Are you jealous of those who seem to maintain a healthy weight without much effort? *Raises hand*. I’ve personally struggled with weight gain as a young adult. As a teenager, I was very active and overall I ate fairly decent(at least I thought I did). Little did I know that my eating habits weren’t up to par but I also didn’t exercise either. I slowly gained weight until my weight soared to over 200lbs at the age of 21. Even though I was obese, looking back, I never thought that I looked that big. But I now I admit that I must have had rose-colored glasses on. I am sharing this with you because I want to educate others so that they aren’t like me and struggle with their weight at an early age. Now in my 40s, I still struggle.
Gaining weight is a common problem for a lot of us. Are you guilty of consuming an entire package of Oreos, eating more than 1 doughnut with the kids, eat too much food off the buffet, or mindless snacking while you watch television? Eating unhealthy or consuming too much food is a common symptom that many obese people are guilty of doing on a regular basis.
A majority of people who struggle with weight gain are aware that it takes discipline, a strict caloric intake, and getting enough excise in order to maintain a healthy weight. Adopting these 9 habits that fit people follow to maintain a healthy weight can help prevent people over the age of 18 or have graduated high school to keep their weight in check. Once teenagers are out of school, they no longer have their parents around to ensure that they are eating healthy meals and getting enough exercise needed to maintain a healthy weight.
Use these 9 habits that fit people follow to maintain a healthy weight. Most people end up falling back into their old habits and they end up gaining back all of the weight that they worked hard to lose. Learning from my own struggles, I think that it would have been much easier to follow these tips so that I never got to the point where I was classified as overweight or obese.
WEIGH YOUR PORTIONS
Portion control is often the hardest part to determine when you trying to maintain a healthy weight especially as we age. We suggest that you invest in a food scale (we have this one) so that you can accurately measure the food that your eating. Without a food scale, it is difficult to determine a portion size unless you are eating prepackaged foods or foods that you can easily be calculated. Portion control is the key to maintaining a healthy weight.
If you know anything about losing weight, you are probably already aware that over time your stomach starts shrinkings and adjusting to you eating smaller meals. But as a young adult, your stomach is already small compared to someone who is obese. We understand how it can be easy to start eating larger and larger meals, especially if you have lost a significant amount of weight. The more you eat at a time the more your stomach expands. Over time, if you keep eating large meals your stomach will permanently stay stretched. When your stomach is larger it takes eating more food before your brain receives the signal that you are full. This can immediately trigger weight gain all over again.
Eating out also can be a huge culprit when it comes to weight gain. When you are busy, it is easy to get into the habit of swinging by the drive-thru or going out to eat with friends. Meals at most restaurants often contains more calories and fat compared to the same meal that you can easily cook at home. Also, sit down restaurants often serve portions that are two or three times the normal serving.
EAT PLENTY OF VEGETABLES
Many people will give up making healthy choices, including filling your plate with plenty of vegetables. Instead, you are more likely to fill up on carbs or junk food. Giving up or reducing your intake of healthy vegetables can cause weight gain.
Eating vegetables can help keep you feeling full longer and help keep you from gaining the weight back. Vegetables contain fiber and most veggies are low in calories. We suggest that you eat protein and plenty of vegetables first to help prevent you from filling up on empty calories.
SKIPPING MEALS IS A BAD IDEA
Skipping your meals can easily cause you to gain weight. Think back to the last time that you skipped a meal. Did you start feeling shaky or sluggish? It is proven that skipping meals can cause your metabolism to slow down. A slow metabolism can make it easier for you to gain weight. Plus, it makes it harder to lose weight. Plus, skipping a meal can actually make you feel hungrier so when you do eat you are more likely to consume more food than you should have eaten. eat more portions than you should have. It is better to eat a small snack such as yogurt, string cheese, or make a smoothie if you don’t have time to sit down for a meal than to skip a meal.
EXERCISE REGULARLY
Exercise is still important to your health even after you reach your weight loss goal. It not only will help prevent gaining the weight back but it will help keep you healthy. We still recommend that you try to exercise several times a week in order to maintain the health benefits.
KEEP UNHEALTHY SNACKS TO A MINIMUM
Continue to eat the same healthy snacks that you used during weight loss to help prevent you from regaining the weight. Avoid high-calorie, fatty, or foods that contain empty calories such as The Shamrock Shake, candy bars, etc. Instead, look for healthier options like fruits, whole grain crackers, smoothies, peanut butter, or healthy versions of your favorite treats such as this Healthy Shamrock Shake or healthy Carrot Cake recipes. Make a snack with a combination of protein and carbohydrates because this makes you feel fuller.
DRINK PLENTY OF WATER
You should keep reaching for a glass of water throughout the day, instead, of reaching for soda, juice, alcohol, or other high calories drinks. Drinking water has a wide variety of health benefits including:
- reduces fatigue
- improves your immune system
- helps aid weight loss efforts
- flushes harmful toxins out of the body
- improves your complexion
- prevents cramps and injuries
- increases energy
- keeps your body functioning properly
USE MYFITNESS PAL
We use MyFitness Pal, a free app on both IOS and Android, to log all of your food and exercise entries. Logging your food helps keep you accountable even if you aren’t focused on losing weight. It is a great tool for maintaining your weight too. A journal can be used to help troubleshoot any issues with the things you are consuming.
GET ENOUGH SLEEP
Physical activity puts depend on your entire body including your muscles and tissue. Your body is an amazing machine and in order to perform optimally, it needs ample time to repair itself from the day’s demands. The body repairs itself while you are asleep. Getting plenty of shut-eye at night can help keep your weight in check, helps keep your mental game in tip-top shape, and boosts coordination.
MANAGE STRESS
Stress is often a silent killer and most people don’t realize how much stress affects the body. Being able to easily recognize the signs and symptoms of stress can prompt you to take the proper steps to manage it. Unmanaged stress can cause the following:
- weight gain
- increase cortisol
- high blood pressure
- heart disease including heart attack or stroke
- depression
- anxiety
- personality disorders
- arthritis
- illnesses
- and more
Are you currently struggling to maintain a healthy weight? We compiled this list of habits that fit people follow to maintain a healthy weight. It is best to implement these healthy habits in your early 20’s and prevent weight gain.
During the intro to this post, I shared some very personal information about my own struggle with weight gain and my failure to maintain a healthy weight when I was a young adult. Keeping the weight off is easier than losing a huge amount of weight over the years. Over the last 20 years, I have either been overweight or obese and I really wish that I would have done things differently when I was younger.
