6 Easy Ways to Cut Calories

6 Easy Ways to Cut Calories

Are you trying to lose weight but the scale isn't budging? You probably feel like you've tried everything, especially when it comes to your diet. With so many different diets on the market and so many opinions on social media, you can be sidetracked by it all. When you get caught up in the hamster wheel of dieting, jumping from one diet to another can quickly backfire on you, leaving you either plateauing or gaining. Nobody wants to end up here.

I know you've read raving reviews about how excellent this diet is or that diet will melt the fat right off of you. Some of this is true, but you want to know what it is that makes a diet work or not work? Calories. Yes, that's it. There are no perfect diets that will work better than another, other than the fact that when you track your calories and stay within your calorie window, you will have success.

Calories in and calories out. That's the final verdict on how you're going to either lose or gain weight. A diet that's high in fat, low in carbs, intermittent fasting, no sugar diet and whatever else is out there, at the end of the day, if you're tracking calories and coming up calorie deficit, it's the right diet for you.

With calories being the main factor in losing weight, you need to know HOW to cut back on them so you can lose weight while still feeling full. Nothing is worse than walking around all day feeling starved to death. Food is your fuel, and if you're not getting enough calories, that can be just as detrimental as getting too many. You must find the correct amount of calories that your body needs to function correctly, without putting a strain on your organs. Who cares if you lose weight if your hair is falling out and your skin is a mess.

Learn how to consume calories, so you feel satisfied, and you will be well on your way to losing weight. There are many simple ways to keep your stomach full and cut back on your daily calorie consumption. You'll need to play around with your diet to see what works best for you. There are a million different ways to count calories, and being willing to try new foods will be critical to your weight loss goals.

INTERMITTENT FASTING

Many will tell you that intermittent fasting is the ticket to losing fat and decreasing your weight. Yes, but not because there's some secret weapon that intermittent fasting does for your body. So why do you see so much stuff online about how amazing intermittent fasting is? It is only a tool to help you lose weight and controlling your calorie intake.

I do intermittent fasting every day and have for a couple of years. Did I lose a ton of body fat because of it? No, but it has helped me with the placement of my meals daily so that I am more capable of controlling my calorie intake. That's it. I love fasting, and I'm a big advocate of it, but not because it's going to transform your body into something incredible.

What it will do is help you plan out your food, keeping you more aware of your calories by shortening the amount of time in a day that you eat. Here's how it has worked wonders for me.

I'm not hungry in the mornings. I am more of an evening eater. I don't think about food until someone around me begins to eat. I'm also like a cow. If you let me out to graze all day, I will feed all day. Intermittent fasting gives me a window in which I need to eat, and once that window closes, I'm done — no more eating. Therefore, I'm not grabbing food as soon as I wake up, and because of my love for nighttime eating, I'm able to eat up until I go to bed.

If you've read that your body is burning more fat during your fasting or your body burns more of your food for energy after a fast, it's simply not true. Scientists have shown time and time again that controlling your calorie intake is what makes your body lose weight.

GREEN VEGGIES

I'm sure you've heard your entire life, eat your vegetables. As children, we cringed at the sight of dark, green veggies on our plate. As an adult, you need to change your view of these beautiful foods. Not only are vegetables great for our bodies, but they are very filling and full of fiber, leaving you feeling fuller longer.

Your body is made up of a million cells, and they depend on you filling up on nutrients, that come from healthy food choices. Cells continuously develop and die throughout the day, and the better you're fueling your body, the stronger the cells are. Think about your eye health, organ health, everything inside your body depends on nutrients supplied by you, so fill up on those veggies.

Filling your plate up with lots of veggies will keep you from feeling deprived, and you'll last longer until the next meal, avoiding the temptation to sneak snacks. When your stomach is empty, you'll most likely pick unhealthy snacks, robbing you of reaching your goals. Pick a variety of green veggies, so you don't get bored and begin dreading them. Have them cleaned and sliced up so you can grab those as a snack if hunger does hit.

MAKE WATER YOUR BEST FRIEND

Drinking water can be one of the most beneficial things you can do for your body. Water keeps you hydrated, energized and your digestion system running smoothly. Your body is mostly made up of water and depends on it to function correctly. Your skin, hair, organs, and tissues all depend on adequate amounts of water.

If you're yawning and feeling like you need a nap, grab a bottle of water and start chugging — most of the time, we mistaken dehydration for sleepiness. Feeling extremely tired is usually a signal from the body that it needs hydration, so try this trick, and you might be surprised by how often you allow your body to become dehydrated.

When your stomach begins to growl and rumble, don't pick up food right away. Instead, grab a bottle of water. Again, most of the time, you're missing reading the signals from your body. You think it's hungry when in all actuality, it's dehydrated. After you drink your water, take note of much the hunger pangs have dissipated.

By filling up on water, instead of food, you'll save a ton of calories throughout the day. Use water to hold you over until your next meal. Here's another trick I use every night before dinner. I drink an entire glass of water while I'm preparing my food or waiting for my food at a restaurant. You won't begin your meal, feeling starved, preventing you from overindulging with the food on your plate. You may even not be able to finish the meal.

SLOW DOWN AT MEAL TIME

I used to be bad about diving into my meal like it was the meal I was ever going to have. I'd eat it all, in record time, even when I'm not in a hurry. No one could finish their plate before me. I'd finish feeling stuffed and bloated, but I'd repeat it at the next meal.

Here are two reasons why you need to stop eating your meal at a record pace; you're not allowing your brain enough time to signal to the stomach that's it's full and your opening yourself up to grazing on more food by finishing before everyone else, especially when eating out.

