7 Habits to Help You Become “Unrecognizable” by Spring Break

Do you want to lose weight fast, simply by making some simple changes to your routine? Dr. Nina Ellis Hervey is a health expert and influencer who shares about “healthy lifestyle, weight loss, natural hair care, confidence, self-esteem, education & more.” In a recent viral YouTube video she shares all the “one minute habits that help me to lose weight and keep it off,” she says in the clip. “This includes healthy eating and also some micro habits for when you're busy, just like me.”

She Maintains That “No [Bull] Weight Loss Solutions” Helped Her Lose 100 Pounds in Less Than a Year

Hervey explains that she is a big fan of simple diet hacks. “I'm all about those no BS weight loss solutions because that's how I lost over 100 pounds in about 10 to 12 months, and I've kept it off for about 17 years now. So I guess I know a thing or two,” she says.

Fad Diets Don’t Work

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“There are definitely some things that never worked for me,” she continues. Amongst them? “Fad diets that promised to melt fat off in days, counting every single calorie, and shutting down the gym every day,” she reveals.

She Used to Binge Late at Night

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“Now, the top issues for me and many people that I'm sure can relate are binging on foods late at night, trying to focus on just my willpower, staying very stressed out and being very in tune with my own environment that wasn't always healthy for me, but we can fix all of that,” she says.

Planning Is Key

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“Plan, plan and more plan,” is her first habit. “And I'm not talking about an elaborate plan to take over the world. You are not going to be obsessive. You're gonna keep this within your quick plan.” She explains that her problem was that she was always running late and “usually fasting,” so she wo9uld skip her first meal of the day and then gorge at lunch. “I was just eating like I had no common sense and nothing in sight because I didn't have a plan. And because of that, I used it as an excuse to be able to go crazy and wow with whatever foods I wanted when I knew I had no business,” she admits.

Meal Plan

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“Planning your meals is one of the best things that you can start to do when you're losing weight,” she says. “What I do is I usually plan and prep on Sundays, and then by Wednesdays I'm ready to refresh my menu just a little bit. And it's really simple. Once you know what you like to mix and match the most repetition is key. And once you figure this out, you're able to know what groceries you wanna order or go get and what snacks you wanna have around.”

Here Are Some of the Things I Eat

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Staples in her kitchen are chicken, fish, or turkey “that we grill, bake or pan fry,” she says. “Salmon burgers are one of my favorite things because they pair with almost anything. Salads are so simple. So I like to keep around spinach and fresh spring mix. And when I don't have those, romaine will do.” She also keeps smoothie ingredients, including unsweetened cashew or almond milk, protein powder, frozen mangoes, blueberries, strawberries, and avocados. She also stocks up on protein oatmeal jars and overnight oats. “They leave you feeling full and satisfied. And you can also top those with raw fruit, peanut butter, almond butter.” She also eats raw and cooked vegetables with every single meal. “My go-to vegetables are zucchini, broccoli, spinach, carrots,” and “anything that's gonna gimme some roughage and fiber and green.” For her sweet tooth, “I love yogurt, cottage cheese that can be topped with whipped cream and peaches and pineapples.” She also loves Kind bars and ice cream bars.

Make “Quick and Healthy Swaps”

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“I had to learn to make some quick and healthy swaps. And when I think about the things that I had to start to change in order to lose weight, without having to diet and not think hard about it, I just chose foods with fewer calories, salt, sugar, and unnecessary fats,” she says. “That's like swapping white bread for whole grains, soda for fizzy water and salted nuts to unsalted ones. She also recommends rolled oats “instead of those super sugary breakfast cereals,” spiralized vegetables instead of noodles and pasta, mashed avocado instead of butter, popcorn instead of chips, and fruit and cinnamon instead of sugar and syrup.

Plan Your Day

Also, she recommends checking your day ahead of time. “It doesn't take much time at all. Just look and see what time you have for your meal prepping and for getting to the gym or getting some quick exercise in. All you need is a little bit of forward thinking,” she says.

