6 Tips for Successful Pescatarian Diet Weight Loss (Bonus Starter Meal Plan)

We’ve all seen the late at night infomercials that promise you’ll “get your dream bikini body” in a month or less if only you order their pills or shakes.

I’d be lying if I didn’t say that becoming a pescatarian to lose weight wasn’t one of my major goals.

I wanted to know if this new diet we were on was going to help me lose weight quickly or if I should just order the damn pills on TV.

At the time, I had the completely wrong mentality of course and even though those pills you see advertised on TV promise results, they’re usually only short term remedies that end up causing you to gain all if not more of your weight back.

Anyone claiming that a pill or artificial shake will help you lose weight is lying to you.

The only tried, trusted, and safe weight loss methods are through clean food and exercise alone.

It really is that simple.

So, where do you start your pescatarian diet weight loss journey?

Step 1: Start By Treating Your Body AND Yourself Right

If you are carrying some extra weight that you’d like to shed, instead of looking in the mirror with hatred, rather embrace your body and tell yourself that from this point forward you are going to treat it with the love and respect it deserves.

I know, I know, it’s not as simple as pasting a mantra or goal image on your fridge (although that does work for some!), it takes a lot of willpower to make a permanent change in your life.

This is why taking charge of your health should be your main goal.

Place that goal miles ahead of losing pounds. It’s much more sustainable, and by developing good eating habits, you’ll be setting yourself up for success long past losing the weight you wish to lose.

Step 2: Build Your Healthy Body In The Kitchen

When you start your new healthy pescatarian lifestyle you will need to do a full kitchen spring clean and throw out all the junk food hiding in your cupboards. You won’t believe that cutting just a few foods out of your diet, will already show you some weight loss results.

Foods that most people eat on a daily basis and that 100% contribute to excess weight are refined sugars such as white sugar and icing sugar. Other bad food choices include processed white flours, dairy, all processed and packaged foods, excess salt and added sugars.

These are the types of foods you should aim to completely remove from your diet:

• Refined sugars
• Processed/boxed meals
• Starchy foods and carbohydrates such as white bread, pasta, white rice, and potatoes
• Bad fats such as margarine, hydrogenated oils, shortening

When you start to cut back on these bad foods, be safe about it.

Don’t be alarmed if you experience withdrawal symptoms such as fatigue, anxiety, insomnia or breakouts for the first few weeks. This is simply your body flushing out toxins.

Instead, you should opt for including more of the following foods in your daily diet.

Filling Fats

No, we aren’t referring to unhealthy animal fats such as
dairy or red meat, but rather plant-based fats (and some
fish!) that will help to keep your heart healthy and your
belly full!

• Avocados
• Raw unsalted nuts
• Healthy oils (coconut, olive, avocado)
• Salmon
• Sardines

Here are a few of our favourites:

Metabolism Boosters

A high metabolism means your body will burn calories faster, but if yours is slow, you can boost it with these foods.

• Beans
• Almonds
• Chia seeds
• Dark chocolate
• Lentils

Here are a few of our favourites:

Gentle Detoxers

By gently detoxing your body on a daily basis, you will improve your liver function and your body will be better able to flush toxins from your body. Avoid any of those “Skinny teas” type products or pills, those offer temporary solutions, and may negatively impact your health. Opt for including the following in your daily lifestyle.

• Pure lemon or cranberry juice
• Cruciferous vegetables
• Garlic
• Apples
• Beets

Step 3: Stop Counting Calories

Despite what you may be used to hearing, calories don’t matter that much after all. Now I know there are going to be many of you reading this and shaking your head.

Hear me out for a minute though.

I’m not saying that it’s okay to eat 10,000 calories per day and still expect to lose weight, and I’m definitely not saying that if you limit yourself to 100 calories per day you’ll drop 20 pounds in a week (safely)!

See, as Dr. Mark Hyman points out, our bodies are going through constant changes. Our metabolism and caloric needs are two variables that naturally change over time as we lose weight.

What that means is that, “You’ll need to consume even fewer calories, or burn even more of them, just to keep losing at the same rate. For most people, this pace of progress is totally demotivating, which is why they generally abandon their small-scale diet and exercise attempts early on.”

With this knowledge under your belt, don’t completely abandon counting your calories, just adjust as you lose weight.

But most importantly, the old adage “a calorie is a calorie” is not something we agree with here at Fishy Vegetarian.

Instead, you should aim to eat more good calories and fewer bad calories.

