Yaaaay!!!

You’re finally deciding to take your body and health in your own hands and jumpstart weight loss!

You go, girl!

I’m super excited about that, you’re one step ahead to your dream body!

And the fact that you’re reading this – it means you’re preparing for this the right way:

By finding out what’s in front of you, and learning how to deal with it.

That’s the best way to jumpstart weight loss journey, to learn a couple of things that can make your expectations and goals real.

And these things are probably something no one would tell you, when they’re actually a big deal.

These tiny details that will turn out to be pretty helpful when you look back one day, will definitely save you time and give you a proper heads up on your fresh start.

That’s why I’m listing the 20 things I wish I knew before I started getting fit and jumpstart weight loss.

Let’s get started right now!

20 Things You Have To Know Before You Jumpstart Weight Loss

1. This Process Will Probably Take Some Time

It’s not an overnight transformation – it takes time, commitment, and hard work.

It takes around 4-6 weeks for you to notice the first change, and not to mention reaching your goal – probably months.

Just be patient and remember: anything worth getting does not come easy.

2. You’ll Feel Hungrier Than Before

Well of course you will.

The more you drive your car, the more gas it needs, right?

Well when you workout your body also needs more food to fuel more activity.

Especially when you’re just starting in the gym – your body is in shock.

You’re suddenly starting to “waste” this extra energy on a daily basis and your body is probably alert, telling you to eat more.

When I first started working out, I was feeling so hungry I couldn’t even wait for my dinner to cook.

That’s totally normal and you shouldn’t fear this, as long as fuel it with healthy and clean calories.

So, make sure you fuel your body with the nutrients it needs

3. Yes, Your Boobs Will Get Smaller

At least mine did.

And my friend’s.

Breasts usually get their size from fat tissue, since they’re mostly fat.

So, as any other part of your body that has excess fat, your breasts shrink as you lose weight too.

And that’s a good thing since they’re probably the first indicators that you’re on the right path of losing weight, so you should think about it that way.

You can tone them and shape them with proper workout, but you cannot make them bigger.

20 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Got Fit And Jumpstart Weight Loss

4. You’ll Probably End Up With Some Loose Skin Too

But, the good news is you can always do something about it.

Don’t be afraid to lift up some weights and build up some lean muscles to fill your body with.

That way, you’ll minimize the chances of having to deal with loose skin at all, while toning some sexy muscles.

That’s why workout and dieting are always recommended as a pair.

5. Don’t Believe Everything You Read

I ran on a “fact” just the other day, it said:

“Eating chocolate cake for breakfast can help you lose weight”

how to jumpstart weight loss - false facts

Wow, really?

How?

Because I know for a fact that not only chocolate cake itself but the fact that you’d have it for breakfast will do you only harm to both your health and your weight loss efforts.

And you can imagine how many people have read this, believed in this and tried it?

It’s so sad since I have so many girls come to me and say they’ve tried everything and they can’t seem to lose weight.

That’s because of the misleading info so many magazines provide nowadays.

So always double and triple check your sources and never ever believe something without checking if it’s really true for a fact, first.

If it sounds like it’s too good to be true, it probably is.

There are no magic pills, no magic solutions, fast fix-ups, and shortcuts – I’ve tried them all they don’t work.

So, always double, even triple check everything you read.

6. Get Ready For Stretch Marks

Stretch marks are caused by a sudden gain or loss in weight.

Depending on the skin’s ability to stretch, they usually happen when you first start losing weight.

So, even If you have stretch marks now, you can sure gain a few more as you lose weight.

The good news is you can prevent that from happening.

You can use creams and gels that help your skin get more elastic and not break.

It improves the skin elasticity and helps to heal the appearance of stretch marks and maintain flawless and beautiful skin.

But, the truth is, when they actually happen it’s nearly impossible to get rid of them completely.

