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Losing weight is a challenge for anyone. The journey itself teaches you so much about yourself and what you can achieve. It's important to set yourself up for success even when you've reached your goal. You've just done all this hard work and you'll want to make sure you keep the weight off. Follow these simple tips to help keep your weight in check. 1. Workout Each Day - Just because you've lost the weight doesn't mean you can stop working out. One of the keys to maintaining weight is to continue to be active. It's easy to burn off a few extra calories by moving each day. Keep in mind, activity for weight maintenance is a different story then when you are still losing weight. We use daily fitness in maintenance mode to keep our bodies in check, condition the heart and lungs, improve strength and endurance and keep our calorie intake/expenditure in balance. 2. Remain Fully Hydrated - Hydration, hydration, hydration! This is something important even if you aren't concerned about weight loss or maintenance. Staying fully hydrated helps keep your body in balance by allowing you to function optimally. Your metabolism is supported by your hydration level because your body can not fully turn the food you eat into energy you can use without enough fluid in your body. In addition, we can't perform at our optimal level as a small amount of dehydration leads to energy loss. This means we can't burn as many calories that we would want to if our maximum energy output is less than it should be. Drink your water on a daily basis to make sure you can burn those calories! 3. Control Your Portion Sizes - Did you really think that just because you are off the diet that you can eat everything you want? Sorry, the truth is that you still need to keep your portions under control. It is a great idea to at least have a mental food log in your head each day. Continue to journal food if it helps you stay on track. Weight maintenance is the time where you don't have to be as critical about what you eat but you need to keep your portions in check, continue to make healthy choices and keep a healthy lifestyle mentality. 4. Plan Ahead - Most nutritional slip ups happen when we are not prepared. In weight loss, having a weekly plan both nutritionally and fitness wise is a key element of success. It is equally important in weight maintenance. Make sure to map out a plan each week and adhere to it as best you can. Have your fridge stocked with lean protein, lots of fresh fruit and veggies as well as healthy whole grains. Schedule fitness just as you would a work meeting. Don't beat yourself up if you don't stick to the plan 100%. The idea is that you have the framework for a healthy week and being prepared will lead to much greater success than if you didn't have one in place at all. 5. Treat Yourself - The days of deprivation are done! This doesn't call for a free for all in terms of guilty pleasure foods. It does call for allowing yourself those treats that you love. Have a glass of wine on the weekend and even a dessert if you're craving something sweet. Grab that burger or fish tacos that you've been thinking about for three weeks. A treat once or twice a week will help you stay on track in the long run. And don't feel guilty - you deserve it!
Margot Rutigliano is the owner of Vita Vie Retreat. She has been a fitness trainer, wellness coach and healthy living adviser since 1999. Vita Vie Retreat is a fitness retreat offering healthy lifestyle transformation programs for men and women of all ages and fitness levels. For more information or to contact Ms. Rutigliano, please visit http://www.bvretreat.com.
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