this rule means is that you eat healthy 80% of the time and then allow for a cheat meal or snack occasionally, which is the 20%. It's obviously a good thing to aim to eat healthy... not buy unhealthy foods, cook at home when you can, make smart choices when eating out... but it is just not realistic to say that we can do that 100% of the time.

In the article, Bob also listed some of the exercises he felt were the best for women to do as they work to get ready for summer: planks, push-ups, squats and jumping lunges.

His number one suggestion for the overall body move that will get your heart pumping is burpees.

He just released a new book last month called, Skinny Meals. Definitely one I would love to check out sometime.

Questions for you:

• Which rule would be the easiest for you? Hardest?
• Do you watch "The Biggest Loser"?