Five Daily Activities to Help You Lose Fat & Balance Your Hormones For Good 

Raise your hand if you’ve ever been personally victimized by diet culture. I don’t know about you, but both of my hands are in the air. 

I’ve tried every diet under the sun on my quest for the “magic” diet – that one perfect way of eating to make my body lean, toned, and full of energy. From keto to paleo to carb-cycling to vegan, I have literally tried everything, and I’m here to tell you: the perfect diet doesn’t exist. After years of experimenting, all I ended up with was a horrible relationship with food and a body that looked exactly the same. 

If you’re on a similar journey, know that you’re not alone in struggling to find something that works. But also know that there’s a much better way to lose fat and balance your hormones – and macro and fat-loss coach Hannah Hutson is here to share exactly how to do that. 

Step away from the diet 

As the owner of a kettlebell gym, Hutson has had hands-on experience training women of all body types, ages, and lifestyles. Over the years of working with hundreds of women, she’s come to the conclusion that losing fat and getting the body of your dreams is actually kind of, well, boring. 

“Everyone wants to follow some magical program that is complex and has all these restrictions because that is what they think they need,” Hutson says. “The reality is, you don’t need a fancy program or diet pills. You need to build consistent habits and focus on lifestyle changes over quick fixes.” 

Huston explains that “the reason why diets don’t work long term is because they are unsustainable, and you don’t learn any real skills. They also engrain in us that some foods are good, and some foods are bad. This mindset creates disordered eating, and you don’t have to cut foods you love from your diet to lose fat.” 

She also emphasizes that “the more you tell yourself you can’t have something, the more you will want it. This is why women get into these restrict and binge cycles.” 

The negative effects of quick-fix diets 

Not only do these fad diets create disordered eating habits, but Hutson says that “constantly restricting your calories downregulates your thyroid production, which in turn slows down your metabolism. Just because you are in a calorie deficit does not mean you will lose fat,” she stresses. 

“If you are severely under-eating, your body will start to break down lean muscle mass to use as fuel, and that is the opposite of what you need if you want to look ‘toned.’ I don’t think women realize how much stress you put on your body when you under-eat and over-exercise. These two habits can wreak havoc on your adrenals, causing other issues like irregular periods, inflammation, hypothyroidism, insomnia, low libido, infertility, and more,” she says. 

5 sustainable swaps 

Now that we’ve established fad diets aren’t the key, you might be wondering, what is? Well according to Hutson, you need to “do the boring shit more often.” 

The “boring shit” includes: 

1. Daily sunlight

“Get 5-10 minutes of direct sunlight in the morning,” Hutson recommends. “This will help boost cortisol production in the morning and suppress melatonin.” 

2. Eat blood-sugar-balanced meals and snacks 

“To do this, make sure you are eating protein, fat, and fiber with your carbs. On that same note, you should be aiming for a minimum of 30g of protein per meal, or at least 100g per day – if not more. Protein will help you build muscle – along with a proper progressive overload program – which will increase your metabolism and make you more insulin sensitive. Plus, you will feel more full and have fewer cravings.” 

3. Walk 

“I cannot express how helpful walking is for your mental and physical health,” Hutson says. “It is low impact, so it won’t cause any inflammation in the body, and you will be in the fat-burning zone.” 

4. Get enough sleep 

Hutson recommends between 7-9 hours of sleep, explaining “your body recovers and repairs itself when you are sleeping. If you aren’t sleeping enough, your hormones will be out of whack, and you will struggle to recover from your workouts.”

5. Hydrate 

“Make sure you are getting electrolytes in the morning. It can be as simple as adding lemon to your water, or you can get some electrolytes from the store. You want to get a minimum of half your body weight in ounces every day,” Hutson says of determining the proper amount of water to drink each day, as well. 

“As you can see, we need to focus on these very basic keystone habits and move away from fad diets,” Hutson says. 

She also stresses the importance of having patience, noting that “three months is not enough to see big chances if you are trying to approach your goals in a sustainable way.” But, with a little bit of patience, Hutson’s five sustainable habits may just be the key your body has been looking for all along. 

Want more from Hannah Hutson? Follow her @getupwithhannah, and check out her 30-day hormone-balancing challenge here. 

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