Many times, losing weight can feel daunting. It seems like making huge changes in your life like meal prepping and spending hours in the gym is the only way to achieve your goals. Fortunately, that is not how sustainable weight loss works. Making such a drastic change can help you lose weight fast, but it will not be lasting. What we should aim to achieve here is to lose weight and keep it off.

And how do we achieve that? Through making small changes to your existing lifestyle! As you incorporate minor adjustments day by day, you’ll soon begin to see how they can add up to something very significant. The more these adjustments are repeated, the stronger and more automatic the habit will be, and you’ll be more likely to stick to them.

We have seen how powerful a habit can be in my previous article. Now we will specifically look at small habits we can make to achieve sustainable weight loss. Let’s dive right in.

*Filling your plate with protein and vegetables first is one small habit that will add up to something significant.*

1. Weigh Yourself Every Morning

Weighing yourself every morning can help to improve motivation, self-awareness and self-restraint. If you observed that your weight is decreasing, it can be a positive reinforcement to continue to do whatever you’re doing, as you would know that whatever you’re doing is working well. On the other hand, if you see that your weight is increasing, it may be a sign that you are eating too much, and thus you should start cutting back on your calories.

Let’s look at some studies to show how important weighing yourself is. This study showed that daily weighers lost significantly more weight (average of 6.1 kg) compared to those who do not weigh themselves daily. Another study concluded that frequent self-weighing is beneficial for obese individuals. These daily self-weighers lost 4.4 kg compared to monthly self-weighers who gained 2.1 kg.

It is important to know that your intraday weight fluctuations can be as high as 3 kg. For more accurate results, measure your weight right after you wake up, and monitor your weekly average instead of daily average.

*Changes in weight is not everything, but it gives you a good indicator of what actions should be taken.*

2. Place a Full Water Bottle Beside You All the Time

Drinking water may reduce appetite and food intake, and this will help in weight loss. In this study, there was a 13% reduction in meal energy intake for subjects that drank 500 ml of water before each meal. Another study assessed that drinking 500 ml of water increased metabolic rate by 30%. However this study had a small sample size. Finally, this study suggested that increases in drinking water were associated with significant loss of fat over time.

I recommend carrying a 2-litre water bottle with you at the start of the day, and ensuring that you finish it by the end of the day. If not, carrying a 1-liter bottle with you and topping it up at least once a day. Also, drink at least 250 ml of water before each meal.

*Make a habit of carrying a big water bottle with you and finishing it by the end of the day - it will go a long way!*

3. Fill your Plate Strategically during Family-Style Eating

Family-style eating, or buffets, can cause a mindless refill of your plate even when you’re not hungry. You will also not be able to have good sensing of how much food you are actually consuming. This can cause you to eat much more calories than you usually would.

What you should do instead is to stick to your plate of food and once you’re done, refrain from nibbling off food from the dishes on the table. In this way you will be clear of how much food you are consuming. And how should you fill your plate? Add protein and vegetables into your plate first. A good portion sizing for protein is 1-2 palm-sized, and a good portion sizing for vegetables is 1-2 fist-sized. Examples of protein-rich food include meat, poultry, seafood, tofu and eggs. Other foods like carbs can be added on after.

As you can see above, one of the best habits is to add nutritious foods into your diet instead of removing unhealthy food off your list. This prevents the “Unhealthy Diet Mentality” we’ve seen earlier in my previous article. Also, by consuming protein and vegetables first, you will feel full longer and faster, reducing appetite for unhealthy food after.

Another small change you can make is to use smaller plates, which can create the illusion of a bigger portion. This is due to the Delboeuf illusion, where the lack of white space around makes the portion look larger. This will trick your brain into thinking that you will be consuming a lot of food. In this study, participants that were presented food in a smaller container decreased the size of portion they were serving themselves. Try it yourself!