Make It Hard to Make Bad Decisions

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“Make it hard to make bad decisions. Now, bad decisions have to be defined by you. We all have a different threshold,” she says. Now, I know for me, I'm really picky about my sweet and salty foods, but if you bring around the right thing at the right time, it's going down.”

Don’t Go to the Grocery Store on an Empty Stomach and Make a List When You Do Go

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“Let's not even talk about going to the grocery store on an empty stomach. If I go up in that grocery store, honey, I'm gonna blow that thing up like Armageddon. And then what I used to do in the past, I come home with all these greasy and high cholesterol foods and feel obligated to eat them because you can't waste them, right? Stop,” she says. “I make a shopping list with everything we need in advance and stick to it. And here's the thing, once you get that list, all you gotta do is keep it standard. Take things off and add things as you need them. It takes only a minute. And if you don't have the discipline, simply set up a time every week to shop online. Get on Instacart.”

Don’t Buy in Bulk

“I used to think buying in bulk was the best thing, but I end up wasting what we don't eat. So we end up losing money anyway, so that didn't work. Some things we can get in bulk, but for the most part, what I try to do is re-up every week. And if I need some things in the middle of the week, I can just stop and pick up a few items and I don't feel forced to overeat because I'm not afraid that food will go bad and I'm not losing money,” she continues.

It’s Okay to Say No

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She also recommends “protecting your time” and learning how to say no. “I used to even resort to writing a note to myself every day that it's okay to say no, give back to you,” she explains. “It only takes you a minute to remind yourself.”

Learn How to Create Triggers for Yourself

“I had to learn to create triggers for myself,” she continues, noting that “triggers don't always have to be negative” and can be “as little as setting an alarm for yourself or even putting a note up somewhere just so you can remember the habits that you want to pick up and enforce those.”

Mark Things in Your Calendar

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For example, if you want to drink more water, “create a time in your calendar that actually says meet with a glass of water,” she says. “Also, associate that habit with something you do every day. Whenever you go to the restroom or whatever and wash your hands, keep your bottle around.”

Reference Old Photos

“I used to reference old photos that would give me a response of pride from within that reminded me of where I was going,” she continues. “It wasn't all just related to weight, y'all. Sometimes I see an old picture and I think of the emotional state that I was in at the time. I get emotional even thinking about it. I let that trigger me to fight for my emotional space and staying more healthy and on track.”

Sneak in Exercise

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“Even when I don't feel like it, I try walking five minutes more and sneaking in many exercise sessions,” she continues. “Not every day needs to be a Super Olympic training session when you work out. That's why most of us don't wanna do it because we think it involves way too much. But let's talk about quick habits. Just walking. Even if you sit all day, it can just help to improve your mood and help you make larger changes over time just because you're burning some calories and you're actually getting some movement in for your body. This also causes a reduction in chronic diseases that could affect your weight as well.”

Do 5-Minute Spurts

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Another thing you can do that “will burn you just a few more calories daily,” is doing “things that you love in five minutes spurts,” which she calls “around the world.” She does “five minutes on the elliptical, five minutes on the treadmill, five minutes on the stairs, five minutes jumping rope, whatever it is, just spend five minutes, total it up for about 20 to 30 minutes, and before you know it, you don't have fun and you don't even realize it.”

Trick Yourself Into Doing More

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You can also trick yourself into doing more exercises. “Do some squats for a determined amount of time. Maybe say for five minutes I'm gonna do squats, then I'm gonna sit down. Then I'll try it again after 10 minutes and do a few more. You're burning calories. Try walking around the block while having a phone call with a friend. Or I like to do it while I'm listening to a podcast. Do some tricep dips on that sturdy furniture of yours. And if you take your babies to the playground and you have some stairs nearby, or even the jungle gyms or the stairs on them, go up and down the steps, burn a few more calories there as well.”

Add More Movement

“The goal is to add in more movement without feeling like you're taking away big chunks in your day. And you're not having to plan,” she says.

Use a Fitness Tracker

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She recommends using a fitness tracker. “I know how much I'm burning just by wearing my fitness watch. I wear my Apple Watch every single day,” she says. And if you enjoyed this article, take advantage of these 15 Quick Ways to Lose Body Fat Percentage in a Week.