More than Just Pounds

• Eat enough food! Whatever you do, don't think that undereating will serve you well. Not only will you slow your metabolism down, risk thyroid dysfunction, losing muscle and then the weight will come on fast when you stop because who can maintain by eating the little you will have to eat without gaining!? WW has calculated your needs and you can eat all your dailies, weeklies and fit points and a good amount of zero foods and still lose. Anything less is more than likely undereating and you can use Chronometer free app to check your calorie intake.
• Eat every 2-4 hours while you are awake up until 2 hours before you sleep. I always eat 4 meals a day and I don't snack. I only eat 12 hours of the day, for instance I eat either from 10-10, 11-11 or 12-12 - it all depends on my sleep or what time I finally eat breakfast. So, say I eat breakfast at 11am, meal 2 would be at 3, meal 3 at 7 and meal 4 at 11pm. This not only helps your metabolism and blood sugar but it will keep you FULL and you won't need to snack in between; if you are eating enough at each meal.
• Balance your meals out! Never eat a banana or an egg or anything else by itself. Always eat a carb, protein and fat in every meal, even snacks. Don't ever eliminate one of these because your body needs all these things to function properly. I eat 50% carbs, 30% fat and 20% protein. I've listed foods I eat almost daily below in a list.
• Stay CONSISTENT! Although you can have a negative week or day every now and then and I have, you can't let it become the norm because you will end up in a cycle that will discourage you. Consistency is really key!
• Eat 80% healthy food and 20% of your treats. Not allowing for treats will backfire on you and you'll most likely binge and could eat so much in that binge that you will undue your progress. Sometimes what you do one week doesn't show up for 2 weeks, so don't think just because you didn't gain right after a binge, that it isn't coming! Same thing for weight loss - give it time, what you do one week, usually takes 2 weeks to show up; or so my husband theorizes lol.
• Stay away from sugar free and diet food! These sugar alcohols have been shown in studies to actually hinder weight loss and make you crave more sugar. I can't stomach them literally, they tear up my gut, so I eat real cane sugar, raw honey and lots of fruit and very rarely get sugar cravings. With cheese and other items, I am more satisfied with full fat cheeses myself, so I don't use anything else.
• Move your body! The life is in the blood and the blood needs to be moved. Exercise isn't necessarily for weight loss, it is for health and vitality! Just walk - walking is the single best thing you can do for your body and everyone can do it unless you are disabled. I would do walking or some other sort of cardio, 4-5 times a week. Make sure you get enough complex carbs in to fuel your workouts! I eat 200-250g of carbohydrates a day to fuel my hikes and exercise throughout the week.
• Weight lift - lift dumbbells and do strength training as well to build muscle while you lose fat. 1-3 days a week is all you need to build muscle and I recommend a day of rest in between days to prevent injury. You don't need to even work your legs if you hike - I have the most sculpted, muscular legs I've ever had just from hiking. The more muscle you add on to your body, the more calories you are able to eat without gaining. This is very important when it comes to maintain! You will thank me later.
• Drink water - at least 8 cups a day for most people. I try and drink a cup every hour I'm awake except 30 minutes before/after I eat.
• Make sure you are have what you need, I use supplements to fill in what I am missing from my daily requirements with: calcium, magnesium (before bed), Vitamin D3, Vitamin K2, multivitamin with dinner, fish oil 2-3 times a week, alpha lipoic acid, zinc.

Foods I eat:

Proteins:
Eggs
Unsweetened soymilk
Nonfat Greek yogurt
Chicken breast
Tuna
Beans
Turkey
Salmon
Tofu (rarely)
Cheese (rarely)
Grass-fed organic ground beef (once a week or twice a month)

Carbs:
100% whole wheat bread or pizza crust
Old fashioned oats
Basmati brown rice
Whole wheat tortillas
Corn tortillas
Potatoes
Whole wheat pasta
Oats cereal (rarely)
Shredded wheat (rarely)

Fats:
Avocado (I use premade guacamole cups)
Nuts - walnuts, pecans, peanuts and cashews
Olive oil
Flaxseed meal
Mayonnaise (made with olive oil)

Fruit:
Bananas
Blueberries
Strawberries
Grapes
Unsweetened applesauce

Vegetables:
Dark green leafy greens
Carrots
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Green beans
Green pepper
Baby bella mushrooms
Green onions
Onions
Garlic
Butternut squash
Mixed vegetables
Peas
Celery

Treats I have regularly:
Fun size Snickers
Real hot cocoa
Whip cream aerosol as a topping on fruit
Pure chocolate syrup
Dark chocolate hummus
Cashew milk chocolate ice cream (rarely)