I have lots of them especially around my tights, but I always tell myself one thing:

“My body is not ruined. I am a tigress who has earned her stripes.”

stretchmarks

7. 5 Minute Workouts Are Not Enough

In the first 5 minutes of your workout, your body burns sugars and carbs.

5 minutes should actually be your warmup, and that 20-30 minutes the actuall workout when your body enters the fat-burning zone and start burning actual body fat.

Now, think about it the next time you come across a 5-minute abs workout.

5, even 10 minutes a day won’t make a dent if you’re trying to seriously lose weight.

8. You Can’t Out Train A Bad Diet

As I explained in my latest post “Diet Vs. Workout – What’s more important?” diet is the most important thing when it comes to weight loss.

A common-sense rule would be to eat whatever you want, as long as you make sure to burn the calories afterward, right?

But, it turns out it’s not that simple, because our bodies are more complex than that and it’s not all about that simple equation: Calories in vs. Calories out.

You can’t exercise and think that allows you to eat whatever you want and you most certainly can’t lose weight if you’re constantly making bad food choices, no matter how hard you work out.

Exercise can only compliment your diet but never replace it.

If you are not sure how to eat healthy, head on to check out my 28-day meal plan Burn Baby Burn.

20 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Jumpstart Weight Loss

9. It’s All About Changing Your Mindset

Of course, setting up an eating plan that works for you and burning out tons of calories in the gym is really important.

But it’s all “pointless” if your mind doesn’t change.

You will lose weight and get healthy, but the moment you stop your diet and get back to your old habits, you’ll gain them back.

Once you lose weight, you’re going to have to watch what you eat for the rest of your life if you want to maintain it.

So what you have to aim for is not only changing your body but changing your mindset too, to think and act healthy.

And you can do that by constantly learning about health, learning about unhealthy food, workout and changing life.

Once you decide you’re doing this for yourself and not for the summer body, you’ll never lack motivation, inspiration, and self-control again.

10. There’s No Reason To Fear Muscles

The thing almost any girl, including me, believes when she first starts working out:

“If I lift weights, I’m going to bulk up.”

Well girls, you can’t bulk up, even if you’d want to.

You are not a male – you are a female and you don’t have the same hormones as men do.

You have no idea how hard it is to build muscle mass with the estrogen levels we girls have, so don’t fear ‘bulking up’ cause it’s nearly impossible.

With strength training you can only tone your muscles, look sexy, curved, and maximize the weight loss.

Remember, the more muscles you have the more calories you’ll burn.

how to jumpstart weight loss

 

11. You’ll Be Surrounded By Unhealthy Food

You should know this right from the start and should prepare to deal with it, because that’s probably one of the worst things that can happen to your diet.

Every one of your friends will eat fries and donuts in your face, and you are going to say NO.

You should prepare yourself to eat differently and to be happy with it, since in an environment where junk food is all around us, that’s the biggest challenge.

This should not be your setback, but your biggest obstacle to overcome.

Eating well is a form of self respect, so don’t let others food choices come in between.

12. Your Period Can Be Late

No need for anxiety attacks, pregnancy tests, or trip to the doctor – if you’re late, it’s probably because you recently started working out and losing weight.

Especially if you have a regular cycle, you can experience a period iregularity but that’s really nothing to worry about.

Here’s why:

Exercising is draining on your body.
Menstruation isn’t vital to occur in order for our bodies to survive.
The main point of menstruation is to reproduce.
When we exercise, our bodies go into a survival mode and may shut down unecessary functions in the body(menstruation) to save energy to keep our bodies going in it’s current condition.”

– Erin Weiss, Live Life Active

So, no need to worry, girls!

13. Food Labels Are Pretty Important

I can’t even count the products I consumed on daily basis because I thought were healthy, but turned out to be not so much.

In an environment as this one nowadays, where you can find words like “Diet” and “Healthy” stamped on junk foods, reading food labels is crucial.

Food manufacturers will do anything to sell their product, but the label is where they have to tell the true value.

So learn to read food labels and never be tricked into going for the “low fat” product, which turned out to be low in fat but high in sugar, which is worse.

