A lot of people come to us with unrealistic expectations when it comes to their weight loss goals. I believe it’s important to help them understand what is realistic and healthy when it comes to weight loss. For us, we like to encourage clients to shoot for 1-2 pounds per week. This depends greatly on how committed they are to a fitness and nutrition plan. It’s not always a perfect science either. Some months you lose 8, other months you lose 2. But if you’re consistently trending in the 1-2 pound direction over time, you’re doing great. It’s also these small consistent changes that tend to last longer over time which helps you keep the weight off instead of yo-yoing back and forth. 

With the holidays right around the corner, I know getting healthy is one of the last things on your mind, but what if you could spend the next 5 weeks getting closer to your weight loss goal rather than farther away? Below are 5 steps that could help you lose 5 pounds in the next 5 weeks. And here’s the cool thing about them…anyone can do them! 

So if I wanted to lose 5 pounds by Christmas, here’s what I would do:

1. SLEEP: Determine a time to go to bed and get up each day where you can yes at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep. Stick to this schedule as much as possible. Bonus: try to avoid screens (or wear blue light glasses) and alcohol within 1-2 hours of bedtime.
2. EAT: Consume three meals per day consisting of three key components. Take your plate and fill half your plate with vegetables. On the other half the place take one fourth of it and fill it with lean protein. Then on the remaining quarter fill it with a starchy carbohydrate that is grown from the ground (potatoes, rice, fruit, quinoa, anything grown from the ground and not processed). 
3. DRINK: Drink at least 80 to 100 ounces of water each day. This is equivalent to five to six 16.9 ounce bottles of water you buy in the packs at the store. Consume one with each meal and then consume the other 2 to 3 throughout your day. Avoid consuming sugary drinks and alcoholic beverages as much as possible.
4. MOVE: go for a walk for 30 minutes each day. It doesn’t matter the time of day, the pace that you walk, or whether you do it outside or on a treadmill. Just walk. This is walking as a designated workout not walking throughout your day for your job or other activities. If you are deconditioned and cannot walk for 30 minutes straight, determine the amount of time you can walk continuously under 30 minutes and break the 30 minutes into manageable intervals of time that can get you to 30 minutes total.
5. MANAGE: Find something you can do for 10 minutes each each day that can help you manage your mindset and your stress. For me, this is a daily devotional and prayer time. For others, this can be meditation, reading, taking a bath, or just sitting in silence with yourself. This is not scrolling social media. If you’re using an electronic device, it should be for guided meditation or some sort of tool to accomplish the above goal. Some people do read on their phones or electronic devices or use them for devotional time and meditation, but be careful to set boundaries so that you don’t wander onto things that are not purposeful during this time.

That’s it. Implementing the simple habits above can be done without a gym membership, supplements, or detox cleanse. They’re also just healthy habits to adopt regardless of whether you want to lose 5 pounds or not.

By the way, you don’t have to be perfect at any of these to see success. Even improving 3 of the 5 would get you healthier in 5 weeks. Also, allow yourself to enjoy your holiday festivities. Health and fitness doesn’t have to be an all or nothing approach, and frankly that mindset usually makes it unsustainable. True health and wellness should be a lifelong pursuit, adjusting for changes, adapting as we grow, and fitting it into the lifestyle we’re trying to pursue. This is how we approach health and fitness at MetroEast. If you need more help with those habits above, we’d be happy to sit down and talk about how our coaches help people just like you live healthier lifestyles every day. You can book a conversation HERE.