Looking to start new habits, new goals, new routines in 2025?
Let’s get practical.
Knowing what to do is important. Understanding why you are doing it is just as crucial. Prioritizing when to do it can make or break your success. But…actually doing it consistently is how the magic happens.
Achieving sustainable weight loss is accomplished in small steps done consistently. Go beyond calories in/calories out with these 25 Weight Loss Strategies! This article series is divided into 4 parts.
HOW TO USE 25 WEIGHT LOSS STRATEGY LIST:
STEP 1: Mark off the strategies you are already currently doing!! Congrats! Keep up the good work. Note any of these that you weren’t doing a year ago and take a moment to celebrate!
STEP 2: Choose the Top 5-10 Strategies as you go through Part 1 – 4 series that mean the most to you that you aren’t currently doing, but would like to implement this year. Create a Strategy Checklist of your top strategies.
STEP 3: Choose only ONE from your Strategy Checklist that is the EASIEST to implement for 2 weeks consistently before adding another.
STEP 4: Choose the next EASIEST… and so on, marking off each strategy after you have implemented it for 2+ weeks
There are many more than just these 25 strategies that help retrain our metabolics, but these are some key ones we use in our weight loss coaching program. After each strategy’s description, there is a brief explanation on how we use it with our clients!
**Remember: Weight loss is a healing process. Using these strategies from a metabolic approach that goes beyond the math to bring long-term results!
**Note: These strategies are not listed in order of importance and number order is completely random.
PART 1 – Strategies 1-7
STRATEGY #1. Superfood Smoothies
Replace your evening meal with a nutrient-packed smoothie! Easy to digest, helps support detox and metabolic function. Research concludes meal replacements are highly effective, but most pre-packaged all-in-one options on the market are often made with low quality ingredients and are highly processed. Get the benefit of nutrient density whole foods + weight loss with superfood smoothie instead:
- Base: Choose unsweetened almond/coconut milk, raw milk, kefir, or unsweetened coconut water
- Protein Options: Add Greek yogurt or protein powder: bone broth, grassfed whey, or organic pea
- Fat Options: Nut butters, avocado, ground flax / chia seeds, MCT oil.
- Carb and Fiber Options: Berries, leafy greens, banana
- *Add in functional supplement (powder or liquid)
*Inside D.R.E.S.S. Weight Loss Program: Superfood Smoothies are personalized for each client based on their program phase and their nutritional lab testing results with a functional supplement powder or liquid to help master energy/blood sugar control (Phase 1), rebuild gut health (Phase 2) and balance hormones (Phase 3)
Check out the video on Strategy #1 Here!
STRATEGY #2. Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (N.E.A.T.) Mindset
How can you build more activity and movement into your daily routine to decrease the amount of your sedentary time? We are designed to move, not sit all day. We have been measuring the wrong thing: Measure how much time you spend sitting (sedentary) vs. how much activity. This shifts focus from thinking we are good if we check off doing our 30 min workout to instead really focusing on decreasing the amount of time we sit still.
NEAT ideas include:
- Take stairs instead of elevators.
- Park further away to increase walking distance.
- Go to the bathroom on the opposite floor (home or office)
- Carry groceries in basket vs. using a cart
- Physical projects around the house and yard
- Standing/walking desk
- Walk or bike to store if possible
- Choose active hobbies
Inside D.R.E.S.S. Weight Loss Program: N.E.A.T. strategy is personalized to each client as part of their get started protocol and is continued throughout their entire program since NEAT is both a mindset and lifestyle that can be done at any fitness level.
STRATEGY #3. Partner Up
Accountability and motivation play a significant role in maintaining weight loss. Partnering with someone can make the process more fun and consistent. In fact Coaches provide just that! While there is clearly no magic bullet to successfully losing weight, a new study suggests that health coaches may be the next best thing.
Researchers from The Miriam Hospital’s Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center in Providence, R.I., conducted a randomized controlled pilot study to determine the impact of health coaches, peer coaches and mentors on a group of 44 obese participants over 24 weeks.
Group 1 – work with professional health coach
Group 2 – work with a peer
Group 3 – work with a mentor (someone else that also has lost weight successfully)
After 24 weeks, all three groups had lost a significant amount of weight, but those who worked with a professional health coach or a peer lost an average of more than 9 percent of their total body weight (compared to 6 percent of those who worked with a mentor), and at least half of were able to lose 10 percent or more of their body weight. This number is significant in that this amount of weight loss has been shown to reduce the risk of numerous obesity-related diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease.
Bottom line: If you have a significant amount of weight to lose – don’t do it alone.
At E! Our Success Coaches are committed to helping you:
- become aware of what you are doing, thinking, and feeling
- examine and analyze your habits and behaviors
- explore what’s holding you back
- try some new and better choices
- discover their own existing strengths, resources, abilities, and problem-solving talents
- discover your motivation
- Turn your outcome goals into behavior goals
Inside D.R.E.S.S. Weight Loss Program: Coaching is the #1 success strategy. Because Coaching makes it all about the PERSON, not the program. Your Success Coach provides 1:1 virtual sessions for strategy. Weekly Chat Check ins and feedback PLUS lifetime access to Group Coaching with Karen for mindset and stress mastery.
