Getting slim without a diet

Christiane Fux studied journalism and psychology in Hamburg. The experienced medical editor has been writing magazine articles, news and factual texts on all conceivable health topics since 2001. In addition to her work for, Christiane Fux is also active in prose. Her first crime novel was published in 2012, and she also writes, designs and publishes her own crime plays.

More posts by Christiane Fux All content is checked by medical journalists.

Many diets do not make you slim, but fat and dissatisfied. They stand for mortification and renunciation. The more radical and one-sided they are, the worse. At some point, many people who want to lose weight would rather have french fries on their plate instead of crumbling a salad. Anyone who now rushes to eat their favorite food they have been missing for a long time will feel the infamous yo-yo effect: the body kept on the back burner saved the hungry fattening foods even more eagerly than before. The pounds are quickly back on the hips, sometimes even more than before the diet.

If you want to get slim and stay that way, you have to rely on a healthy lifestyle instead of miracle cures. Easy said, hard done. Because humans are creatures of habit who cannot easily shed the eating and living habits that have been ingrained for decades. Cycling to the office in the morning instead of driving up comfortably in the car is a real challenge, at least at the beginning.

Diet - no prohibitions

The key to sticking to the new lifestyle is that the life you have turned inside out actually suits you. It is important that the enjoyment is retained, otherwise the changeover will not succeed. If you don't like muesli, for example, you shouldn't have oatmeal and grains for breakfast.

Whether sweet or savory: Look for lighter alternatives to suit your preferences, for example turkey ham instead of salami or jam instead of nut and nougat cream. If you can't imagine life without currywurst, treat yourself to one every now and then. It is best to avoid fries and mayonnaise, so you save more than half the calories.

It is important: No food is forbidden, you should only limit the consumption of unhealthy fattening foods. This applies from the pralines to the beer.

Movement - dance!

Also try to bring more exercise into your everyday life. Maybe you enjoy dancing if you are not a fan of jogging? To find out what suits you, it is sometimes helpful to look back at your childhood: Perhaps you were a water ruler at a young age and can now warm up for a swim? Or did you like to run and decide to go Nordic walking today?

It is important that you do your exercise program regularly - at least three times a week for an hour. Daily exercise is of course best. And you can only do that if you really enjoy the sport.

Stress management

In addition to diet and exercise, stress management is the third important pillar for a healthy weight. Because the psyche plays a decisive role in what and how much a person eats. Stress is a real starvation driver. The stress hormones in the blood increase hunger and, above all, the desire for meals containing carbohydrates. Many people therefore gain weight when they are energized.

In addition, stress robs people of sleep. And that can make you fat: Numerous studies show that lack of sleep is associated with an increased risk of obesity. The metabolism slows down, at the same time the level of the hunger hormone Grehlin rises.

Regular exercise is also good for the mind and against stress: Exercise lowers the level of stress hormones in the blood and brightens the mood.

You should also practice targeted stress management: for example, say goodbye to the stress driver perfectionism or learn to say no and delegate tasks to others.

Learning relaxation techniques can also be helpful. These include, for example, progressive muscle relaxation or autogenic training. This not only applies to people who want to lose weight, but to everyone who is plagued by everyday stress.

motivation

Whether diet, sports program or yoga class: It takes three to six months for your new lifestyle to solidify and become a natural part of your everyday life. Perseverance is required here. Above all, you need one thing: a lot of motivation. To do this, you first need to know exactly why you want to lose weight.

The first crucial question is: are you really too fat? The body mass index (BMI) provides an indication of this. From a medical point of view, obesity only begins at a value of 25. If you are well below this, ask yourself the critical question of whether you actually want to take up the fight against the pounds or whether a dubious ideal of beauty is rather spoiling the joy of your own body. Very few have a luxury body like Halle Berry or David Beckham anyway.

You have to work hard to achieve such a figure, few are born with it. Set realistic goals because disappointments permanently undermine motivation. Most of them feel a lot more comfortable with just a few pounds.

It is also unfavorable if the diet idea comes from others - from colleagues, your own partner or your bosom friend. You can only develop the necessary motivation if the matter is close to your heart.

If your desire to lose weight is realistic and honest, there are things you can do to increase your motivation. Find a diet ally to help you persevere. Vividly imagine how good you will feel when you reach your goal. Reward yourself with stage wins, for example a chic piece of clothing.

Slack is not a disaster

Have you eaten a lot more than you wanted for a few days? No need to give up your resolution and get back into your old habits in frustration. Realize how much you have achieved and how much better you may be feeling.

In general, it is important that losing weight is not always the focus of your thinking. A healthy lifestyle has many more positive effects than the melting pounds alone: ​​You are fitter, more energetic, in a better mood - and that also makes you attractive.

Tags:  fitness drugs book tip