Bride Who Lost 113 Lbs. on Instagram Before Her Wedding: ‘I Don’t Want to Sugarcoat My Journey’

This article originally appeared on People.com. 

After trying countless diets, Haley Smith finally found the motivation to stick to a plan when her boyfriend proposed in July 2015. Smith got serious about weight loss and decided to slim down before their wedding.

“I really knew if I wanted to change, I needed to make realistic goals,” she tells PEOPLE’s Collector’s Edition Half Their Size: The Ultimate Get-Fit Guide

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At the beginning, Smith — who married now-husband Matt in October 2016 — started logging her food and incrementally increased the difficulty of her exercise routine, from following the popular “Couch to 5K” running program to hitting the gym almost every day.

But the thing that kept her most accountable was posting her progress photos on Instagram. After 19 months she has lost 113 lbs. and now has more than 90,000 followers. Some days, knowing she has an audience rooting for her is the push she needs.

“If I want to sleep in, I remember something a follower might have said, and it gets me up,” says Smith, 24. “But on days that I do sleep in or struggle with a workout, I always try to be honest about it. I don’t post every time, but I don’t want to sugarcoat that my journey has been some magic, easy process. It’s not at all.”

“I really think my group of followers knows we are on this journey together and that positivity helps feed success way more than any negativity. I’m super thankful for that,” she says.

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Aiming to take off another 15 to 20 lbs., Smith, who hopes to start a website to expand her online community, says, “I will keep posting for as long as I have the chance to encourage someone. My profile started as a way to help myself, but now I get to help others. I don’t see myself stopping anytime soon.”

Half Their Size: The Ultimate Get-Fit Guide is available in stores now, and can be purchased here on Amazon.

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49 Ways to Trick Yourself Into Feeling Full

Drop pounds and slim down with these mental tricks.

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Can Carb Cycling Help You Lose Weight?

You’ve heard plenty of mixed reviews for low-carb diets. But what about carb cycling? The trend—popular with body builders and some athletes—is generating buzz as a weight loss method. Here’s the lowdown on how carb cycling works; its potential benefits; and a simpler, less strict alternative that I recommend for many of my clients.

What is carb cycling, exactly?

While there isn’t one standard protocol, carb cycling typically involves alternating lower-carb days with higher-carb days. Typically fat intake increases on lower-crab days, and decreases on higher-carb days; while protein intake remains consistent.

Many advocates recommend this regimen: On days when you do strength training, consume a higher amount of carbs (say 200 grams), a low amount of fat, and a moderate amount of protein. On days when you do a cardio workout, eat a moderate amount of carbs (about 100 grams), protein, and fat. And on rest days, eat fewer carbs (30 grams), a high amount of fat, and a moderate amount of protein.

Another approach involves keeping both protein intake and fat intake fairly consistent, and modifying only your carbohydrates. With this method, lower-carb days are also lower-calorie days.

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What are the benefits?

Proponents of carb cycling claim that the eating pattern helps increase muscle mass, decrease body fat, and improve fitness performance. But research on the diet is limited.

One 2013 study, published in the British Journal of Nutrition, looked at the effects of intermittent carb and calorie restriction in 115 overweight women aged 20 to 69, all of whom had a family history of breast cancer. The women were randomly assigned to one of three groups for three months. The first group consumed a calorie-restricted, low-carb diet two days per week. The women in the second group followed the same diet, but were allowed to eat unlimited amounts of protein and healthy fats (such as lean meat, olives, and nuts) on the low-carb days. The third group followed a standard, calorie-restricted Mediterranean diet seven days a week.

Researchers found that the women in both low-carb groups had better results: They lost roughly 9 pounds on average, compared to about 5 pounds in the Mediterranean group. Insulin resistance also decreased by 22% percent among the standard low-carb dieters; and 14% percent among those allowed extra protein and fat on low-carb days—compared to just 4% among the Mediterranean dieters. (The results were particularly significant for the study participants, as losing weight and lowering insulin resistance may help prevent breast cancer.)

While this study didn't involve the same carb cycling approach used by body builders and athletes, it does offer some insight into the potential benefits of limiting carbs part-time. But is doing so practical? Slashing carbs, even a few days a week, needs to be sustainable in order to generate lasting results.

The authors of that 2013 study also found that a higher percentage of women on the low-carb diets experienced constipation, headaches, bad breath, light-headedness, and food fixation. These unpleasant side effects parallel what I've seen with my clients who severely restrict their carb intake. In my experience, the side effects also the reason many low carb-dieters either give up, or wind up binging on forbidden foods.