STRATEGY #4. Avoid Insulin Spikes
Insulin spikes when foods we eat convert to sugar quickly. To maintain steady energy levels, avoid cravings, burn fat, lower weight related inflammation, controlling insulin extremes highs and lows is crucial. Food sensitivities can also spike insulin. Clients are often surprised at which foods affect them. (HINT: trigger foods can vary person to person). But, there are some general principles to avoid insulin spikes:
- Your first meal of the day should be focused on protein/fat (not grains or fruit)
- Eat fruit with protein or fat vs. by themselves – Ex: apples + nut butter, pineapple + cottage cheese, banana & walnuts, grapes & cashews)
- Eat within 1-2 hours of waking, then eating at regular intervals (3-4 hrs with no snacks).
- Exchange nutrient-dense sweeteners – raw honey, organic coconut sugar, monk fruit, raw stevia, instead of agave, processed syrups, pure sugar or artificial processed sweeteners
- Avoid food triggers
- Limit refined grain foods by half (pretzels, cookies, cake, pie, shelf breads, rolls, cereals, poptarts, donuts)
- Limit sugary beverages to less than 3 cups a week (sweet teas, energy drinks, sodas, specialty coffees, sports drinks, processed juices)
Inside D.R.E.S.S. Weight Loss Program: We use tools like Coca Pulse Test and the Keto Mojo to determine what food triggers are causing insulin spikes. This helps clients know exactly what foods (even healthy foods) that could be stalling their progress. The Keto Mojo starter kit is included in the weight loss program and your Success Coach helps walk you through how to use it and track your fat burning!
STRATEGY #5. Prioritize Hydration
Consume half your body weight in ounces of water daily. Water is the most deficient nutrient! It is the regulator of everything! Hormones, digestion, energy production, detoxification… without water weight loss would be impossible. The two keys for your cells to absorb water and utilize it are: Electrolytes (minerals that carry and electric charge when dissolved in water) and Exercise.
- Add pinch of sea salt to half of your water intake
- Or add electrolytes (artificial color or sweetener free)
- Or drink coconut water for enhanced hydration
- Use stainless steel or glass bottles.
Inside D.R.E.S.S. Weight Loss Program: Hydration is one of the first strategies we make sure clients have a solid plan around, and that their bodies are absorbing the water they are drinking. We recommend checking out the EWG resources for clean water!
STRATEGY #6. Stay Committed Without Attachment
Committed means resilience. Consistency. No excuses. Problem solving. Overcoming limitations. Without attachment means detaching yourself from the results. The results of your efforts are not attached to your:
- Self worth
- Value
- Successful life measurement
- Who you are
- Character
- Reputation
Detaching yourself from the emotional stress of labeling yourself a success or failure means your effort is enough. Your commitment IS your success and has nothing to do with who you are, your character or self worth.
When weight loss is viewed as a “commitment to yourself” or “investing in yourself” then failure to reach your goals would also be viewed as a failure to yourself. Which perpetuates the cycle of failure thinking, self pity, and frustration.
Instead, being committed, but not attached views weight loss as a “commitment to your mission – your why” of losing the weight as an “investment in ____________ (your mission)”. This mindset detaches your person – who you are from your weight loss goals and builds more motivation to reach those goals because the reason is bigger than yourself.
Inside D.R.E.S.S. Weight Loss Program: Mindset is coached weekly on Mastery Mondays! Group Coaching tackles a topic a week from time management to self sabotage, to emotional eating. Mindset coaching addresses our negative thought loops, emotional stressors, and spiritual stressors that can stall or prevent weight loss and how to shift from stress to strength! Clients enrolled have lifetime access to Group Coaching!
STRATEGY #7. Protein Tracking
Protein is important for muscle building and improving lean body tissue, fat burning, stabilizing blood sugar levels, reducing cravings, supporting satiety, and much more! Protein has the highest thermal effect (30%) meaning metabolizing protein means more calories/energy are used compared to carbs (10%) and fats (3%). One serving is roughly the size of your palm or 20-25 grams or 3-5 ounces.
- Aim for 30-50 grams per meal as a general guideline.
- Quality is key! Choose animal proteins that are pasture raised, grassfed, wild caught, and organic plant proteins whenever possible
- Consume more Complete Proteins (proteins that contain all 9 essential amino acids
Grass-fed meat
Wild-caught fish and seafood
Pasture-raised poultry and eggs
Organic Greek yogurt
Grassfed, organic, cultured Dairy (milk, cheeses, cottage cheese, kefir, sour cream)
Grass-fed whey, egg, or beef protein powder
Bone Broth protein powder
Whole sources of fermented organic soy, such as tempeh, miso, tofu, and edamame
Organic pea protein powder
How to calculate your protein needs:
If you are looking to lose weight a general guideline is 1.0 – 1.5 grams of protein per kg of body weight: Example: 200lb person = convert lbs to kg = 200/2.2 = 90kg = 90kg (1.0 -1.5) = 90 – 135 grams of proteinInside D.R.E.S.S. Weight Loss Program: Every client receives a personalized calorie and macro nutrition plan every phase with meal plans and recipes. Plus, our Coaching App (Better) provides a way to track your protein intake to know you are staying in your protein range.
Be sure to check back next week for Part 2!
