Shelly Horton lost an impressive 13 kilos through intermittent fasting after a lifetime of struggling with her fluctuating weight.
Now the 45-year-old Australian media personality has shared her top five tips for those who are wanting to kick start their own weight loss journey.
Although she understands it may be daunting for many people, it is worthwhile doing if you put your mind to it.
Here, Shelly revealed the secret to weight loss is simply determination and a huge amount of persistence.
Shelly Horton is an Australian media personality who lost 13 kilos through intermittent fasting after a lifetime of battling with her weight
1. FIND A PROGRAM THAT WORKS FOR YOU
Before starting, Shelly suggested finding a program that fits you and your lifestyle by looking at your past success and failures.
She joined SuperFastDiet, which she has been on for a year, because she found intermittent fasting works for her after undergoing a failed gastric sleeve surgery.
‘I have two days a week where I have 500 calories and the other days I have some wine and some chocolate which I really love,’ Shelly told The Today Show.
‘Find what suits you, for me, seven days a week of being really restrictive just doesn’t work.’
Shelly went on to explain that if it’s hard for you to find time to cook, then you should look into a delivery food system.
If you’re a whiz in the kitchen perhaps you should follow an online program that allows you to cook your own healthy meals.
Shelly joined SuperFastDiet because she found that intermittent fasting works for her, which is how she has managed to keep off 13 kilos (top before and bottom after)
Although many people often want to lose weight for a particular event, such as a wedding or a reunion, this isn’t a healthy way of doing it
2. DON’T RUSH LOSING THE KILOS
Although many people often want to lose weight for a particular event, such as a wedding or a special occasion, this isn’t always a healthy motivation.
Some people may find this encouraging – but for many, the pressure will be all too much and can actually cause your stress hormones to work against you.
If you don’t lose a lot of weight in the first couple of weeks, it may also discourage you from continuing – you want to aim for consistency.
‘It didn’t take you 20 weeks to put on 20 kilos so you can’t expect it to come off that quickly,’ Shelly told the program.
‘I think you need to be a bit kinder to yourself, realise that life happens and remember just because you’ve got a goal doesn’t mean you’re a failure if you don’t hit it straight away.
‘I had an original goal of 20 kilos but I lost 13 and then I kind of plateaued, but I had a medical check-up and found out I’d reversed my Type 2 diabetes and had lost 18 centimetres off my waist. Although the scales hadn’t changed, my body had.’
‘I think you need to be a bit kinder to yourself, realise that life happens and remember that just because you’ve got a goal doesn’t mean you’re a failure if you don’t hit it straight away,’ Shelly said
3. STRESS PLAYS A PART
Shelly explained that nutritionists and dietitians agree that weight loss isn’t just about the food that you consume.
‘Although you’re focused and eating ‘perfectly’ other lifestyle factors may be working against you. Sleep and stress are two major factors when it comes to weight loss. So, get to bed earlier and work on ways to reduce your stress,’ she told 9Honey.
‘I think you need to be a bit kinder to yourself,’ Shelly said
4. AVOID BEING OVERWHELMED
Another tip she shared was to change one bad habit at a time, instead of all of them at once.
This could be no longer having a pastry with your coffee or avoiding a sugar-hit when 3 o’clock hits.
‘Since it is only one change, it won’t be so overwhelming to adjust, and since it is something you do daily, that one improvement may have a huge impact,’ she said.
She also recommends that you find your own support network, such as online forums or friends and family.
5. DON’T COMPARE YOURSELF
It is often too easy to look at other people and think that we’re not doing a good enough job in comparison, which we need to stop doing.
It’s human to have off days, to eat an unhealthy meal or to skip exercising, but you shouldn’t punish yourself for it.
‘Adopt a caring, compassionate and understanding approach to the way you talk to yourself when you fall off the wagon – this is key to the longevity of your weight loss journey. Treat yourself as you would treat your best friend,’ Shelly added.
You don’t want your weight loss goals to consume your entire life.