Summertime, Summer Body - How I lost 31 kilograms in One Year

It is the end of May, and we are slowly approaching June. Whether you live in Canada, or in Europe, summer means the same thing. Bikinis, shorts, crop tops, and mini dresses. For most, this is the best time of year to show off what you have, and show off that gorgeous summer body. For others, the summer can be a very stressful, and hard time - especially if you are not yet comfortable with your body.

If you are one of the latter, do not fret! For I was exactly in your position two years ago.

At the quite young age of 18, I weighed a heavy, scary, and unhealthy 101 kilogrames. Yes. You read that right. I have been overweigh since I was 12 years old. I was always very large. With that being said, it is a given that I have always had confidence issues. I was always the fattest girl at the beach. I was always the girl who could barely find clothes when I went shopping. Boys and girls alike would stare, point, and laugh at me when I went out. This was especially true when I visited Europe with my family. It was very hard.

One day, on December 28, 2014, I decided that I no longer wanted to be the fat girl. That day I decieded to change my life for the better.

Now that I have changed so much, many people ask me how I did it, and how I did it so fast. And I always answer with the same short and simple sentence. "It is a lifestyle change. " Diets, pills, and all that other stuff is a very temporary fix, and does not have long-term results. A lifestyle change, however, will last much, much, longer, and will in turn make you a much healthier person.

Here, I will give you all my tips and tricks for losing weight, toning up, feeling, and looking the best you ever have.

Losing weight happens in the kitchen. Or simply put, you are what you eat. Losing weight is 95% what you eat, how you eat, and when you eat. The gym can come after.

Here are my best weightloss tips for you:

1. Wake up early, hydrate, and eat a big breakfast. For hydration, drink a glass of lemon water. This will not only hydrate you, but the lemon will give you a good dose of vitamin C, and it will flush out the toxins of your body. Drinking water before eating wll help you lose weight, because you will feel full, and therefore eat less. A big breakfast is important, as it keeps you fuller, longer, therefore, eating less throughout the day.

2. Eat frequent, small, and healthy snacks throughout the day. Although it is important not to over-eat, it is just as important not to starve yourself. Believe it or not, the more you eat healthy snacks, such as fruit and vegetables, the more weight you will lose. Many people are unaware of this, but the more you eat greens, the harder your metabolism has to work. This strengthens your metabolism, meaning that you burn more fat, and you burn it quicker, making it harder for you to gain weight later on.

3. Drink lots of water and tea. I absolutely cannot stress how important it is to stay hydrated. Staying hydrated keeps your body functioning at its best. It helps to flush your body of toxins. It helps to keep your skin young and glowing. It also helps to speed up your metabolism. Water and tea are the best for keeping hydrated. Coffee itself is known as a fat burner. As true as this may be, how you take your coffee can make all the difference. If you must sweeten your coffee, stick to soy milk, almond milk, cashew milk, or cococnut milk, and really try to limit the amount of sugar you put into your coffee.

4. Stay away from juices, fancy coffee drinks, and milk (in North America. ) You cannot imagine all the sugar and bad stuff that goes into fruit juices, and those fancy Starbucks coffee drinks, and those McDonald's milkshakes. So much sugar. If you can, stay away from these as much as possible. This will make a huge difference, and it will put a lot less stress on your body, since those drinks are loaded with things that are difficult for your stomach to digest. As for milk, if you live in North America, I stronly suggest that you try to cut out milk completely. North American milk is, in fact, not even actually milk. It is full of water, puss, hormones, and other really, really disgusting things that no one would dare put into their body. North American milk is loaded with estrogen. This estrogen makes women and girls develop larger breasts, and earlier. Estrogen also makes the body hold onto water and weight, making it much more difficult to lose weight and get toned.

5. Stay away from bad carbohydrates. No one can argue that carbohydrates all taste absolutely delicious. And as tasty as they are, they are also absolutely terrible for that dream summer body. Carbohydrates stick to your body as fat, and are the most difficult to burn off. These include bread, pasta, and potatoes. Try to limit your carbohydrate intake as much as you possibly can.

6. Eat your protein, and eat your fats. Yes, I said fats. Popular to contrary belief, fats do not make you fat. Carbohydrates make you fat. Protein and fat are muscle fuel. These two go straight into muscle, and into your blood, and help to make your body stronger. Do not be afraid of food that is high in fat, as it is actually quite healthy for you. For protein, I usually eat eggs, chicken, turkey bacon, salmon, tuna, and beans. For fats, I usually eat a tablespoon of peanut butter, or an avocado.

7. Stay away from all of these. Really. Just do not touch them. The foods that I will mention below are literally poison for your dream summer body. They are loaded with oils, sugar, carbohydrates, and other unnatural chemicals that end up harming your body over time. If you absolutely must eat them, limit your intake to only a few times a month. Avoid these at all costs: cereals, Nutella, cake, pizza, hamburgers, fries, McDonald's, milkshakes, ice cream, brownies, cookies, milk and white chocolate, and alcohol. Yes, although alcohol is popular amoung young people, it is also extremely high in calories. One shot of vodka has around 90 calories. This is the same as a tablespoon of peanut butter.

8. Do not eat at night. Eating at night is actually one of the main things that are stopping you from losing weight. At night, your metabolism slows down, meaning that everything you eat will stick to you, and it will be that much harder to burn off. This is why it is important to refrain from eating at night. I persoally, try not to eat past 7:00PM. If you are feeling hungry at night, drink water or tea! It will help you digest food faster, and it will also help you wake up easier in the morning, as your brain will be hydrated and ready for the day.

9. Do at least a half hour of cardio each and everyday. Cardio is what actually burns fat. In my opinion, the best form of cardio is running. Running burns the most fat, while also toning your whole body, legs especially, as well as conditioning your heart and your lungs. If you do anywhere from 30 minutes to 60 minutes of cardio a day, you will see a huge improvement in how you look and feel.

Well, these are all my tips for now! I hope that you find them helpful! If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to comment on this post, or send me a private message! I am more than eager to help you all achieve your fitness goals!

Stay beautiful and stay confident!

Mina.

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