While this time during the COVID-19 pandemic is filled with a lot of uncertainty, you’ve no doubt had concerns about how you’re going to keep your weight loss program on track (if you are on one), and right now with everything else distracting you, it may not be the first thing on your mind. But even though the gym is closed, it doesn’t mean you can’t stay healthy and keep up with your weight loss goals. Maintaining healthy habits is vital if your goal is to lose weight while you quarantine. And it’s not that hard!
At Aristocrat Plastic Surgery & MedAesthetics, we care immensely about our patient’s aesthetic needs and general overall health. We know it can be hard to stay on top of your diet and shed off excess fat, so we offer a fully supervised weight loss program known famously as the Nuvo Diet. While you’re on this diet, you can lose between 20-40 pounds in as little as 40 days. Even Aristocrat’s own Dr. Kevin Tehrani lost more than 40 pounds on the Nuvo Diet.
Healthy Eating Habits and Options To Keep You On Track
There are plenty of ways that are very easy and simple to follow that can help you stay on course and prevent weight gain while you’re sheltering in place, and maintaining social distancing. The many tips we’ll share with you should help you stay in the healthiest shape and even lose weight while you’re staying put at home!
So, just because you’re onlyjust a few feet away from the kitchen and the refrigerator doesn’t mean you have to go in there and come back with food every time! But it’s important to establish a routine to sustain a sense of normal activity by planning out and eating a series of designated meals.
Make a Plan!
Set up an eating plan for yourself and your family. Try making it a point to use foods that are perishable initially, and also add them to non-perishable foods from your pantry. This can help you stretch out your food and make it last longer. This tip comes from Toby Amidor, MS, RD, CDN, FAND, and an award-winning nutrition expert.
When you prep your meals in this manner, you won’t have to constantly think about what everyone is going to eat night after night, and it will save you from overeating as well.
Working from home day after day as well as taking care of loved ones can make it hard to stay on a schedule of daily meals. It can be a challenge to carve out time to sit down for a healthy meal at the right times of day. The lack of a set schedule around meals can lead to binging, which is definitely not a healthy way to eat! Don’t let the whole morning drift by and start eating at four in the afternoon. Your goal should be to set a schedule for eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner at regularly scheduled times, and only when you’re hungry. It also helps your routine to eat in the same location of the home.
If you’re tempted to over-pick and graze through the day by going back and forth to the kitchen, try to put a halt to that and make it a rule to only eat in your kitchen or dining space, and limit it to those locations only. Set a schedule for meals to be eaten and enjoyed at designated times so that everyone can eat together, if possible, and then allow time to clean up and “close” the kitchen until the next meal or snack time. You probably won’t need to get as strict as that, but try to make a schedule and stick to it as best you can to make the time indoors less stressful during a stressful time.
Fill Your Meals with the Right Things!
There’s nothing worse than eating a meal that doesn’t satisfy you. And it’s even worse if you’re tempted to nibble on all the sweets and treats you stocked up on. So to avoid dipping into indulgence, make it a point to fill your meals with the right things.
Include foods that are protein-rich, such as lean meat, chicken, soy-based foods, seafood, and dairy. Add fiber such as whole grains, nuts, seeds, fruits, and vegetables, and healthy fats like olive oil, canola oil, and also nuts, and seeds. Have them at every meal and at snack time to help you feel full and satisfied. When you feel satisfied after your meals, you’ll be less tempted to fll up on high-calorie, low-nutrient foods that can lead to weight gain.
A Little Snacking is Okay!
Let’s face it — we’re all going to snack. It’s inevitable spending so much time at home and not being as active as we normally are. ometimes you need a bit of a pick-up in between meals. But don’t fret, it’s really OK! There are ways to enjoy a little indulgence without wrecking your plans to lose weight.
Use single-serve containers to store snacks like chips instead of eating them right out of the bag, as recommended by Dr. Rachel Paul, PhD, RD. To stay on your weight loss track, be sure to account for how much you’re eating and what you’re eating to keep track of what you’re putting into your body.
With the extra time we have on our hands now to bake and cook more, include making foods that are worthy of the extra calories because they taste great, instead of binging on junk snack foods.
Drink the Weight Off!
Before you get too excited, we’re not talking about the kind of drinking you think of at happy hour. The drinks outlined below consist of drinks that are healthy and can help in your weight loss efforts.
- Water
As water contains no calories, it’s considered one of the healthiest drinks you can have. Among water’s many benefits, water facilitates metabolic and physiologic processes, and aids in the body’s detoxification abilities. For people that are on a weight loss journey, health experts highly recommend increasing your overall consumption of water. - Green Tea
- It’s packed with antioxidants and powerful nutrients that benefit the body. Green tea is one of the most weight-loss effective drinks you can have. As shown in studies, drinking green tea in high concentrations for 12 weeks led to a loss of 0.44 to 7.7 pounds (or 0.2 to 3.5 kg). The catechins and antioxidants in green tea are the compounds that help stimulate fat burning and boost metabolism. Green tea also contains caffeine, which also helps boost energy levels and helps improve your performance while you exercise. Lower blood pressure and a lower risk of developing heart disease, diabetes, and certain cancers is also a great benefit of green tea.
- Black Tea
High in polyphenols, the powerful antioxidants in black tea may help to reduce body weight. According to experts, the polyphenols in black tea are able to help you reduce your calorie intake and stimulate the breakdown of fat. It can also boost the growth of gut-friendly bacteria. All of this can help produce weight loss. One study showed that in people who drank 3 cups of black tea a day for three months, they lost more weight and achieved a greater loss of waist circumference.
- Vegetable Juice
Following a low-calorie diet along with drinking low-sodium vegetable juice can have a significant impact on increasing weight loss. The other good benefit is that vegetable juice can significantly increase your consumption of vegetables while it decreases your intake of carbohydrates. These important factors play a big part in weight loss.
Bring the Gym Home!
Working from home and staying at home all means a lot of sitting at home. Whether it’s at your desk in your home office, on the couch in your living room, or laying in bed with a book, you’re sitting around a lot more. And while there’s nothing wrong with that, you really need to stay active, even while at home. So bring the gym to you!
Get up and do some exercise each day. Take advantage of the many, many free and low-cost exercise apps and online exercise websites. They can help you stay trim while you stay home. And be sure to get some outdoor physical activity to burn calories and clear your head of stress. It can certainly help cut down stress-eating!
Check Out Aristocrat’s Nuvo Diet!
The Nuvo Diet from Aristocrat Plastic Surgery & MedAesthetics is a supervised weight loss program that’s great for patients who are seeking a Lateral Tension Abdominoplasty (Tummy Tuck), but still need to lose fat to be eligible for the procedure.
The Nuvo Diet is 100% all-natural; no hormones or drugs are used to help patients achieve their weight and health goals. This completely customizable diet program is specifically tailored to each individual patient and is fully supervised by our physician assistant, and includes natural supplements specifically chosen for you. So say “goodbye” to fat with the Nuvo Diet, and open the door to a brand new you!