*Imagine these are dinner plates. Which black spot is larger?*

4. Remove all Distractions while Eating Slowly and Mindfully

One of the best ways to lose weight without eating less is to eat slowly and mindfully without distractions. Sounds too simple to be true? Well, there are actually a few studies that agree that slow and mindful eating helps you lose weight by changing your eating behavior and reducing stress. The group that ate slower gained significantly less weight. Furthermore, satiety was higher. If that isn’t enough to convince you, this review of 24 studies concluded that attentive eating can help to aid weight loss.

So yes, it can be that simple. Slow and mindful eating is a powerful tool to regain control of your eating. But how does it work?

Slow eating gives your body system time for satiety signals to kick in.
When you slow down and savor your meal instead of inhaling it, you tend to feel more satisfied and less deprived.
When you chew more and take smaller bites, you get better digestion. This prevents side effects of indigestion such as feeling bloated, sluggish, or out of shape.
You learn what hungry and full feels like.
It can disrupt binge eating patterns. You become more aware of where, where, and how you are binging. And you’re more likely to eat less and stop sooner.

So how do you eat more mindfully? Here are some ways to do so.

Take one breathe, a sip of water or put your fork down after every bite.
Time your first meal (about 20 mins) and add one minute to every meal after.
Put down your remote, relax and experience your meals. Savor it!
Choose food that needs to be chewed (usually minimally processed food).

It might be hard at first, but take some time to master it. You can try to match the speed of the slowest eater in the group. Every meal is a chance to practice. Slow down and enjoy your food!

*Mindful eating is one of the most powerful eating habits.*

5. Avoid Food after Dinner

There are studies that compared eating after 8 pm and the amount of calories consumed. They found that those who ate late at night tend to eat more calories, which resulted in weight gain over time. In this study of 59 participants, people who ate closer to their bedtime tend to eat more calories. In another study, the group that consumed their food between 11 pm and 5 am consumed an average of 500 more calories per day!

Furthermore, late eaters tend to make poorer food choices with low nutritional value. In these 2 studies, participants who ate late at night tend to eat unhealthy food due to convenience.

However, it is important to note that it is not the timing of food consumed that causes this weight gain, but the total amount of calories. A study of more than 1600 children found no correlation between eating after 8 pm and additional weight gain, assuming the calories consumed were kept constant. There were other studies by Baron et al. that is in line with the fact that a calorie is a calorie. It does not change with respect to the time of the day you eat.

Thus, although the calories you consume late at night does not cause you to gain more weight, if you tend to eat more calories and eat food with low nutritional value at night, you might want to avoid food after dinner.

*Admit it - we tend to make poorer food choices at night.*

6. Track your Calories

If you’re doing all of the above but still not losing weight, you should considering tracking your calories, because calories is the only reason why you are gaining weight. You will then know which areas of your lifestyle that needs further tweaking.

Here are some reasons why you should track your calories.

1. It gives you more awareness of what you eat - which foods are calorie dense, and which fills you up fast. It also helps you to learn about the right serving size which can make a huge difference.

2. It takes into account everything you eat, whether it is small licks or bites

3. It gives you more flexibility to choose what you like to eat, as long as you satisfy the numbers. It is contrary to people's misconception that it is restrictive.

4. It gives you clearer and more structured goals to stick to.

In fact, many different studies have showed how tracking calories will lead to fat loss.

Some people are against calorie counting as they think that the quality of food matters more, and you can lose touch with your hunger cues. However, if you listen to your hunger cues, you will not lose weight! By making a change to your body, you have to be prepared to feel hungry at times. And while it is true that the quality of food matters, there is no way around a caloric deficit to lose weight.

That being said, calorie counting is not necessary for weight loss. Many have found success without it. What really matters is creating a calorie deficit to lose weight, even if you're not actively aware of it.

Thus, my recommendation is to use calorie counting as a tool to learn about different types of food, what you are eating, and for accountability. Once you're more aware of your intake and what works best for you, you may not need to do it anymore!