Here are 2 great resources for calorie counting: 

• How Many Calories Should You Eat: Calorie Counter
• How To Achieve Caloric Balance

Step 4: Think Of Exercise As An Aid In Weight Loss, NOT The Main Solution

Exercise is another important part of a healthy lifestyle but you should think of it rather as an aid to a good eating plan, rather than your main source of weight-loss.

Did you know proper eating habits count for 80 to 90 percent of weight loss?

If you eat 10,000 calories a day, exercise won’t help you lose weight – unless you are exercising from sunrise to sunset – no one want’s to do that.

Certainly not me!

If, however, you add exercise to healthy eating such as a pescatarian meal plan where your calories are calculated according to your needs then it can certainly help to speed up the process and get you to your goal weight quicker.

Regular exercise, especially HIIT, boosts the metabolism, meaning you will burn more calories throughout the day.

Exercise also helps you to feel positive and happy and motivates you to stick to your new healthy lifestyle.

Don’t be afraid of pushing weights!

Building muscle helps to burn fat, tone, and strengthen your body in a way that cardio training can’t. Aim for at least 30 minutes of movement 5 times a week.

If you’re just starting out, this can be a walk around your neighborhood, swimming a few laps in your pool, or going for a bike ride. Your body will thank you for it!

Remember, listen to your body and if you haven’t exercised in a long time, visit your doctor to get the all-clear.

Here are a few of our favourite exercises to help get you started:

• Treadmill HIIT : 30 seconds intense sprint followed by 90 seconds light jog or walk (8 intervals with 5 min warm up and 5 min cool down)
• Stationary bike HIIT: 30 seconds intense pedal followed by 90 seconds calm pedal (8 intervals with 5 min warm up and 5 min cool down)
• 30 Day Yoga Camp by Yoga by Adrienne on YouTube

Step 5: Drink Lots Of Water

If you’re not drinking at least 2 liters of water per day right now, make this priority number one.

The science is still out on whether 2 liters (or 8 glasses) is the standard, so the amount of water you need depends on a few factors, namely:

• Your weight
• How active you are
• The climate you live in

Go out and grab yourself a 1 liter water bottle, that way you only have to remember to refill it two to three times. These bottles won’t cost you an arm and a leg, just make sure you grab one that is BPA-free.

Many studies have been done to see whether water has an effect on weight loss, and the verdict has come in…

YES – water helps greatly with weight loss.

In fact, one study showed that participants who drank 500 ml of water before each meal lost 44% more weight over a 12 week period.

That’s pretty impressive.

And just in case you’re wondering, tea and other drinks do count toward your water intake. Just make sure they’re not filled with sugar!

Step 6: No Cutting Corners

Real talk for a second.

Going pescatarian does not automatically mean you will lose weight.

I repeat.

Going pescatarian does not automatically mean you will lose weight.

You can gain weight on a pescatarian diet just like any other diet if you don’t eat right.

You can gain weight on a pescatarian diet just like any other if you aren’t watching what you eat, especially if you’re going overboard on the sugar (the enemy!)

Making the choice to go pescatarian means that you are committed to be healthier overall and will, therefore be inclined to make healthier choices.

By cutting out sugar, high fat and processed foods you will naturally lose weight. Meat, such as pork, is also loaded with calories and fat and by cutting this out and eating fish instead you will be consuming fewer calories while still building lean muscle.

Bonus Pescatarian Diet Weight Loss Tips!

When you’re looking to lose weight, the most important thing to consider is the food choices you make and the way you prepare your food.

Cook clean:

1. No deep frying
2. Substitute butter for ghee, coconut oil, or olive oil
3. Portion control cooking oils as they can contain upwards of 100 calories/tsp

Get your nutrients from good food sources:

1. Opt for fish highest in iron
2. Snack on unsalted nuts in between meals

Now It’s Up To You…

Which of the 6 pescatarian diet weight loss success strategies from this post are you eager to put into practice first?

Remember, creating a habit is the best way to stick to something.

And you create habits by taking action.

Even imperfect action.

Are you going to try to make a conscientious effort at treating your body better by the way you talk to yourself?

Are you going to try new healthy foods you’ve always walked by in the grocery store because they’re too “scary” to cook?

Or perhaps you want to try lifting weights instead of just doing cardio.

Either way, I’d love to hear your plan of action.

Fill me in by leaving a comment below right now.

And now for the real bonus!