4 simple weight loss lessons from a cardiologist who lost 30 pounds while building muscle

• A 35 year old cardiologist lost 30 pounds while building muscle by changing his diet and exercise.

• He says consistency, patience, fun and balance are the keys to his success.

• Experts back up her advice of choosing small, simple, and healthy changes for lasting results.

A cardiologist who lost 30 pounds and has toned muscles says there are no secret diets or crazy workouts behind her success – just a few basic tips anyone can try at home.

Amar Shere, 35, said he started lifting weights and eating a high protein vegan diet as part of her fitness transformation, but the biggest factor in her success is even simpler.

“Consistency is key. The best kind of goal is to develop skills and healthy habits that you can stick with,” Shere told Insider. “Sticking to the plan for weeks on end, that’s when I saw results.”

She says that making small changes instead of trying extreme or rigorous programs and finding routines that are fun and healthy help her see lasting results.

Here are Shere’s four biggest conclusions from her transformation, backed by other fitness and nutrition experts.

Consistency is key

More than any specific diet or exercise, Shere says her fitness transformation is about being consistent and making small changes but sticking with them over time.

Prior to last year, he said he would hit the gym occasionally but had no plans and often relied on takeout and processed foods for meals.

“I considered myself healthy for a long time, but I didn’t feel good, and I wasn’t getting the results I wanted in terms of my physique,” he said.

Shere credits her overall transformation to gradually adapting her routine to incorporate healthier habits. By making small changes, he was able to keep it up, which ultimately made a big difference as he got stronger and felt better over time.

It’s better to focus on consistent progress than to pressure yourself to be perfect or overhaul your life, fitness and nutrition writer Adam Bornstein previously told Insider.

Avoid extreme diets

Shere says a big part of her weight loss success has been choosing healthier ways to enjoy her favorite foods.

He swapped the high-protein version of the pasta dish for noodles made from legumes like chickpeas. For dessert, she enjoys her dark chocolate treat, but sprinkles on plant-based Greek yogurt for added protein.

By not eliminating all the good stuff, she says she’s not tempted to give up on her healthy habits because she can still enjoy food and dessert.

Weight loss efforts can fail if you try to eat too restrictively, causing you to eat something you feel guilty about, Holly Baxter, a nutritionist, previously told Insider. Many people then try to overcompensate by limiting their food intake even more, creating a vicious cycle, he says.

Like Shere, Baxter recommends leaving room for snacks in your diet to help maintain a healthier relationship with food and to help you be more likely to stick to the diet in the long term.

Find a sport you don’t hate

shere said lifting weights helps her build muscle, but her favorite type of workout is Bollywood-style dance fitness, and including it in her routine helps her look forward to working out.

Shere said it was also important that her practice fit into her busy lifestyle as a doctor and allow her to get enough sleep.

Working on too much exerciseespecially if reducing your sleep or recovery time, can backfire, making it hard to see progress, Chris Duffin, a powerlifter, told Insider previously.

Be patient

A major factor in Shere’s weight loss success is that she doesn’t try to speed up the process.

Losing 30 pounds in a year is a rate of about two and a half pounds a month, or just over half a pound a week. That corresponds to a recommended pace of sustained weight loss of no more than a pound or two per week, according to CDC.

While it’s tempting to try to lose weight faster, it can increase your risk of going off track and gaining it back, Bonnie Taub-Dix, registered dietitian nutritionist and author of “Read It Before You Eat It — Taking You from Label to Table,” said.

“You don’t have to be stricter, you have to be more patient,” he told Insider previously.

Read the original article on Insider