We reached out to some of Mumbai’s leading fitness trainers and nutritionists to learn how to improve our weight loss journey.

1. Eat Nutritious Food

“An essential lifestyle change is important in order to eat well-planned, clean meals. Making changes in snacking and shifting to water-based fruits and vegetables like watermelon and cucumber is a good way to start,” says Wellness Expert Rakhee Mehta.

“Give emphasis to healthy snacks that will keep you satiated so you won’t overeat during your main meals. Choose healthy food combinations of protein and carbs, which will keep you full for long and give you the required energy,” adds Nutritionist Neha Sahaya.

2. Calories Count!

“Eat less fat compared to protein and carbs. Fat has twice the number of calories. Yes it’s healthy, but substitute it with more nutrient dense, low calorie fruits and vegetables,” says Fitness Trainer Shivoham.

“In the quest to eat healthy, people often over-consume calories, which hampers their fat loss journey. For example, suppose you have eaten clean during the day and have gotten all the nutrients you need in like carbs, proteins and fats. But you are hungry at night and you have two options—an avocado toast or a Nutella toast. If you are trying to lose fat, what would you choose? 99% of the time, the answer I get is avocado toast. An avocado toast is roughly double the calories of a Nutella toast. At that time, you’re not eating for nutrients, you are eating to satisfy a craving. Go for the lower calorie cost. Eat the Nutella toast. This may also mentally help you stay cleaner for the coming days,” adds Avinash Mansukhani, Transformation Specialist and Founder of Fight The Sunrise.

3. Carbs Are Not Your Enemy

“Don’t listen to any fad that tells you to ‘cut carbs,’ because the truth is that you need all the macronutrients to optimise your body functioning. Rather than trying to cut carbohydrates, focus on the quality you choose. Brown rice, potato, barley, amaranth and millets are phenomenal choices to aid weight loss,” states Neha Premjee, Weight Loss Coach.

4. Choose A Workout You Enjoy

“Choose a workout you enjoy! If you like running, cycling or dancing, do more of that. Basically, you should enjoy your workout to get the most optimum results. When you enjoy the workout, your mind isn’t burdened with the thought of losing weight and that’s when it actually works wonders,” says Kanchi Shah, Fitness Instructor.

“A regular yoga practice is an excellent way to increase flexibility and stability to build muscle and tone the entire body. Practicing yoga also helps you detoxify the body, reduce stress and bring more awareness and mindfulness into your daily life,” adds Yoga Expert, Samiksha Shetty.

5. Combination Of Weight Training And Cardio

“Burn more calories than you consume. Here is where your workout becomes important. When the end goal is weight loss, a weight training program is a must. Increase your weights as you progress in your training. This will increase your intensity and help you burn more calories,” states Fitness Trainer, Nyela Kapadia.

“Find a workout that incorporates cardio and strength training together. While the overall calorie burn is essential to weight loss, so is replacing fat with muscle tone. If you’re able to incorporate cardio and strength training together, you’re being that much more efficient and will experience visible results faster,” adds Mallika Tarkas Parekh, owner of Physique 57 India.

6. Mental Health

“To lose weight one needs to focus not only on the food they eat, but also on other factors such as mental health, which has a direct effect on one’s metabolism. You can eat all the broccoli in the world in a stressful state and put on weight. Alternately, you can eat an entire piece of cake in a happy atmosphere and yet not put on any weight,” states Health Coach, Neha Ranglani.

“Stress plays a major role in weight loss. It influences and increases the Cortisol in your body, which further affects Ghrelin, Leptin, and Prolactin, which interfere in weight loss. So learn to manage stress, by the way of yoga, meditation, and putting mind over matter in this case,” adds Kamna Bhandari, Nutritionist and Life Coach.

7. Sleep and Hydration

“Don’t confuse thirst for hunger. When you’re feeling hungry, first drink a glass of water, if hunger still persists, only then move towards food, as our body releases the same signal to our brain for each of these bodily needs.

Also, sleeping for eight hours is the only way to assimilate what we have consumed and then process it,” says Seema Jindal Jajodia, founder of Nourish Organics.

“Water is necessary for all functions in your body. Muscles are very rich in water, and proper hydration is a must for excellent performance, muscle growth, and fat loss. When you are dehydrated, your metabolism slows down as well,” concludes Maya Pereira Sawant, Personal Trainer and Founder of Lean Kitchen by Maya.

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