Weight loss magic sauce doesn’t exist. When people hear that Ryan and I have lost over 150 lbs between the two of us, people ask how we lost all of our weight and actually keep it off. They are always expecting us to say some crazy diet or workout that we did to lose weight. Sorry to burst anyone’s bubble here but IT DOESN’T EXIST. There is no magic sauce for weight loss. I’ve tried magic sauce, and I’ve seen others try it, and it doesn’t work for long term weight loss. To lose weight and keep it off, you need to do two things:
- Have a plan
- Be consistent
Sorry that it isn’t more sexy or exciting: just have a plan and be consistent with that plan. Your plan can be any diet or nutrition plan that works for you (and for any smarty pants people, you can’t have a plan to eat 3 snickers bars every day and expect success). Eat healthy food that you like, do exercises that you like, and do those things consistently, and you will succeed. It’s as simple as that.
Don’t be fooled by magic diets. They may work for the short term but are not likely to be sustainable because you can only eat celery soup for so long. People need to realize that their diet and exercise routine may look a lot different than someone else’s and that’s OK. I also don’t believe in a “one size fits all” for diet and exercise. If you hate fennel (is it just me?) then don’t eat it! Eat other veggies that you do like, such as sweet potatoes and spinach. If you don’t think you like veggies, that means you haven’t tried all of them prepared well before (have you tried buffalo cauliflower?). Keep trying, you will find a few you like and eventually your palate will expand and you will like more.
If you hate running (is it just me?) then don’t do it! There are plenty of other workouts that can help you lose weight and keep it off….walk, play sports, yoga, zumba, lift weights, swim, etc. There are so many options to be active, you are bound to find something you like.
So if you want to lose weight and keep it off, make a plan. Figure out how to make your favorite foods in a healthy way. Try out different ways to be active and stick with what you like. Stop buying foods you know you shouldn’t eat; if they aren’t around aren’t likely to eat them. Start scheduling your workouts. Make a plan!
And then just be consistent. Each week come up with your plan. What are you going to eat? How are you going to be active. Each week can be a fresh start. If you “screwed up” over the weekend, brush it off and get back on track. Consistency is key. We all fall off our wagons, the ones who succeed don’t give up and keep crawling back on that wagon no matter how many times they fall. In the beginning it is really difficult to climb back on the wagon: know that it gets easier. If you keep planning and are consistent, getting back on your wagon will get easier and easier and you will succeed.
So how do we do this? Ryan and I talk through our workout schedules each week and decide who is working out when. For food, I build a meal plan for us each week. This includes some more “fun” dinners for the weekends and then I plan a large batch of healthy salads or soups for lunches and dinners for the work week. Our breakfasts are always the same 3 options: veggies & eggs, oatmeal, or yogurt with fruit & granola. Here is our meal plan for this weekend into next week:
- Corned Beef w/potatoes, carrots & cabbage for a fun weekend dinner since it is St. Patricks Day
- Root Vegetable Power Bowls for lunches that are vegetarian
- Maple Dijon Drumsticks with roasted carrots & broccoli
- Avocado & Bean Tostadas for our other vegetarian meal
That is our plan for the week. We will make large batches of the dinners so that we can eat leftovers and not have to cook so much because that works for us. Figure out what works for you!
Having a plan and being consistent is our “magic sauce” to weight loss. We also know that weight loss is a marathon, not a sprint. You will need to push through tough times but the goal is worth it. Keep your eyes on the prize of a healthier you. You can do this. It takes time, but have patience.
Have you found any weight loss magic sauce that works for you?
2 Comments
Maija
I know this is purely antecdotal but I’m just curious to know approximately how often you go off plan on purpose (“tomorrow is my birthday and I’m having a donut for breakfast”) and how often approximately (if at all) you go off plan “accidentally” (one piece of post dinner chocolate turns into four or five, for example). Thank you for all you have shared! 💗
Lindsay
Every weekend 🙂 Seriously. It’s life, it happens, so I plan for it. When we were really trying to lose weight, I would decrease calories more during the “work week” because I knew when the weekend came, we were likely to go out to eat or be offered a donut (seriously, who can say no to a donut?). Part of going off plan is just picking and choosing where we would indulge vs. not and balancing our calories for it. That’s one of the reasons I like using calories for weight loss. You can fit a donut into your calories for the day if that’s what you want to eat that day! I think a big misconception (and a reason a lot of people fail) is that they think it has to be all or nothing. It’s a balance, so have a donut on your birthday (or a random Saturday) and don’t feel bad about it!