RELATED: How to Keep the Carbs and Still Lose Weight

Is there a more sustainable approach?

One of the main philosophies behind carb cycling is limiting carbs when the body doesn't need them as much. In a nutshell, carbs serve as fuel (like gasoline in your car) to help cells perform their jobs. Eating a large amount of carbs on days when you’re not very active doesn’t make much sense, because your body requires less fuel (much like how your car needs less gas for a ride across town compared to a road trip). Carbs that aren’t burned for fuel create a surplus—which can prevent weight loss, or lead to weight gain.

On the flip side, a carb limit of 30 grams is very low, even on less active days. That’s the amount of carbs in one cup of broccoli, one whole apple, and five baby carrots. For a better balance, I advise my clients to practice what I call “carb matching"—or aligning your carb intake with your energy needs, which may vary from day to day, or morning to afternoon.

This approach essentially involves eating larger portions of clean, whole food carbs to support more active hours; and curbing carbs when you expect you'll be less active. For example, if you're planning to do a morning workout, have oatmeal topped with a sliced banana for breakfast beforehand. But if you're headed to the office to sit at a desk for several hours, a veggie and avocado omelet with a side of berries would be a more appropriate a.m. meal.

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In my experience with clients, carb matching helps with weight loss and improves fitness performance, while supporting all-day energy, and supplying a wide range of nutrients. It also makes sense. My pro athlete clients, who train or perform several hours a day, require more carbs than my CEO clients, who may fit in a morning workout, then sit in meetings the remainder of the day. 

Carb matching also involves aligning your carb needs with your age, height, ideal weight, sex, and occupation. After all, a young, tall man with an active job and an ideal weight of 185 pounds is going to have a higher carb requirement than an older, petite woman with a sedentary job and an ideal weight of 135 pounds.

While carb cycling involves drastic shifts, carb matching is all about creating balance, and what I call the Goldilocks effect–not too little, and not too much. If you’ve tried carb cycling, and it either hasn’t worked for you, or doesn’t seem like a strategy you can stick with, try moderating your carb intake based on your activity level instead. And regardless of which approach you try, stick with these two important rules of thumb:

1) Always make quality a priority by choosing fresh, whole foods. (And remember not all carbs are created equal.)

2) Listen to your body! It’s cues are pretty good at guiding you toward a "just right" balance.

Cynthia Sass is Health’s contributing nutrition editor, a New York Times best-selling author, and consultant for the New York Yankees. See her full bio here.

 

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See Photos of Mama June's Incredible Weight-Loss Transformation

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Scale Stuck? How To Get Over That Weight-Loss Plateau

Break through a weight-loss plateau with one of these healthy diet and workout kick starts.

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Using This Simple Kitchen Tool Helped Me Drop 108 Pounds

Erika Chacon, 31, 5'4", from Rialto, Calif.
Before: 265 lb., size 18/20
After: 157 lb., size 6/8
Total pounds lost: 108 lb.
Total sizes lost: 6/7

Whether I was grazing on junk food all day or bingeing on Hot Pockets and Oreos after hours, my adolescent eating left much to be desired. Playing softball in high school helped keep my weight in check, but the excess calories started catching up to me in college. Once I graduated, my activity level really plummeted, and the pounds began piling on. By September 2015, I was up to 265 pounds. I felt so embarrassed when my then-boyfriend saw the number on the scale. Soon after that, a stranger assumed I was pregnant. I knew I needed to make a change.

Revamping my habits

To start, I researched how to do meal prep. I would buy anything green and clean, putting together healthy combos of lean turkey, brown rice, and seasoned veggies. I also hit the treadmill at the gym. At first, I felt ashamed when I couldn’t jog for longer than a minute and the girl next to me was logging miles. But I reminded myself that I was making this decision for me, no one else. By exercising daily and eating better, I lost about 45 pounds in three months. Then I hit a roadblock: The number on the scale wouldn’t budge. Panicked, I decided to overhaul my routine.

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Measuring up

I started counting calories and using a food scale to keep an eye on my portions. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t eating more than I was burning. I also upped my strength training, integrating squats, lunges, and the occasional TRX class into my routine. The result: a tighter and 60-pounds-lighter frame in six months. These days I’m 157 pounds and still working out six days a week. Even better, now I’m the girl on the treadmill racking up the miles—at a seven-minute-mile pace!

RELATED: 57 Ways to Lose Weight Forever, According to Science

Secrets to a shape-up win

1. Post positivity. I constantly post transformation photos, thoughts of encouragement, and recipes on my Instagram account @icandoallthings_journey to help my 10,000-plus followers realize they can reclaim their health like I did.

