Keep track of what you buy: We could not possibly emphasise this enough. It is highly important that you know what you are going to buy before you to go the supermarket, to avoid any temptations once you get there. Remember that the bigger the supermarket, the harder it will be to stick to your shopping list but the more chance you will have to find what you want while sticking to the budget.

Consider cooking: We all are tempted by ready meals but sometimes food preparation requires very little effort. Remember that cooking does not always mean spending 3 hours in the kitchen and using all the bowls you have available in the kitchen: sometimes cooking involves just stirring a sauce for 15 minutes or chucking everything in the oven for 20. Effortless cooking exists, and will save you both money and ingesting extra calories you don’t need.

Frozen veggies: Sometimes it is nice to have fresh vegetables available. However, when on a tighter budget, you might want to consider frozen vegetables. They are much cheaper and come in much greater size than fresh ones. Sometimes they are even healthier because they get frozen when fresh. They also might have less preservatives than fresh vegetables.

Make food last: If you buy food that lasts you are less likely to spoil food. Canned food is good for example. Try to go for the most unprocessed item. For example, take a can of peas rather than a can of creamy peas or semi-processed foods in a can. As a rule of thumb, avoid anything that has a creamy sauce in it.

Go wholegrain: Try wholegrain bread rather than processed white bread. This might be a bit more expensive but you might find that you will want less bread on every meal. Again, this is a money-calories saver!

Bulk buy and watch your portions: We all know that the bigger the size of the product, the more you save. Try to buy things in the bigger size…but don’t forget to watch your portions once you are home! It would be a good idea for you to look at the box before you open it and figure out how many meals the product can give you. For other products, you can approximate a portion on the spot: for example, you will find that you can portion a single generous portion of rice with an espresso coffee cup.

Walk to and from the supermarket: Don’t forget to exercise! And why not exercise whilst running errands! If you live relatively close to a supermarket, you could try and go to the supermarket on a weekly basis. In this way you will: save the money for petrol on the car; exercise and utilise excess calories and come back with less food at home to munch on, which, in turn, will help you control your impulses.

For more tips on how to stay on the budget and lose weight, visit: http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Onabudget/Pages/Savemoneyfood.aspx

]]> http://www.loseweightin2weeksinfo.com/dieting-on-a-budget/feed/ 0 http://www.loseweightin2weeksinfo.com/how-to-stay-on-track-and-keep-the-weight-off/ http://www.loseweightin2weeksinfo.com/how-to-stay-on-track-and-keep-the-weight-off/#comments Mon, 08 Jul 2013 10:37:42 +0000 admin http://www.loseweightin2weeksinfo.com/?p=37 Most of us find it easy to start something. Whether it is a new project, a new life, or a new diet, the novelty of it all helps us to cope with our new ventures and daily missions. But how do we make sure we stay on track when the high expectation and good intentions are no longer new and start to seem boring and unachievable?

Here’s a few tips that might help us all with this:

• Buy healthy snacks: when you do your food shopping, make sure you are full. This will help you buy snacks that are good for you and, in turn, keep the weight off. When we get home from work we are likely to be too lazy to go back out and buy a fatty snack. Therefore, make what you have in the fridge and counters what you should eat, and before you know it you’ll get used to and will want healthy snacks. Be creative with it and make sure you always have something ready for when you feel hungry. Carrots, beans, salad and fruit (in moderation) are all amazing snacks.

• Keep active when you need it most: when you have had the odd heavy lunch or dinner with family or friends, remember to go for an extra jog or a swim that evening or the next day. That way your body gets used to burning calories at those times and (hopefully) you learn to make those special occasions even rarer.

• Pay attention to why you are eating: sometimes we eat because we are stressed, depressed or just bored. Pay attention to what you eat. If you forget, put a sticky note in your fridge to remind you to ask yourself “why are you eating?”. If it is not because you are genuinely hungry and you just “feel like something”, then think again. Drink water or have a carrot instead.

• Watch out when eating out: eating out is really tough if you are on a diet. However, there are ways to prevent you from feeling uber-guilty after eating a 3 course meal. You can try to have two sides/appetisers rather than a main, order a kid’s meal or simply share the meal (or part of the meal) with someone. If you have a favourite restaurant that you go to, make sure you know their menu very well and find in there that really good main/salad or other veggie-based meal that you really like, just in case you do want a main course.

• Keep testing yourself against your skinny clothes: once in a while, when at home…try those skinny jeans that make you feel so good. If you can’t fit in them, don’t worry. If you try them on occasionally (once or twice a week), then your mind will think about fitting in them and you eventually will!

• Motivate yourself: Long-term dieting and keeping track of your weight is hard. We somehow assume it should be easy but it is not. If we start thinking and appreciating the efforts we are doing, it will be easier to feel good about ourselves and stick to the diet. Also, congratulate yourself and celebrate your successes by going out salsa-dancing, by going for a walk with a friend or to the cinema.

• Drink Plenty of Water: water’s importance can be underestimated. Especially with the summer heat, it is essential to drink plenty to keep our bodies hydrated. Water drank during a meal can make you full faster as well.

• Track it: finally, if you want to stay on track, make a track! Have a food journal, a workout schedule and keep on crossing on your calendar the days when you stick to your diet and they will become an extra boost of motivation

For more tips on long-term healthy dieting, visit http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/loseweight/Pages/keep-weight-off.aspx

This might seem an irrelevant detail. However, a recent study, by Dr. Romaguera-Bosh and the InterAct Consortium, has found an association between the chance of getting type 2 diabetes and drinking a can of fizzy drink a day. The 350,000 people (living in 8 different European countries) monitored for this study have helped us understand that the risk of getting diabetes type 2 increases 18% if we have a fizzy drink every day (22% if body mass weight and energy intake is not taken into account). Isn’t it a massive difference with regards to our general health? I think so. Other previous studies have found similar results.

If you are overweight or obese (i.e. if your BMI is over 25) then you should consider drinking mostly water, low-fat milk or unsweetened teas. This will help you not only lose weight, but also prevent you from the risk of having diabetes problems later on. Did you know that approximately a can of coke has got more or less 10 spoons of sugar? Imagine what a shock it is to our bodies.

Alcohol though, in moderation, has been found to help lower the risk of diabetes, especially in overweight individuals. However, it is not a recommendable daily option. It can be considered a healthy alternative for the special occasions, particularly when in company of an old friend –or a new one. Wine has been found out to be the best alcoholic drink out of all that lowers the risk of diabetes type 2. This is definitely good to know, but it is important to remind ourselves that the word ‘moderation’ is key here.

So if you have made the decision of cutting back, consider doing it for all aspects of your life. If you are really serious about eating healthily and caring about your body, these studies can help you pinpoint what you might be doing wrong. After all, knowing is half the battle.