Dieting is a $20 billion industry. People are making a fortune off of those wanting to lose weight — us at Wably included. Luckily we’re here to save you some money, because we have a few super easy ways to shed pounds. While none of our tricks and tips will replace exercise in the process (Sorry!), we’re confident that you’ll appreciate the list we’ve put together.
First there is a disclaimer: We’re creating this list based on the assumption that you’re already committed to cutting out unnecessary sugars from your diet. This is diet rule #1. This also means our little guide is going to be completely useless if you break rule #1. In fact, our guide is geared mostly toward cutting carbs in general, because more and more research is pointing to carbs being pretty bad for our waist lines.
Tip 1: Beans, beans, good for your heart
Carbs are a dirty word in the dieting world, and for good reason. So it might seem strange to you that we’re talking about beans. Yes, beans are high in carbs, but they’re also high in fiber and high in protein, which are known to keep you feeling fuller, longer. Some beans are higher in fat than others, and those kinds are going to increase in calories pretty rapidly, so you should try to stick to lentils, black beans, kidney beans and black-eyed peas (Not the band —never the band).
If you’re craving something starchy you should skip the potatoes and choose something like black beans instead. Just one cup of cooked black beans offers 15g of fiber, 15g of protein and only 1g of fat. One cup, however, is a lot, so maybe cut that back to 1/2 a cup to save on the calories.
For a healthy, low calorie and high protein lunch, try 1c of cooked black beans, diced onions, cilantro and a honey lemon vinaigrette. Pair this with leftover roasted chicken breast and blanched green beans. This meal should give you 51g of protein and 15g fiber each, plus it comes in around 650 calories, and keep you full throughout the afternoon — and maybe even into dinner!
Vegetarian? Double your portion of beans and skip the chicken.
Tip 2: Fiber supplements aren’t just for old people
In the last slide we talked about the benefits of fiber in keeping you feeling full after eating, so adding a fiber supplement to your diet is a great tool to help you shed some pounds. When looking for a fiber supplement we recommend wheat dextrine. It’s a soluble fiber, and this is the type of fiber which will benefit you the most. It’s also not a capsule, so mixing it into food isn’t a problem. It is best to take it with food, so plan to add this to the food itself or in water as you’re eating. Since we suggest mixing it into food we think it’s best to stick to an unflavored fiber supplement.
What we recommend is adding fiber to some greek yogurt for dessert or breakfast. Most brands of yogurt now offer a no sugar added option, and this is what you should grab. Mixing in 2tsp of fiber will add 3g of it to your yogurt. If you opted for greek yogurt you’ll also get somewhere between 12-15g of protein. It’s a double win!
Tip 3: Wrap it up
Giving up sandwiches was one of the hardest things for a few of us to do when we started dieting. One piece of bread can be loaded with as many as 25g of carbs, not to mention added sugar to make it taste yummy. So, what we chose instead was a low carb tortilla. Low carb tortillas can come in as low as 3g of net carbs and around 120 calories.
You know that black bean salad we talked about above? Toss it in the tortilla with some chicken. BAM! Delicious and portable lunch. These tortilla are also great for breakfast. Just scramble two eggs, toss them on the tortilla, add salsa and then wrap it up and enjoy.
Now, why low carb tortillas instead of low carb bread? It’s all about net carbs, and because of how tortillas are made the manufacturers are able to increase the amount of fiber and use less flour or corn, which equals lower net carbs. The same can’t be achieved in bread, which will have 4 to 5 times as many net carbs.
Tip 4: This is a Quest
If you haven’t discovered Quest Bars yet you should. Yes, these are supplements, and they’re part of that $20 billion diet industry, but they’re also the only specific brand we will recommend today (Though we aren’t paid to do so).
Here’s why we love them:
- They are delicious
- They are high in fiber
- They are high in protein
- They are low in net carbs
- They are delicious
Most of them are around 4-6g of net carbs, with very little in the way of actual sugars. They’re at least 20g of protein as well, all around 200 calories. One of these bars is going to meet about 60% of your daily fiber need, but more certainly won’t hurt one bit.
Be sure to check the nutrition labels on them, because some are healthier than others. Our personal favorite happens to be the chocolate chip cookie dough, but none of them are disappointing.
Tip 5: Salt-N-Pepper
Salads are naturally healthy. Low carb, high in nutrients and low in calories… Unless you use a ton of unhealthy salad dressing. We already discussed how you can ruin a perfectly healthy salad here at Wably. The most obvious way is ranch dressing, but even some low fat dressings are surprisingly high in carbs and calories, so it’s best to find other ways to add some flavor to your salad.
When choosing a dressing the best option is simple oil and vinegar. For some people, however, this isn’t enough flavor. Our solution? Add salt and pepper! It’s simple, but you might be surprised just how much more satisfying that salad is. Another tip is to add some fresh herbs — Dill and cilantro are our favorites.
Tip 6: Don’t ignore your cravings
If you’re craving something you should eat it.
*AUDIBLE GASP*
We know, this sounds counter productive to your diet plans. Hear us out before writing it off completely.
If you’re craving ice cream it’s your body telling you something, likely that it needs calcium. You can try having other dairy products instead, like simply drinking a glass of milk sweetened with some honey. Or you may need to go ahead and give your body the darn ice cream. If this is the case, you definitely need to grab the no sugar added stuff. It’s there in the store, so just look for it.
If you’re wanting bacon, go ahead and have it. Twice slices of regular bacon will cost you 70-90 calories, and on a low carb diet you can afford the fat content.
Craving a potato? Make some fingerling potatoes and stick to eating only 2 or 3.
The point here is that you’re going to have moments of weakness. Your body is going to give you the middle finger and eventually get you to cave, giving it the naughty foods you know you ought not have. The key here is to listen to your body before those cravings get too loud, or else you’ll likely binge on whatever it is and regret it later.
We all have to be flexible in our dieting or else we’re doomed to fail. It’s important to remember, however, that when you do go to feed those craving to buy only the smallest amount of whatever it is you’re craving. The more you buy the more you will likely eat.
What did you think? Did we get it right? Maybe you have a few tricks of your own. Be sure to let us know in the comments below.