2. Snack smarter. I used to top potato chips or pork rinds with lime juice and chili powder. Now I use carrot sticks. The longer the lime juice sits, the better it tastes! And it’s so refreshing.

3. Tap technology. I’m obsessed with my Apple watch! Not only does it continually nudge me to stay active, it also keeps me competitive. I try to fill every one of its progress rings daily.

4. Get outdoors. I’m a California girl, so I love swimming, hiking, and body boarding. They’re all insane workouts, but I forget I’m exercising when I’m by the ocean; it’s my sneaky way of moving.

Erika is wearing: Graced By Grit Kate tank ($46; gracedbygrit.com); Graced By Grit Chelsea leggings ($118; gracedbygrit.com), and Graced By Grit Gritty Titty bra ($52; gracedbygrit.com). 

 

As told to Anthea Levi

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You Asked: Will Drinking Lemon Water Help Me Lose Weight?

This article originally appeared on Time.com. 

Lemon infused water is a popular drink for weight loss, thanks to celebrity sippers like Gwyneth Paltrow and Miranda Kerr. Proponents claim that it flushes toxins from the system, reduces appetite and tweaks the body’s digestive processes in ways that block fat absorption.

Trouble is, it doesn’t work like that. In fact, lemon water leaves out the most effective part of the fruit.

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The drink’s hype seems to stem from a 2008 Japanese study that linked lemon’s polyphenols—micronutrients with antioxidant properties—to less weight gain and improved fat metabolism in mice who were fed a high-fat diet. It’s possible, the study team said, that lemon polyphenols may stimulate the liver to produce enzymes that help block the absorption of dietary fats.

This kind of research is like rocket fuel for those looking to market a new “miracle” food. But there are a lot of problems with such optimism. The research was in mice, not people, and there have been no rigorous studies showing that sipping lemon water can promote weight loss in humans, says Dana Hunnes, a senior dietitian at the University of California, Los Angeles Medical Center.

Another problem is that lemon water uses the juice, not the rind. Mice in the study were eating a diet loaded with lemon rind, the site of most of the polyphenols in lemons. While many committed lemon-water fans may be zesting some rind into their water, it’s likely nowhere near the amount the mice in the study were consuming. (Even if you were committed to loading your diet with lemon, some research suggests that the acid in a lemon-heavy diet could seriously corrode your teeth.)

RELATED: Why You Should Start Your Day With Lemon Water

Of course, lemon is healthy in moderation. It’s a good source of vitamin C, and some studies have linked low vitamin-C status to obesity. But that’s a large leap from saying that ingesting more vitamin C can prevent or reverse weight gain, she says.

Pectin, a kind of fiber found in lemons, has also been linked to some weight loss benefits. “Pectin can lower LDL or bad cholesterol and has some anti-inflammatory benefits,” says Bahram Arjmandi, a professor of nutrition at Florida State University and editor-in-chief of the Journal of Food and Nutritional Disorders. “It can also prevent fat absorption and moderate insulin response.” But most pectin comes from the flesh or pith of a fruit, not its juice. You’re better off eating an apple. “You’d have to eat a whole lot of lemon to see these benefits,” he says. “It’s hard for me to imagine that being practical.”

You get it by now: swigging a glass or two of lemon water will not provide much benefit. “Lemon water is not a miracle weight-loss food,” says Elizabeth Dejulius, a registered dietitian nutritionist with Cleveland Clinic.

But miracle-talk aside, lemon water could indirectly help people lose weight. For one thing, thirst is often mistaken for hunger, Dejulius says. Because many people find plain water boring or difficult to drink in large quantities, adding lemon to water may lead some people to drink more of it and stay better hydrated, thus reducing thirst-triggered food cravings. “Dehydration can also slow metabolism, which in the long-term can lead to weight gain,” she says.

Someone who swaps soda or another sugary drink for lemon water will be much better off, Hunnes says, as long as you don’t sweeten it with added sugar.

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Not all experts are ready to close the case on lemon water and weight loss, however. Hunnes says she found a little research linking the way lemon stimulates taste buds to appetite suppression. But there’s not strong evidence yet to support that finding, she says. The power of the placebo effect could also play a role. “If your mind believes strongly that drinking lemon water does something, like suppresses appetite, maybe it will,” Arjmandi says. “This kind of placebo effect is always a possibility.”

Bottom line: If you like drinking lemon water, sip away—especially if it’s helping you skip less-healthy drinks. But if you’re looking for evidence-backed ways to lose weight, look elsewhere on your plate.

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