1 — Soda / carbonated beverages

This may seem obvious. But soda and most carbonated beverages are just extra calories. That 20-minute walk you took becomes null once you throw back that diet soda. Cut these beverages out of your diet in favor of water.

Bonus tip: Put a glass of water in the fridge over night and drink this as soon as you wake up in the morning. This is more of a mental cue to drink water, the water being cold or not doesn’t really have a big impact on weight loss. But a solid 8–12 oz of water first thing in the morning is always a good thing.

2 — Fiber

The goal is 30 grams of fiber a day. This is not a hard target. Check out the helpful resources above for a table of high fiber foods as well as some tip for eating healthy on a budget!

3 — Processed food

If you’re eating take out several days per week, you’re likely going to hold onto some weight. Take out and fast food are high in fat, carbs, sodium and added sugar. Sure, your food will taste good but it’s wreaking havoc on your body, and your waistline.

4 — Movement, without exercise.

You don’t have to work out 7 days a week to lose weight, but being sedentary for 7 days a week will absolutely help you gain it.

Think about this. There are 168 hours in a week. If you work out 3–4 times a week for 1 hour per session, then you’re only exercising 3–4 hours per week. What do the other 164 look like? Sitting and watching Vampire Diaries? Driving 3 hours to see your girlfriend, and going out to eat? A lot of people like to make excuses for bad eating habits and “I exercise” is one of them.

Try these:

· Get off the couch and take a walk.

· If your job is sedentary, find time to move around through out the day.

· Stretch before bed.

· Have sex. (seriously.)

· Give yoga a shot on non-workout days.

· Walk the dog.

Fill your time with movement, and not sitting and you will most likely notice that scale move down.

5 — Understand there are no cheat codes!

Life is not Grand Theft Auto -Vice City, you cannot up, down, left, right this one. Obesity is a serious health issue that kills up to 365,000 people per year. According to the National Library of Medicine, obesity increases the risks for multiple diseases, such as type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, stroke, breast and colon cancer, and degenerative arthritis. This stuff is serious and you cannot cheat the game here.

Take care of yourself, folks!

Jimmy Crawford, Stoked American Fitness.

Fitness