Losing weight (or rather body fat) is one of the most common health and fitness goals of millions of individuals each and every year. However, many individuals fail to achieve their respective goal for a number of reasons.
One of the most common reasons cited by individuals who struggle to get the results they want is that their schedule gets thrown out of whack.
This is easy to understand. Most of us are creatures of habit and thrive on structure, routine, and habits. However, when that routine gets disrupted, such as during a business trip or family visit, it can be hard to stay on track with your healthy eating and exercise habits.
Here are 7 ways to get back on track when your schedule is out of whack!
#1 Have a Plan
Mike Tyson famously said, “everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.”
In this instance, your “plan” is your typical daily happenings. Getting “punched in the face” occurs when your schedule gets thrown for a loop.
However, even though your day might get thrown off a bit, that doesn’t mean everything goes to hell in a handbasket.
You can have a back-up plan for those times when you can’t stick to your normal way of doing things.
For instance, keep a stash of protein bars in your desk or mix up a protein shake when you don’t have time to step away to eat your typical lunch or healthy snacks.
It can also be helpful to meal prep during the weekend, so that you have prepared your meals for the work day even when your schedule is incredibly busy and feeling overwhelmed.
#2 Embrace Veggies
We’ve all been reminded (no doubt countless times) about the importance of vegetables.
They’re rich in nutrients, fiber, and water, which not only support health and wellness, but they’re also low in calories. Collectively, this helps reduce calorie intake and promote satiety, which ultimately supports weight loss!
Veggies come in all shapes, sizes, tastes, texture, and colors. This means that there is no excuse for not including vegetables in some form or fashion in your diet.
So, if you don’t like the bland canned peas, green beans or asparagus that your mom forced on you during childhood, then you can find countless other options.
Some of our favorite non-starchy plant foods include grilled asparagus, roasted mushrooms, fire-roasted tomatoes, and crispy Brussels sprouts. This is all in addition to the usual lot of spinach salads, steamed broccoli and sliced raw veggies (carrots, bell peppers, etc.).
If you’re looking for added fruit and veggie support, it may be helpful to consider a greens and reds supplement, such as our Organic Vegan Greens & Reds Superfoods which contains 19 delicious fruits and veggies in every serving!
#3 Don’t Skip Meals
Fasting in some form or other (intermittent fasting, OMAD, warrior diet, etc.) has been en vogue for several years now.
While that style of dieting may help some individuals stick to their calorie and macronutrient goals for the day, it’s not always the best fit for everyone in every circumstance (especially women).
Skipping meals (while it may seem like a good idea in theory) can actually make you overeat when you finally do take time to eat.
Now, this isn’t the case for everyone, so it’s important that you take your personal preferences and biology into consideration. Some individuals thrive on intermittent fasting while others can’t help but count the hours, minutes, and seconds until they can have something to eat.
If you are considering intermittent fasting and looking for help with controlling appetite and cravings, it may be helpful to use an appetite suppressant. Our appetite suppressant is STIMULANT-FREE and contains natural ingredients to help quash cravings and keep you on track with your calorie and macronutrient goals for the day.
#4 Track Your Food Intake
Look, we get it, life happens and you may not always be able to prep your meals, but one of the most effective things you can do to stay on track with your transformation challenge even when your schedule gets out of whack is to track your nutrition.
This can easily be done using the 1UP FItness App which was specifically engineered to make tracking your nutrition easier than ever.
So, even if you have to go out for lunch or can only grab something from the convenience store or vending machine (which may not be on your plan), you can still track what you ate, which will help you stay on course with your fitness and physique goals.
#5 Read Menus
Building off of the last point, you won’t be able to always prep and cook your own meals. But, you can still make wise choices when forced (or choosing) to dine out and track your calories and macros.
When you aren’t prepping your own meals, make sure to always read the menu and see if they list the calories and/or macronutrient composition of the food you’re ordering.
If they do, great! You can log that info into the 1UP Fitness app (just keep in mind that restaurant nutrition information is usually an estimate...at best).
If the given food purveyor doesn’t list the nutrition info of the food they’re supplying, don’t worry. You can still stay on track with your goals by making some smart decisions, such as opting for grilled or baked foods over fried foods or asking for sauces and dressings on the side. One other huge calorie savings is to swap fries (the consummate side dish are restaurants) with steamed veggies or side salad.
#6 Stock Your Freezer
This harkens back to point #1.
If you regularly prep your meals and/or come up with a “back up” plan (as we alluded to earlier), then when things go haywire, you’ll be prepared with some healthy eating options.
In addition to the protein bars and protein shakes we discussed above, another option is to make sure that your freezer is stocked.
A simple way to do this is to take one or two portions from the big batch meals you prep during the week and freeze them in individual containers. This way, no matter what happens, when you get home, you don’t need to figure out what to cook. You have something that can easily be reheated and eaten in short order!
Meals that store and reheat well include various soups, chili, lasagna, and homemade enchiladas!
#7 Stay Active
Whether your schedule is par for the course or in a bunker, one thing that is undeniably beneficial for weight loss is to stay active.
Sure, you might not be able to get your usual 60-90 minute gym workout in, but that doesn’t mean you can’t fit in some physical activity throughout the day. Even something as simple as a few sets of bodyweight squats throughout the day or a 10-minute walk (or two) can do wonders to increase energy expenditure, take your mind off of eating, and support weight loss.
Moreover, physical activity of any kind relieves stress, which aids metabolic and psychological wellness while also helping combat cravings and impulses to binge on unhealthy foods.
