Winter Weight Loss Tips

Winter weight loss tips are the most difficult due to the perceived lack of variety of fresh fruits and vegetables at the markets, farmers markets that are closed during winter, the cold weather, and the lack of desire to face the chilly days and exercise! The days are short and dark and the lure of comfort food to ease the winter blues is always looming.

Holiday treats have added a few pounds to many of you. You are motivated to take those pounds off, before wearing revealing summer clothing and horror of horrors, your swimsuit!

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Winter Weight Loss Tips

Some simple winter weight loss tips are:

• Fill up on a Healthy grain hot cereal or a high fiber cereal with dried fruits. Hot cereal choices abound in the bulk bin section at most markets! Get experimental and try new grains that are full of fiber and much healthier that processed cereals. They are simple to cook and pair well with a few almonds, dried fruits, and honey. Cook a huge batch at night in your slow cooker, and a hot breakfast will await you. The remaining cereal will be just as good heated up on following mornings to save time!

• Fill up on herb teas, brewed coffees, Americanos, lower fat lattes, or water! Skip the calorie laden coffee and tea beverages. Many of you find comfort in these calorie bombs and have a standing daily order that your barista knows by heart! One habit like this can add many pounds of extra weight. You could lose a pound a week by heeding this one winter weight loss tip!

• Fill up on the winter fruits! Most people stick with apples, oranges, and bananas during the winter, but branch out and include grapefruits, pomellos, kiwis, pineapple, figs, grapes, pears, and pomegranates! You can make wonderful chopped fruit salads or add fresh fruit to chopped greens for a great winter salad. Start your morning with half of a fresh grapefruit! Get out of your banana rut!

• Fill up on winter vegetables! Many people think that there are few fresh vegetables in winter but cauliflower, broccoli, broccoli raabe, Brussels sprouts, fennel, cabbage, carrots, celery, kale, leeks, onions, parsnips, potatoes, radicchio, radishes, rutabagas, shallots, sweet potatoes, snow peas, artichokes, turnips, and winter squashes like acorn, butternut and spaghetti squash are plentiful! Steam them, bake them drizzled with a bit of olive oil, add them to stir fries, stews, or in salads for extra crunch! Tons of choice!

• Fill Up On Soups! Soups should be a weekly addition to your menu. Frozen vegetables and winter vegetables taste great in soups. Pair them with a variety of meats, beans, lentils, grains, garlic, rice, or pastas, and you have a meal in one pot. Use your creativity and the herbs that you love, for a warm and filling meal! It is imperative that you own a large soup pot and fix a huge pot. Freeze the extras into lunch size servings and you are set with a weeks' worth of healthy lunches!

• Fill up on Crock Pot Chilies and Stews! Pull your slow cooker out of the cupboard. It deserves a permanent spot on your counter top during the winter months! Use it a few times per week! Many winter vegetables blend well to make great stews. A combination of root vegetables and a bit of meat, slow cooked together, will taste delicious and warm up your winter mood. Chilies paired with winter squashes and a mix of vegetables is awesome! Chopped kale can be added to everything! There are many great slow cooker recipes available.

• Avoid your Favorite Comfort Foods! Winter months are gloomy ones and many of you suffer from a bit of season affect disorder! Winter makes you depressed and this makes winter weight loss difficult! It's easy to reach for your favorite comfort foods, to comfort your sadness. The easiest way to avoid your favorites is simply to avoid purchasing the foods that are your go to comfort foods or trigger foods! You know if you buy the salt and vinegar chips, that you will eat the entire bag. It's much easier to pass the bag at the store than listening to them calling your name from your kitchen cupboard! Yes, chips do chat with you!

• Join a gym! If you dislike exercising outdoors and can't consistently motivate yourself to get outdoors and exercise, then join a gym or purchase a piece of gym equipment to use indoors at home! It's boring, but you will feel better because exercise will lift your mood. Another great choice is to purchase a new Wii Fitness game or Zoomba video and rock out, or walk daily in your local mall! Just find something you enjoy doing that will get you moving almost daily!

These are just a few winter weight loss tips that should help you practice healthy diet habits. Healthy eating is not rocket science. You don't need a new diet that requires you to give up all the foods that you love, or requires purchasing expensive out of season fruits and vegetables. Learn to eat seasonal real foods, and make the majority of your meals from scratch!

Happy Winter Weight Loss to All!