Smart Eating: Lose 10Kg With A Balanced Diet Plan

Losing 10kg is a challenging but rewarding endeavour. It requires a combination of dietary changes, exercise, and lifestyle adjustments. While it may be tempting to seek a quick fix, sustainable weight loss is a gradual process that emphasises healthy habits and portion control. This approach not only helps you lose weight but also improves your overall health and well-being.

To lose 10kg, you need to create a calorie deficit, which means consuming fewer calories than your body burns daily. This can be achieved by reducing portion sizes, choosing nutritious foods, and incorporating physical activity into your routine.

A well-rounded diet that supports weight loss includes a variety of nutrient-dense foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. It's important to listen to your body's hunger and fullness cues, stay hydrated, and get adequate sleep.

In addition to dietary changes, regular exercise plays a crucial role. Aim for at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise, such as walking, swimming, or cycling, most days of the week. Strength training and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) can also enhance your weight loss efforts and promote muscle growth.

While the journey to losing 10kg can be challenging, it's important to remember that sustainable weight loss takes time and consistency. By adopting healthy habits and making gradual changes, you can achieve your weight loss goals and improve your overall health and well-being.

Eat more fruits and vegetables

Eating more fruits and vegetables is a great way to lose weight. They are low in calories and fat, and high in fibre, vitamins, and minerals. This means you can eat a large volume of food without consuming too many calories, and you'll feel full for longer.

Breakfast

• Add spinach, onions, or mushrooms to your morning omelette instead of an egg or cheese.
• Include bananas, peaches, or strawberries with your cereal.
• Make a healthy smoothie with spinach, apple, carrot, beetroot, banana, cucumber, curd, and honey.
• Alternatively, try a bowl of oatmeal with skimmed milk or homemade curd, and add fruit such as grapes, apples, or berries.

Lunch

• Include plenty of vegetables such as lettuce, tomatoes, or cucumbers in sandwiches, wraps, or burritos.
• Replace meat or noodles in soup with chopped vegetables such as broccoli, carrots, beans, or peppers.
• Swap rice or pasta in your meals with vegetables like broccoli, squash, or peppers.

Dinner

Ensure that vegetables, fruit, and whole grains take up the largest portion of your plate. If they don't, replace some of the meat, cheese, white pasta, or rice with legumes, steamed broccoli, asparagus, or other vegetables.

Snacks

• Opt for whole fruits such as apples, bananas, grapes, blueberries, or steamed green beans.
• Enjoy fruits and vegetables in their raw form to enjoy their natural sweetness.
• Choose fruits and vegetables over high-calorie snacks such as corn chips.

Cooking Techniques and Preparation

• Use fat-free or low-fat cooking techniques such as steaming.
• Season your food with herbs and spices instead of high-calorie dressings and sauces.
• Choose canned or frozen fruits and vegetables without added sugar, syrup, or cream sauces.
• Eat whole fruits instead of fruit juices, as juices have lost fibre from the fruit.
• Be mindful of portion sizes and use a normal-sized plate instead of a large platter.

Remember, it's not just about adding more fruits and vegetables to your diet, but also about substituting them for higher-calorie ingredients. This will ensure you're consuming fewer calories overall, which is essential for weight loss.

Drink more water

Water is an essential part of any diet plan, and staying hydrated is crucial for your health. Drinking more water can help you lose weight in several ways. Firstly, water is a calorie-free beverage, so choosing water over sugary drinks or juices can help reduce your overall calorie intake. Water also helps your body process nutrients efficiently and supports normal metabolism, which is beneficial for weight loss.

Drinking a glass of water before a meal can help curb your appetite and reduce the likelihood of overeating. This is because some people may mistake thirst for hunger, which can contribute to weight gain over time. Proper hydration during and after meals can also promote feelings of satiety, as fluid intake helps move food through your digestive tract.

In addition, staying well-hydrated is crucial for physical performance and recovery. Water helps lubricate joints, regulate body temperature, and transport nutrients throughout your body, promoting more effective workouts. It also plays a vital role in digestion and waste elimination, ensuring that your body functions optimally to support your weight loss goals.

The recommended daily water intake for adults is 3.7 litres for men and 2.7 litres for women. However, this may vary depending on factors such as age, sex, weight, activity level, and climate. It's important to listen to your body and adjust your water intake accordingly.

While drinking water alone may not lead to significant weight loss, it is an essential component of a healthy diet and can support your weight loss journey when combined with other healthy habits.

Exercise regularly

To lose 10 kg, it is important to incorporate regular exercise into your routine. While diet plays a significant role in weight loss, physical activity helps burn calories and boost metabolism. Aim for at least 30 minutes of exercise each day, including both aerobic exercise and strength training.

Aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, jogging, swimming, biking, or using a rowing machine, gets your heart rate up and burns fat. Try to get your heart rate raised by choosing activities that are moderate to high intensity for you. Calculate your Target Heart Rate Zone (THRZ), which is between 60% and 90% of your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR). First, calculate your MHR by subtracting your age from 220. Then, multiply that number by 0.6 and 0.9 to find the lower and upper ends of your THRZ.

In addition to steady-state cardio, incorporate high-intensity interval training (HIIT) into your routine. HIIT involves short bursts of intense activity followed by brief rest periods. This method maximizes fat burning and can be incorporated into your cardio workouts 1-2 times per week. Try basic HIIT routines such as sprinting for 1 minute and then jogging for 2 minutes, repeated 5 times.

Strength training is another important component of your exercise routine. This type of exercise helps increase lean muscle mass and boost your metabolism. Aim for 2-3 sessions of strength training per week, working all the major muscle groups: chest, back, shoulders, legs, biceps, and triceps. You can use free weights, gym machines, or resistance bands, or try bodyweight exercises such as push-ups, squats, lunges, and burpees. For each exercise, aim for 3 sets of 12 repetitions, choosing a weight that feels challenging but manageable.

In addition to structured exercise, try to increase your overall daily activity. Take the stairs instead of the elevator, park farther away from your destination, or take a walk during work breaks. All of these small movements add up and contribute to your overall calorie burn.

Remember, it's important to consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new exercise routine, especially if you have any underlying health conditions. They can provide personalized advice and ensure your safety.

Reduce portion sizes

Reducing portion sizes is a key part of losing weight. Here are some tips to help you reduce your portion sizes:

• Make at least half your plate veggies: Vegetables are low in calories but packed with essential nutrients. By replacing half of the starch or protein in your meal with vegetables, you can eat the same volume of food while consuming fewer calories.
• Eat protein with every meal or snack: Protein increases feelings of fullness more than carbohydrates or fats. Include lean sources of protein such as eggs, skinless poultry, dairy, seafood, fish, beans, bean dips, tofu, and nut butters.
• Drink water with your meal: Drinking water before and during meals can help you feel fuller and reduce the likelihood of overeating. Aim to drink about 2 cups (500 ml) of water before a meal.
• Begin with a vegetable soup or salad: Starting your meal with a soup or salad can help you eat less during the main course. Light vegetable soups and salads are generally low in calories and high in fibre and water, which can help curb your appetite.
• Use smaller plates and utensils: Using smaller plates and cutlery can trick your brain into thinking you're eating more than you are. People tend to fill their plates about 70% full, so using a smaller plate will result in you serving yourself less food.
• Practise mindful eating: Eating without distractions can help you pay full attention to your food and notice your body's hunger and fullness cues. This can help you distinguish between physical and emotional hunger.
• Spice up your meals: Adding hot peppers or ginger to your meals may help reduce your appetite and make you feel fuller.
• Eat more soluble fibre: Soluble fibre helps keep hunger at bay by slowing digestion. Foods rich in soluble fibre include oatmeal, pears, beans, flax seeds, chia seeds, squash, and apples.
• Use a plate as a portion guide: Fill half your plate with non-starchy vegetables, a quarter with lean protein, and the remaining quarter with complex carbohydrates.
• Understand serving sizes: The serving size listed on a product's nutrition label may differ from the amount you should eat for portion control. A dietitian can help you understand serving sizes and how they relate to your caloric needs.
• Use your hands to measure: You can use your hands as a guide to measure out appropriate portion sizes: one palm-sized portion for carbohydrates, one hand-sized portion for protein, one palm-sized portion for fruit, two palm-sized portions for vegetables, and two finger-sized portions for cheese.

Eat lean protein

Lean proteins are an essential part of a weight loss diet. They help your body build lean muscle and boost your metabolism. They also reduce your appetite and make you feel full for longer, preventing overeating.

• Include a serving of lean protein in every meal. A good rule of thumb is that a single serving of most meats is about the same size as the palm of your hand.
• Choose lean protein sources such as skinless chicken breast, fat-free yogurt, beans, lentils, and legumes. These foods are lower in fat and cholesterol compared to less lean proteins.
• If you don't eat meat, there are plenty of plant-based alternatives available. Look for these in the frozen section of your grocery store.
• Aim for a protein intake of 30% of your total calorie intake or 0.7 to 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight.
• Spread your protein intake throughout the day by including protein in every meal.
• Try to vary your sources of protein. For example, have salmon or other omega-3-rich fish one day, then beans or lentils the next.
• If you're struggling to get enough protein, consider adding protein supplements such as whey protein powder to your diet.
• Remember that calories still count, so make sensible choices when picking your protein sources.
• If you plan to add a lot of extra protein to your diet, or if you have liver or kidney disease, check with your doctor first.

Frequently asked questions