Sharing 5 tips to lose the love handles without missing your favorite foods

Chloe, our Bernese Mountain dog, lost ten pounds this spring. Our veterinarian is thrilled.

Dr. Vicker likes his patients’ lean and he says the same tricks work for their human family members.

It turns out the way to lose those love handles was what our veterinarian suggested for Chloe.

Eat less.

It sounds so simple when you read those seven letters.

I noticed after the holidays my jeans were snug and my waistline had an extra inch (or two) on both sides. Oh wait, were those love handles?

I worked out regularly but started a few bad habits during our extended staycation.

It was time to end a few bad habits like when I quit this one.

5 TIPS TO LOSE THE LOVE HANDLES

And you know what I rediscovered? A feeling I had not experienced in years. Years!

Hunger pains.

Over the past year, I got into a terrible habit of snacking whenever my tummy grumbled. And my 45 Goldfish for 140 calories turned into a half bag of Goldfish …. every afternoon.

Here’s how I lost a few pounds and tackled that love handles.  And I mean a few. I hate to diet and do not do well with restrictions.

Here’s how I did it.

1.  Start every morning with 20 sips (gulps) of water.

Think about it what is the first thing you drink in the morning? If you say coffee this tip will work well with your early morning routine.

While my coffee percolates I drink 20 sips (gulps) of water. I like my water in a glass and so I don’t love a Nalgene bottle. My daughter uses something like this to get her water in for the day.

2. Stop eating  3 hours before bedtime.

This habit snuck up on me. Last year, I would snack my way through an entire Costco-size bag of popcorn while watching Netflix.

Now, I go to bed hungry which was a feeling I had not felt in years. I make exceptions when we have dinner out with friends or family, but I think this tip is the one that jumpstarted my metabolism

3. One glass of wine.

Glass, not a bottle.

Nothing goods happen when I pour a 2nd. Again there are exceptions, but one glass of wine forces me to slow down and drink water.

4. Make less look like more

I have the same breakfast most mornings- one egg + one egg white and 2 strips of turkey bacon. When I purchase my turkey bacon the first thing I do is take my kitchen scissors and cut the strips down the center (of the entire package).

Visually I have 2 strips of turkey bacon. And after a few days, you don’t miss that 2nd, 70 calorie strip of bacon.

I did the same thing with my turkey sandwich. I went from a whole sandwich to a half. And, then I did this to it. I added apples and spinach to my sandwich. It’s so good-even my younger son does it with his sandwiches.

5. Add greens to everything

Now if you are a real foodie this may be unconventional, but I add spinach leaves to many meals. I add spinach to my sandwiches, I layer my plate or bowl with spinach when we have pasta or nibble on spinach leaves as I prep for dinner.

6. Serving Size Chocolate

In my kitchen, I have a drawer dedicate for my sweet tooth. The second I cut out chocolate (or give it up at Lent) I will binge my way through a bag of M&M’s (full size).  . And over the course of the year, I grabbed larger handfuls. Now I pay attention to the serving size and deduct a few M&M’s or my favorite cocoa dusted almonds from that serving size.

I am not a fan of scales. I get weighed at my annual exam and I weigh myself in January.

But there is a little accountability so I do weigh myself on Tuesdays until my habits stuck like a Simone Biles landing.

Now I can’t even imagine not starting my day without 16 oz of water.