With Christmas well and truly behind us, it’s time now to look in the mirror and assess the damage done by copious amounts of Christmas cheer! There are several reasons that January is the busiest month for gyms up and down the UK: Christmas indulgence and new year resolutions are the principal ones. But what if you could lose weight and save money? Well you can, by packing your own lunch.

While getting in the gym and hitting the latest high intensity workout burns a lot of calories, saving them in the kitchen is not only easier, but will also save you money. Spend the odd £5 a day on lunch? Well that’s £1,200 per year you have spent on your sandwiches. Fancy a holiday? That’s your spending money right there!

Food Prep For Health

Not only can you save calories and money by taking a packed lunch to work, you can also ensure that the food is of a significantly higher quality. Adding fresh fruit and vegetables can add a tasty and healthy component to your lunch. Packed full of vitamins and goodness, fruit and vegetables can make up a huge part of your new healthy lifestyle and save you precious calories by filling you up with fibre.

Food preparation allows you to control what goes into your food (bye bye preservatives) and will almost certainly save you money. You can also batch cook your food over the weekend so that you have your meals ready in the fridge each day. You can then simply warm it up at work for a tasty and convenient meal that saves you money.

Still want To exercise?

There are huge benefits to exercise – not only for keeping your weight down, but also wider health benefits that can help keep you healthy. Exercise has been shown to help with brain cognition and can even help to stave off age related diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Check out this link for more on the benefits of exercise from the NHS https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/exercise-health-benefits/

Low Fat or Low Carb

One of the key talking points when it comes to nutrition is which diet is the best to follow. A recent study has shown that neither a low fat nor low carb approach are superior when it comes to fat loss. The study suggests that experts were right all along: calories are the most important aspect of fat loss. As far as diet is concerned, it appears from the study that adherence is key – whichever diet you can stick to will be the most successful.

Summary

So if you overindulged this Christmas, just remember that you can save money and lose weight by packing your food at home. Also remember that if you are looking to lose fat, neither a low carb nor a low fat diet work any better for the average person. So find a diet that you like and stick to it!

Please note that all of the information presented here has been sourced from around various sources the internet and is used at your own risk. If you are looking to start a diet or exercise programme, please consult a doctor before doing so.