People have been trying to lose weight in different ways for decades. They have tried diet pills, fad diets, various fitness programs and activities, and sometimes even surgery. While some people have seen success, many have not. One of the major reasons why is that it’s very difficult to indefinitely adhere to many of the strict guidelines the above options require.
Like most things in life, trying to make extreme changes to meet a goal instead often leads to extreme failures. Starting small and building off minor wins on the other hand can have a snowballing effect. When discussing how to lose weight, the same concept often holds true.
One easy way to start your weight loss journey is to introduce honey to your diet. But, it’s not just adding honey, it’s how you add the honey that matters.
You’re Probably Not Eating Enough Honey
Honey is extremely sweet. And, people who are trying to lose weight usually avoid it as they place it in the same category as sugar. Yet, here are a few ways adding honey to your diet can actually assist your weight loss plans.
Honey with Lemon
A very simple lifestyle change almost anyone can make is to start your morning with a mug of water with lemon and honey on an empty stomach. Though it’s not completely understood why, this morning combination has aided many people during their weight loss journeys.
Lemons are very rich in vitamin C. That can help both promote a healthy immune system as well as kick-start fat loss during exercise.
Honey is a natural sweetener. But, unlike most other sweeteners it also has nutrients in the form of trace vitamins and minerals, especially raw honey. Plus, it only takes a little honey to get a lot of sweetness.
How the combination works in regard to weight loss is a bit of a mystery. But, some theories are that by drinking honey and lemon water instead of sodas and sweet teas actually reduces your caloric intake while proving you with more nutrition. It also helps you stay hydrated, which is important as dehydration can lead to difficulties with maintaining a healthy weight.
Say Goodbye to Sugar
One of the most difficult aspects of dieting for many people is going cold turkey on sweet foods. While they may be able to maintain it for several weeks or even a few months, they almost always relapse at some point. But, what if you didn’t need to cut out sweet foods from your diet entirely?
It’s easy to see why people like sugar. It makes coffee, tea, and baked goods sweet and delicious. However, aside from that, sugar doesn’t offer any other real benefits while it does come with some downsides like adding empty calories to a diet.
If instead, you swapped out the sugar for honey, you could still enjoy a touch of sweetness. However, you’d get some nutrition too. The real benefit however is that although honey has more calories than sugar when compared gram to gram, honey is so sweet that you need to use less in your foods and drinks.
That means, by simply using honey instead of sugar in your morning coffee and using honey instead of sugar in any of your recipes, you can cut thousands of calories out of your diet over the course of a year.
Honey Before Bed
In almost all weight loss plans, eating before bed is off-limits. But in one diet, specifically, something called the Hibernation Diet takes a very different approach.
The general idea behind the Hibernation Diet is that people who do not sleep well are more likely to have weight problems than those that do. One of the key causes for poor or restless sleep is when there are problems with the REM cycles, which actually burn a lot of energy. If your body does not have enough fuel stores in its liver, it can release stress hormones.
So, in order to prevent excess stress hormones from getting released into your bloodstream during REM cycles, your liver needs some stored energy. That’s where honey comes into play.
Honey has both the calories and nutrients needed to appropriately fuel your REM cycles. A spoon full of honey before bed can literally make you sleep better.
Wrap Up
Most conventional thinking in regard to weight loss suggests people shy away from anything too sweet and calorically dense. But, with most blanket statements and beliefs, there seems to be some wiggle room.
Honey, when used properly and in the right quantities, can actually aid in your quest to shed pounds. You can add it to your morning routine, use it as a sugar replacement, and have a little to improve your sleep.
The best part of all three of those scenarios is that they only take minimal effort and they aren’t some drastic hard-to-maintain lifestyle changes. They are all something you can start today and keep doing for a long time to come.
