By Daniel Rosenfeld
With summer approaching, now is a great time to begin working toward making your dream body a reality. By making slight changes in your diet and following a simple exercise plan, you’ll be amazed by your body’s transformation.
The first step toward getting a leaner body is changing your diet. Here are four nutritional tips that will help you shed those extra pounds.
- Avoid saturated fat. Fat is divided into two different categories: saturated fat (unhealthy, artery-clogging fat) and unsaturated fat (healthy fat). Saturated fat leads to weight gain and heart disease and is commonly found in red meat, cheese, butter, ice cream, and baked goods. Read nutrition labels and look for the saturated fat content, and try not to consume more than 16 grams per day.
- Eat more fiber. Fiber is an excellent nutrient that speeds up weight loss by making you feel fuller, causing you to eat fewer calories, and by binding with fatty acids as it passes through the intestines. Some sources of fiber are vegetables, fruits, whole grains, seeds, nuts, beans, and oatmeal. Try to consume at least 20 grams of fiber per day.
- Drink more water. Drinking one to two cups of water before every meal tricks your brain into eating less. Aim for at least eight cups of water a day because being hydrated increases the number of calories burned during exercise.
- Don’t drink sugary beverages. Any beverage with more than about 15 grams of sugar per cup, such as soda, fruit juices, or sweetened iced teas, is basically like liquid candy. Also, your body doesn’t fully register liquid calories, so you don’t get full and end up eating more.
Stay tuned for part two: the beach body exercise plan!
