5 ways to lose weight fast – by beating the bloat
Well, you might be suffering from water retention.
Water retention happens when excess fluid builds up inside your body and it tends to result in swelling in your hands, feet, ankles and legs.
But many of us also feel like we're carrying excess water in our faces and bellies.
If you feel as though you've suddenly piled on a few pounds, then it probably is water rather than fat.
So what can you do about it?
1. Reduce your salt intake
We all need a little sodium in our diets but if you're adding salt to your chips and regularly eating ready-made meals, then you're probably having way too much of the white stuff.
“Salt acts like a magnet to water in your body, hence the water retention," Bonnie Taub-Dix, registered dietician, told Prevention.
"Other foods may make you feel bloated — but don’t confuse the two sensations.
"Bran products, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and more cause that full feeling."
Even if you don't add salt to your food, the chances are that you're following a pretty salty diet because it's hidden in so many foods – especially at restaurants and supermarkets.
It's a cheap way to add flavour to a meal.
In fact, Bonnie claims, 70 per cent of our dietary sodium is found in restaurant dishes, fast foods and pre-packed snacks.
You can tell if you're particularly salt-sensitive with a very simple test:
- Look at your fingers an hour after eating salty foods
- If your rings leave an indentation or they feel slightly inflamed, you're probably more sensitive to sodium
In that case, try to increase your intake of whole foods that haven't been pre-prepared at all.
Buy whole veg and proteins and look for low-sodium carb options.
2. Eat more bananas
Scientists have found that higher potassium levels are often linked to lower sodium levels in the kidneys.
And that means that the more potassium you consume (a mineral found in bananas), the lower your water retention and blood pressure.
13 high potassium foods
Bananas might be the best known source of the mineral but there are actually loads of foods that contain more potassium, gram for gram:
Here is a list of high-potassium foods:
- Sweet potato
- White potato
- Tomato sauce
- Watermelon
- Frozen spinach
- Beets
- Black beans
- White beans
- Canned salmon
- Edamame
- Butternut squash
- Swiss chard
- Yoghurt
3. Stay hydrated
Sounds odd to drink more water if you're storing water in odd places but really important to make sure that your body is fully hydrated.
When you consume too much salt, your cells drink up and hold onto every last bit of water that comes in.
And that tricks you into thinking that you're not actually thirsty, when you actually are.
If you don't drink enough water anyway, your body holds on to water and starts to suffer from dehydration.
US scientists have found that a pre-meal pint of water leads to 44 per cent greater weight loss.
So, win-win.
4. Stop sitting around
The easiest way to shift water weight is to get moving.
You want to get those lymph nodes working and moving stuff around the body and you can do that by getting an expensive lymphatic drainage massage…or simply going for a run.
Moderate-to-intense exercise stimulates the flow of fluids around the body and helps to remove water from the extremities.
Make sure you properly hydrate after.
5. Get tested by your GP
"What is causing the water weight? If you've had a few too many pickles, drink water and you’ll notice your weight going back to normal within a day. But if it’s linked to hormones, it might take a while," Bonnie explained.
Water retention in itself isn't harmful but if you're chronically bloated then you absolutely have to get checked out by your GP.
Bloating can be caused by all kinds of things, from food intolerances to hormonal issues like PCOS and much more serious conditions.
In its extreme, it can be a symptom of liver disease and ovarian cancer – although they tend to come with other symptoms such as a persistent feeling of fullness and unintentional weight loss.
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