When you're out to eat, and you finish your plate first, and your stomach doesn't know yet that's it's full, you'll instantly start picking at others plates. If they have fries, you'll sneak a few of those. If the appetizer is still laying there, you'll feel the need to finish it off. Trust me; I've done all of this.

If you're at home and you quickly finish your plate, you'll decide that it wasn't satisfying and you'll begin to convince yourself you need more. Even if you don't instantly start eating others foods, you'll leave the table confident you didn't get enough to eat, and you'll set yourself up for the rest of the evening, craving more food. Our minds can create issues that are not really there.

Slow down, enjoy your meal, and allow your body to realize it's full. Slowly chewing your food will keep you from gorging on food and leave the meal, feeling bloated and disgusted. When you do finish, don't let your mind instantly start thinking about the next meal. Drink a glass of water and go for a walk.

PREPPED FOOD

If your pantry and cupboards are filled with carb-loaded foods, like chips and pretzels, you're setting yourself up for going overboard on your calories. When you're super hungry, you'll naturally grab whatever is there, ready to eat. It takes work and discipline to lose weight, especially when it comes to food choices.

Be sure to get to the store and stock up on lots of fresh fruits and veggies. Cut and clean, so they are ready to grab and eat. Choose lean proteins, cook, and place in storage containers and limit your high-calorie snacks. Look for lower-calorie treats to keep you from going over on your calories. I like to buy plain popcorn and add no-calorie seasonings.

Most are busy preparing their food on Sundays, so they're ready for the week and where the biggest pitfall is when Thursdays come, and they're running low on their prepped food. Be sure to either buy and prep enough food for the entire week or plan to grocery shop mid-week, so you're not giving in to bad food choices simply because you ran out of prepped food.

DRINKS

So many people are very accurate in calculating their calories for all the food they consume throughout the day but forget about the drinks. Drinks can be loaded with calories. So many drinks on the market appear as if they are super healthy to drink, but if you look at the food label, there are calories listed. Pay close attention to the serving size. Some of these drinks will say only one hundred calories, but if you drink the entire bottle, there are two serving sizes, leaving you drinking two hundred calories total.

On the weekends, some people enjoy a mixed cocktail or a few beers. These can come with a significant calorie amount, especially if you consume several. When you want to lose weight, you can't lose sight of your goals, even on the weekends. If you're doing this every weekend, your goals will be pushed further and further down the road. It's ok to enjoy one or two on occasion, but you don't want to fall in the habit of drinking every weekend, all weekend.

To reduce your calorie intake, choose water as much as you can. If you currently drink soda, several a day, switch a couple or all to diet soda. If you drink sweet tea, start cutting your sweet tea by reducing the sugar amount you add. Slowly wean yourself from the sugar. If you can't stand tea without sweetener in it, add artificial sweetener. Now I know that you've heard terrible things about artificial sweeteners, but look at scientific research studies, and you will find that, factually, they're not bad for you. Too much of anything has an adverse effect, so don't rely entirely on artificial sweeteners.

WATCH YOUR TOPPINGS

So many people thinking they're choosing healthier options when it comes to nutrition, but are frustrated due to the lack of weight loss. It's frustrating when you're working hard on losing weight, and nothing happens. So if they're eating great, why doesn't it work? I call it "calorie denial." They think they're making great choices, but not counting all of the actual calories they're consuming.

The toppings you choose for your food add up big, and they add up quick. You must count what you put on your sandwich, potato, pancake, or anything you eat. From mayo to dressing and syrups, there are calories in almost everything. Being aware of serving sizes is the only accurate way of knowing how many calories you're consuming. You must weigh and measure everything.

You can't squirt mayo on your sandwich and think you know how many calories there are in the sandwich. Now, this may all sound very over the top and obsessive, but if you're super serious about losing weight, you have to be serious about your nutrition, and that means, counting all of your calories. Open your mind on how you can either avoid these toppings all together or choose low-calorie options. There are so many different companies on the market now with low-sugar, low-calorie, or no-calorie options. Shop around and get creative. There are a million options.

The number one way to lose weight and keep it off is to keep your calories on point. If you're continuously going over on your daily calorie total, you'll gain weight, quickly. You don't need to starve yourself to lose weight, and by doing so, you'll end up doing more harm. You want to keep your metabolism healthy and robust, and knowing your daily calorie number is vital to reaching all of your weight loss goals.

Be patient with your journey and use these simple tips to cut the calories back, so your body is functioning well and burning fat. Look for ways to reduce the calories, slowly, and never partake in a rigid diet, depriving yourself of everything you love to eat. Make room for those snacks you enjoy. Life is short, and no way should you be miserable to lose weight. You can reach your goals by maintaining a healthy, well-balanced diet.

Be sure to track everything you eat and drink, so you always know where your calories are coming from. Plan ahead of time, and get creative with your food. You have to find a way to love your diet still and see your body transform. If you're too restrictive with your calories, you'll be sure to fad away from your nutrition plan and all of your goals.

If you need some fun, simple ways to keep you on track and inspired, please sign up below to be on the inside loop of tricks and tools too fast track you to all of your goals. I'd love to be a guiding light on your path to greatness.

Aimee Schwinabart is the founder of The Purely Fit—online workouts, nutrition, and fitness coaching that actually work! She specializes in short (super effective) daily workouts combined with customized nutrition plans to help real people shed excess fat to reveal toned, lean muscles. The Purely Fit approach to looking and feeling great prioritizes small, steady, super efficient workouts and nutrition upgrades to help you stay with it once and for all!