Let me caveat this by saying, when possible, for weight loss, consistently tracking your weight and consistently tracking your calories is going to be the best way to go about it. However, I know many people don't have a great relationship with the scales and/or tracking calories so I'm hoping to provide you with some simple tips that you can implement that should help you lose some body fat.
The laws of thermodynamics still apply whether you're tracking or not. You need to be in a calorie deficit to lose body fat. There's going to be a lot more guess work which also means you're going to have to be a lot more consistent to know if what you're doing is truly working. So here is your simple guide to losing body fat without tracking calories.
BORING IS BETTER - TRY AND EAT THE SAME THINGS EVERYDAY
By eating the same things everyday it makes it very easy to adjust as needed. If you're not losing any body fat then we can either; reduce portion size/ increase energy expenditure (exercise/step count)/ switch out foods for leaner options. If you constantly switch up what you eat when you're not tracking its a lot more difficult to make adjustments.
PRACTICE MINDFUL EATING
You have to rely on your body's natural satiety cues. For this to happen you have to eat mindfully:
- Eat in an environment with no distractions (preferably at a table with no TV)
- Take your time, chew your food and don't load up your fork/spoon again until you've finished whats in your mouth
- Pay attention to the smells, tastes and textures of your meal
This will all allow your body to know when you've eaten enough.
USE YOUR HAND FOR PORTION SIZE
- Palm sized amount of protein
- Fist size of starch
- Thumb sized fat source
- As much veg as you like
OPT FOR HIGHER VOLUME FOODS
Higher volume foods basically give you more quantity of food for the amount of calories. There are always leaner options that can be made that will provide a higher amount food for lower calories than their counterparts.
PROTEIN - Opt for white meats (chicken, turkey) over red meats, white fish over oily fish.
CARBS - Opt for potatoes over rice or pasta and get loads of veg in.
FATS - Use spray oil for cooking rather than pouring oil in
ITS OKAY TO BE A LITTLE HUNGRY - EAT UNTIL 80% FULL
You want to eat enough that you feel reasonably full but not 100% full. Its okay to be hungry, just as long as these hunger levels are tolerable and it won't trigger a binge.
KEEP EXERCISE MODERATE
High intensity exercise will create a big increase in appetite. It also requires more recovery meaning you need more rest days. This is going to make it harder to keep energy balance consistent. By training more moderately but more frequently it will allow your body to balance energy more effectively and give you a better chance of being in a calorie deficit.
Make changes as needed. But if you feel you can have healthy relationship of tracking food then this will leave you a lot more room for error and adding in plenty of what you like.
Good Luck
Paul
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