Want to lose weight and become more toned asap!

[lauren_abc]

I really find it hard to keep motivated and stick to a diet/it is very hard for me to do so due to family living in the house too and having to find meals to suit all. Any tips on what foods to avoid and what foods to eat more of would be great. I am not overweight I just want to lose a bit of weight and tone up in order to get a toned and slim body!

Thanks!

[notsobigmama]

lauren_abc,

I have a husband, four children and associated friends, girlfriends, boyfriends to feed on a daily basis and I have managed to lose weight while catering for all. If you are determined and in the correct frame of mind, you can do it.

Worst case scenario - you eat what you have been, but less of it. Move about more and that will create the calorie deficit required to "tone up". It sounds like you just want to lose about half a stone or so and as long as you don't expect that to happen in one week, the small changes above will get it done for you.

Have a look around this fantastic website. There is a section with recipes too! Even pizza and burgers can be healthy. I have been surprised with the food my family has enjoyed. We are all eating more vegetables, even onions, which was unheard of.

Good luck, but remember that you have to be in the correct frame of mind, then your determination will get it done. Don't start off with an excuse for failure already there! Do it in spite of what you see as a problem!

[lauren_abc in reply to notsobigmama]

Thank you so much! I'll take your advice on board!

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Hi lauren_abc,

My advice then - given that you find it hard to stick to a "diet" - would be not to "diet"!

If you have some weight to lose, then what you really need to do is to look at what you've been doing to gain that weight - portions too big? eating too often? unhealthy snacking rather than good snacking? Sweet tooth? Like the creamy things? Life style too sedentary?

Work out how you put that extra weight on and you'll have the key to taking control of your eating and body weight and you'll be able to manage that weight back down..

It's about swopping those "bad" eating habits for good ones.

There's lots of good and free advice on the NHS live well lose weight pages and plenty on these blogs too - both are worth reading. And there's a free 12 week plan - though you'll probably lose half a stone faster than that. Recommended weigh loss rate is about 1 to 2 lbs a week on average - 1 kg (2.2 lbs) maximum - but most people have blips and spurts, so that is averaged over a few weeks. Also, you usually lose weight a bit faster in the first couple of weeks or so.

Good luck with your weight loss journey.