14. Planning Can Help You Lose Weight Faster

If only I had planned everything before starting off with my fitness journey.

It would have saved me some time :)

In order to make the most out of everything you do, you should plan everything right.

Planning your meals, so you can make them right, planning your time, so you can always make it to cook your food and workout, and planning your workouts, so you can get the most out of them.

This is important because otherwise you will be lost and confused, and always rushing through everything you do.

Without a proper meal and workout plan, you can only slow down the progress, so make sure to plan everything before you jumpstart weight loss.

20 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Got Fit And Jumpstart Weight Loss

15. Cardio Machines Are A Bummer

And you really don’t need to use them at all.

They provide a low steady cardiovascular activity that’s going to take you hours to even tap into that fat burning zone.

Instead, do HIIT.

The intervals work amazingly in spiking your heart rate up, keeping you in the fat-burning zone even hours after finishing the workout.

Check out my 28-day HIIT based workout program, Burn Baby Burn.

It’s only 20-30 minutes a day, and will provide you amazing results.

16. You Should Eat Your Meal 2 Hours Before Working Out

Exercising hungry will make your workout feel even harder than it is, and exercising on a full stomach can leave you feeling uncomfortable during the whole workout.

So make sure to leave at least 2 hours for your food to digest properly, but never more than 3 hours.

17. You Will Feel Tired

I know I did.

I felt great for most of the day, but then right after I finished my workout I was so tired.

I was just thinking about getting some rest, it was so exhausting for me.

Of course, this changes as your body adapts to your new lifestyle, but at the beginning you may feel unusually tired and that’s totally normal.

18. Eat Something Immediately After Your Workout

Hunger is your worst enemy when it comes to post-workout.

Your muscles are pretty hungry and you should replace the glycogen stores in your body quickly and effectively in order to not risk muscle loss.

This is why you should always make sure to repair them with fuel as fast as you finish your workout.

Don’t keep your muscles waiting and try to eat a snack within the first 15 minutes after finishing your workout.

You can take a protein shake along to the gym with you, some nuts, a protein bar, or any other protein snack you can think of, so you can have something as soon as your workout is over.

19. Drinking Water While Exercising Is Not The Best Idea

I was always feeling extremely thirsty while exercising.

But then again, I was feeling uncomfortably bloated when drinking water during my workouts.

Especially when I was performing challenging workouts such as squats, or jumping exercises during my HIIT movements.

I couldn’t do it with it, yet I couldn’t do it without it neither.

It was not too long ago when I figured it out: If I hydrate properly throughout the whole day, I wasn’t that thirsty during my training sessions.

Then, I’d take small sips while exercising, just to water my mouth.

If you have proper hydration daily, you won’t have to worry about being thirsty and compromising your workouts overhydration.

20. Fats Won’t Make You Fat

While the name probably scares us all, it imply the opposite.

Fat is not our real enemy.

Low-fat foods are actually a huge roadblock to your success, as they’re highly processed, contain unhealthy ingredients your body doesn’t really need and can be a huge setback.

You just have to know the difference between good fats and bad fats and you’re all set.

A guide to healthy fats is also included to my new e-book coming soon, together with tips on choosing the right oils to cook with.

Ready, Set, GO!!!

Now you’re ready!

I hope I helped you get ready for your weight loss journey and set some basics that you should be aware of.

The truth is, only with proper preps, you can be fully ready, jumpstart weight loss and welcome every challenge crossing your path with open arms.

I wanted to describe this journey as it really is, long, hard and filled with tricks and obstacles.

It’s not everything as you think it will be, or as you read that it is, but one thing’s as it is for sure:

Anything is possible!

You just have to want it bad enough.

If you like the 20 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Started Getting Fit – Tips To Jumpstart Weight Loss, don’t forget to share them with your friends!

You go girl!

 

 

If you like my article 20 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Got Fit And Jumpstart Weight Loss, don’t forget to share it with your friends!