Tips to maintain a healthy weight from a celebrity trainer

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Losing weight is one thing — but keeping it off can often be another issue entirely. To help ensure all the hard work pays (and stays) off, we’ve put together some simple ways to manage your weight.

Here, celebrity nutrition and fitness expert JJ Virgin, author of Six Weeks to Sleeveless & Sexy, shares seven simple tips to help keep weight off once you’ve put in the time and effort to lose it. “Keeping the weight off requires a different set of skills than getting it off in the first place,” she says, but there are a few effective ways to stay motivated and focused on doing just that.

1. Veg out: By increasing the colourful vegetables on your plate you will naturally crowd out the things that can sabotage your weight — think about eliminating white pasta, white bread and anything packaged or processed.

2. Practice portion control: Avoid piling up your plate at every meal. You can eat up to 20 percent less just by serving less and putting the leftovers away before you dig in.

3. Snack smart: Always carry a stash of power-packed snacks so you never get overly hungry and succumb to less-than-healthy choices. “I travel all of the time and I make sure that I keep turkey jerky, apples and baggies of raw nuts in my purse,” Virgin says.

4. Weigh in weekly: When you weigh in once a week you can catch weight gain before things get out of hand. If you notice you are slipping, hire a personal trainer for a few weeks or a month to get back on track.

5. Stay healthy: Nothing derails your workout regimen and sends you running for comfort food faster than a cold or flu. Start supporting your immune health now (getting enough sleep, loading up on nutritious eats) especially as we head into colder months when it’s much easier to get sick.

6. Plan your workouts: If you can, work out first thing in the morning so nothing can get in the way. If that’s not ideal, add working out to your to-do list so your calorie-burning time is built right into your schedule.

7. Use the reward system: Build in (non-food) rewards for hitting and maintaining your weight loss goals. Reward yourself with anything from a spa treatment to a movie to a new book or fitness DVD.

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