S.E.X Weight Loss

Wouldn’t you agree, when it comes to weight loss, it can be:

• Hard to stick too?
• Tedious, difficult and boring?
• And a frustrating lack of results?

Does that sound about right?

Despite countless books and diets, the world still could do with an approach that is realistic, sustainable and successful.

It’s called:

S.E.X Weight Loss!

Firstly let me clarify two things, this is no gimmick, this is my unique take on losing weight but sadly it does not involve having sex. Have I lost you? No wait, stick with me. Let me explain about the sex. I just said above, people need an approach to weight loss they can:

•  S….. Stick to
•  E….. Enjoy it
•  X…..achieve eXceptional results

I will explain the three steps in more detail but first let’s consider why most people struggle to lose weight…

Why people struggle?

The main reasons most people don’t succeed in their weight loss endeavours is because:

• They focus on the day to day details and don’t have a comprehensive plan.
• They don’t get the right information, that suits them – they cherry information pick off social media or the internet or follow the latest fad diet or what  friend or colleague is doing.
• They don’t have accountability or support to keep them inspired and on track.
• They make too many self-justified excuses why they ‘deserve’ treats or alcohol and diminish the significance of it: ‘oh it was only one chocolate muffin’.
• They are not consistent enough and constantly aim to do better tomorrow.
• They don’t enjoy the experience so it becomes hard and boring.

So let’s explore my unique S.E.X Weight Loss approach…

S is for ‘Stick to it’

In order to get results you are going to need to stick to the plan, you need to be fairly consistent. I say ‘fairly’ because most people will have days that aren’t so good. You go to a party, you have a weekend away, it was your birthday – that’s all ok – you have to enjoy life, right – I firmly believe you should. As long as you are making progress most of the time, you will succeed.

So how do you stick to it?

By making it simple – you don’t need to make radicle changes to your lifestyle, you just need to refine it.

Make small, manageable improvements you can sustain and you will be successful.

Simple changes are easier to sustain and sustainability is how you will win big.

Here are simple changes that form the foundation for healthy eating success:

Drink more water

When you are dehydrated you will be peckish and more likely to over eat. Your body has a strong signal for hunger but a weak one for thirst. Quite often when are feeling hungry you are actually thirsty.

Topp tip: Drink a glass of water 15 minutes before eating and again after if you still feel hungry.

Don’t drink your calories

Liquids are the easiest way to overconsume calories as they are easily absorbed and provide little satiety. This means reigning in most beverages and drinking mainly water. Boring but effective.

Topp tip: Switch milky coffees to long blacks or macchiatos, get rid of freshly squeezed juices, yes, reduce alcohol – more on that later – and definitely no soft drinks – with 12 teaspoons of sugar per can!You will save a tonne of calories.

Cut out the crap

The absolute first place to start to improve your diet and reduce calories is eliminating the ‘crap’ – chocolate, sweets, chips, crisps, muffins and junk food.

Topp tip: Don’t have it in the house, you will eat it. If it is not in the cupboard, you can’t nibble on it during Netflix.

Serve smaller portions

It often shocks me the size of people’s meal portions. Quite frankly, some people seem to eat way very big portions. Reduce the amount of food you actually serve yourself. Humans tend to eat what’s on their plate, no more, no less.

Topp tip: Switch from plates to bowls to establish better portion sizes.

Chew for longer

Most people do not chew their food long enough and as a result, over eat. When you chew more thoroughly you enhance digestion, you feel fuller on less and as a result eat less.

Summary: Keep it simple so you stick to it and sustain it. This is how to be successful.

E is ‘Enjoy it’

 The downfall of most diet approaches is that people simply don’t enjoy it, they give up or fall off the plan. So how do you enjoy losing weight?

E is for Exercise

Firstly, you are going to need to exercise.

But exercise is not so much about burning calories as you cannot out run an unhealthy diet, it is more about clearing your head and reinforcing other healthy habits.

One of the biggest obstacles to diet and healthy habit success is stress: long busy, awful days and you get home and you just want to crack open a bottle of red wine, eat a bar of chocolate and watch Netflix, sound familiar?

Exercise is one of the best ways to dissipate stress and feel better so you don’t blow out on the plan and give up your healthy habit intentions.

So rather than a glass of red how about a run or a walk in the park?

You will feel better for it and it’s much kinder to your waistline.

Exercise is essential for weight loss because it not only manages stress, it helps to reinforce your other healthy habits. After exercise, you will be:

• More motivated to eat well
• Less likely to eat ‘crap’
• Have more energy
• Not feel sorry for yourself
• Sleep better

All of which contribute to sticking to your healthy habits more successfully.

Topp tip: When it comes to exercise something is better than nothing and you always feel better for it.

Enjoy it

So how do you go on a diet and enjoy it?

Do not deprive yourself. But this does not mean you give yourself a get out of jail card to eat what you want. You enjoy foods consciously and in moderation with sensibly limits.

Here is how:

Eat well in the week, enjoy the weekend

I believe in eating well in the week and relaxing on the weekend when you are more likely to relax and socialise. But enjoy it in moderation, Just give yourself some breathing space to eat a few of the foods you love or go to dinner without feeling guilty about it. It means you can enjoy going out to breakfast or dinner and socialising with friends without the guilt.

The Compensation method

Sometimes in the week, you will have an evening when you just feel like an ice-cream or some red wine – and that is ok or you may be invited to a social event where it is going to be harder to stick to the plan and you want to enjoy yourself – and that is ok too.

