We are bombarded with diets, fitness trends, weight loss pills and wraps and shakes, etc.

It can get to be overwhelming, or lead us to spend thousands of dollars on products and programs that were setting us up to fail from the get go.

Here are my “secrets” for creating lasting change when it comes to your diet and exercise (and overall health).

1. Eat. Food is your friend. Understand what makes up the foods that you eat and aim to include as much whole (think fruits and veggies-raw, lean fresh meats, things that have expiration dates, bright natural colors, etc) food into your diet as possible. If it grows on a tree, in the ground or on a bush–eat it. If it swims, runs, gallops, flies in it’s former life–eat it. If it can sit on a shelf for a decade and never change–skip. 😉
2. Drink. Water, that is. Skip the carbonated drinks, the sugar and chemical laden addictive cans and bottles that line the shelves. And flood your body with good, old, plain H2O. Dehydration, even mild, can and will disguise itself as hunger first–so while you might feel hungry, you probably just need a big glass of ice water!
3. Lift Weights. Don’t be afraid to step off of the treadmill or the elliptical and pick up some dumbbells. Building lean muscle helps to increase your metabolism, build up some nice strong curves, improves posture, reduces risk of injury and can help to reduce pain.
4. Be patient. Good things don’t happen overnight. Healthy fat loss comes at a rate of 1-2lbs per week–so if your neighbor lost 10lbs in a week, chances are her body is completely depleted, she has lost water, some muscle mass, maybe a little fat, and she’s starving. It’s hard to keep weight like that off long term…fuel your body with appropriate nutrients (if you need help figuring out how much to eat, contact me here for customized macronutrient breakdowns), drink LOTS (like more than 3 glasses, something closer to 10-12 is good 😉 ) of water, and include resistance training to build up your lean mass.