Maintaining your ideal weight is key to long term health and wellness. Yoyo dieting and what not wreak havoc on your body, as you become overweight or underweight. The human body likes homeostasis, so how do you reach that with your weight? Well, here are five tips for keeping you at your ideal weight, you plant-eater you!

 1. Limit Oils

Fat has nine calories per gram, the highest when compared to carbs and proteins. The nutrient is important to bodily function, and all foods, even things considered fat free like carrots, have fat in them. The concentration of calories in oil is extremely high, and oil does not fill you up like say actual olives, or whatever food the oil has been extracted from. If you want to maintain your weight on a plant-based diet, then don’t drown your food in oil. Find some real olives, coconuts, or avocadoes and eat those instead of their derivatives.

 2. Drink Water

Considering 60 percent of the human body is composed of water, hydration is crucial. Water fills up your stomach, so you don’t overeat or feel the urge to, and it keeps your body running. Water cleanses the inside of your body, helping to get rid of toxins. Water is the main solvent in the human body, dissolving minerals and nutrients for the body and proper digestion. Without water, critical nutrients cannot be absorbed, and you may feel hungry or get cravings because you’re missing out on them. You may be nutritionally deprived, and your body will implore you to eat more when you just need to drink more. Drinking more water will combat water retention as well, so while drinking it assists in weight management, you may lose some water weight as an extra bonus. Go get some water to guzzle!

3. Take a Hike

No, I’m not telling you to get out of here, but I am telling you to get some physical exercise. What better way to sweat then out in nature? The natural incline and declines of mountains and hills provide you with a perfect work out, and you’ll get to breathe in some fresh air while you’re at it. Walks are amazing ways to burn off some calories too! Whatever you do, try and do it outside so you can connect with nature.

4. Remember Veggies

Vegetables have a lot of fiber, and that keeps you full and focused according to a talking cereal square. In all seriousness, vegetables are jam-packed with nutrients and essential vitamins that the body needs for proper functioning. Vegetables vilify variable vulgarities in the kitchen like meat and cheese because they are part of a veritable pantheon of foods that vaporize your chances of getting heart disease, cancer, and many nasty illnesses.

5. Eat Slow

Eating super-fast doesn’t satiate you, so you end up eating more. When you are attempting to maintain your weight, don’t wolf down your food like you’re never going to eat again! Take time and consciously consume your food. Even if you didn’t make the food yourself, savor every morsel that melts on your tongue. Don’t think of eating as just something to do, but think of it as a way of taking care of yourself like exercise.

Image Source: Jack Hebert/Flickr