You can compensate for going off plan by:

• Doing an extra workout.
• Going for a long, brisk walk.
• Add in extra exercises to your workout.
• Go a little leaner with one or two meals.
• Have less treats on the weekend.

Don’t be too hard on yourself

Another important component of enjoying your weight loss journey is not being too hard on yourself – and moderating your ‘self’ talk. The reality is, it is not going to go perfectly all of the time. You must allow for this as part of the journey and you must not give yourself a hard time when things do go less favourably.

You are a not a loser. You are not a failure. You just didn’t do as well as you know you should of – and that is OK.

It’s ok to make mistakes and get back on track but also if you find yourself slipping and saying ‘I will do better tomorrow’ too often, it’s time to re-evaluate and really reflect on what’s happening and re-prioritise.

Summary: stick to the plan most of the time and allow yourself allocated time to enjoy foods and socialise without feeling guilty. Be sensible and set limits and do not be too hard on yourself when you don’t get it right – it’s ok.

X is for getting eXceptional results

Many people just don’t achieve the weight loss they truly want, so how do you really achieve eXceptional results?

There are a number of underlying success philosophies that will form the framework for your ultimate success.

Define your ‘WHY’

Any advice on how to eat well or follow a diet plan will be futile without a clear and compelling reason why. You must absolutely define a goal but more importantly the reasons for achieving that goal:

• What will it bring into your life?
• What is the benefit and value of achieving it?
• What difference will it make to your overall quality of life?
• How will you feel if you don’t achieve your goal (again!)?

A clearly defined ‘Why’ is the rocket fuel behind you following through with every single strategy in this article. Without a ‘why’ all the tips and advice is just interesting and not compelling.

Consider brides. They will do everything and anything to lose weight and get in shape for their wedding day. But once that day has come, the motivation to exercise and eat well can often disappear in the wind – why because the goal – the wedding day – and the reason why – look fabulous – has gone.

Defining your goal: What you want to achieve and why you want to achieve it will be the absolute bedrock of your success – and without defining it – you will most likely fail. Harsh words but from experience, true.

Food shopping and food preparation

The fundamental foundation of eating well is to have the right food in the house in the first place and to have some food pre-prepared for busy days ahead.

You must dedicate time to:

• Go food shopping.
• Do food preparation.

I cannot stress how important this is to eating well, healthy habits and sticking to your diet.

Go food shopping to have the right food in the cupboard and fridge and spend time either chopping up some food ready to cook, prepare some lunches or breakfasts in advance or cook up a big batch of food you can put in the fridge or freezer.

Alternatively, you can outsource and use a food delivery company.

You need a wingman

To stay consistent you need accountability and support. On your own it’s too easy to give up and stray off track. You need an independent person to hold you accountable, motivate and inspire you. Typically this comes as a coach but you can also have a support or accountability buddy, someone who is going along on the journey with you. You could even use apps where you can record calories and steps etc but a real human is going to better. It has to be either a coach or reliable friend.

Overcome obstacles

This is the gold.  Along the journey there are going to be things that knock you off track and derail your best intentions. Forward planning for those situations or moments is a key step to success.

Here are the four major obstacles that derail most people:

• Alcohol is not just inappropriate for excess calories, it also disrupts other healthy habits such as quality of sleep and motivation to exercise. If you want to lose weight you must significantly drink less alcohol.
• Sleep, if you don’t get sufficient quality sleep your appetite hormone ghrelin will be elevated and stimulate you to eat more, crave higher calorie foods and not feel full. You must prioritise getting good quality sleep by setting up a positive sleep routine.
• Stress will disrupt your healthy habit intentions by causing you to over indulge and sleep poorly. Prioritise self-care with stress management strategies such as exercise.
• Work will be an obstacle to healthy habits. Prioritise food prep, take lunch and snacks to work, drink plenty of water, get up from your chair regularly and schedule exercise as an appointment.

What’s important is for you to think about what situations, emotions, events are likely to knock you off track and what is your plan going to be in advance?

Think about it ahead of time and you will handle it better.

Your S.E.X Weight Loss Summary

S is for ‘stick to it’

• Stick to it by keeping it simple.
• Simple changes are easier to sustain.
• Sustainability leads to success.

E is for Enjoy it

• Don’t deprive yourself and feel guilty.
• Enjoy foods in moderation, typically on the weekend.
• If you do go off the plan compensate with cleaner more active subsequent days.
• Don’t be too hard on yourself, watch the self-talk. Keep it kind.

X is for exceptional results

• Define your ‘Why’ or you won’t be as motivated to follow through.
• Go food shopping and do food prep, it’s how you are going to eat well.
• You need a wingman to keep you accountable, motivated and inspired.
• Overcome obstacles in advance so you are prepared for the times that are likely to throw you off track. The main ones being work, stress, alcohol and lack of sleep.

Aim for progress not perfection, have a plan, have support, aim for consistency and be kind to yourself and you will get there, I know it.

Find out more:

This article has been a glimpse of my new book: S.E.X Weight Loss. If you are interested to read the full version with every single tip you need to lose weight once and for all and keep it off, please get in touch and I will gladly send you a copy.

About Timo Topp

Timo Topp is a personal trainer, author and speaker. It is my mission and passion to help people live healthier, happier lives. It’s not just about weight loss, it’s about being mentally and physically strong and looking and feeling your best. Timo operates his personal training business in Rushcutters bay park and also delivers workshops and keynotes on workplace wellbeing.