In order to lose weight, we must take in fewer calories than we use each day. We are going to show you many different ways to do this and step by step, day by day, you will see how to lose weight easily…and keep it off!
You Gotta Start Somewhere
We all need to start somewhere, so, tomorrow morning, when you wake up, the first thing you should do is go step on the scale and weigh yourself. Then record the result in a notebook or on your phone or on your computer or where ever you prefer because this is the magic number that will bring a great big smile to your face as you move away from this number and lose weight!
What Works For You?
Since there are many ways to lose weight, let’s discuss the basics first.
Some folks choose to diet to lose weight and some folks like to exercise to lose weight, but probably the best method is a combination of both.
The trick is to find the right combination for you. How much diet combined with how much exercise gives you the best results and that depends on many factors but one of the most dependent factors is your body’s metabolism.
Metabolism is the measure of how your body burns fuel (food). The higher your body’s metabolism, the faster you body burns those food calories.
The great news is that you can do many things to help speed up your body’s metabolism (more on that later).
Eating
Making wise food choices is like showing your body that you love it. If you love your body, your body will love you back by slimming down and becoming more healthy. You’ll feel better and have more energy.
Here’s a simple metabolism trick: Eat 4-5 meals a day, yes, that’s right, 4 to 5 meals a day!
When you feed your body (always with good fresh healthy foods) about every 3 hours, it keeps your metabolism running higher all day long!
Ever wonder why some of the most active children are the ones that are always eating! They are keeping their body’s metabolism revved up all day and seem to never run out of energy…until bedtime that is, then they conk out quickly!
When you eat 4-5 meals a day, you must pay attention to portions, so a good rule of thumb is that the amount of food
you eat could fit in your open palm.
For each meal you eat, use this method to control your portion size. You will be amazed at how just this one tip could make a huge difference in accelerating your weight loss goal!
Good Foods
The best foods? All fresh fruits and vegetables qualify as well as lean meats like skinless chicken, fish and lean cuts of red meat (but go sparingly on the red meat). The Leanest cuts of red meat include top sirloin, round steak and at least 80% lean ground beef.
The Importance of Hydration
Also, remember to hydrate yourself by drinking adequate amounts of fluids. Water of course is one of the best hydrating fluids you can consume.
A good rule of thumb is to drink one-half to one ounce of water per pound of your body’s weight.
So, if you weight 150 lbs, you should strive to drink between 75 (about a half gallon) to 150 ounces (a little over a gallon) of water throughout the day, but many other fluids can hydrate you also (just watch out for the sugared drinks which, although they can hydrate you, the added sugar could pile on the unwanted calories making it harder to lose weight).
Snacks such as fresh fruit slices, nuts (only a small handful since nuts are calorie dense), baby carrots (one of my favorites) or other fresh vegetables are a great way to take in a mini meal, rev up your metabolism, stick to your well-balanced diet and love your body, so your body loves you back!
Bad Foods
Try to avoid prepackaged foods. Most contain ingredients that hurt your chances of losing weight.
Ingredients such as excessive saturated fat, trans fat, high amounts of sodium, chemical preservatives and high amounts of sugar (even in items that you would never expect).
So read the ingredients labels on packaged foods and you will see that they are packed with many unfriendly ingredients that can betray your weight loss goals!
Fast Foods
Fast foods are loaded with fat and sodium, both of which you should avoid or at least minimize.
If you’re in a pinch and must go the fast food route, remember your portion training and only eat the bare minimum in order to soothe your hunger until you can eat a better healthy meal.
Exercise
What kinds of activities can raise your metabolism?
Something as simple as taking a 20-minute walk can speed up your metabolism.
Or spend 20 minutes doing a cardio exercise like walking on a treadmill or an elliptical machine or upright bike (cheaper at Amazon). Even after just a 20-minute workout, your body’s metabolism stays elevated for up to two hours after you’ve finished your work out!
To benefit even more, you can plan a meal right after a workout and burn more of those calories off than if you hadn’t worked out before your meal.
Other ways to lose weight through exercise are:
Jumping rope, jumping on a small exercise trampoline, playing sports like basketball or tennis, swimming, hiking, taking a cardio, yoga or dance class at a gym, even lifting free weights can be a great way to lose weight.
Celebration Time!
When you incorporate a combination of eating good fresh foods, drinking plenty of fluids and moderate daily exercise, you will lose weight and keep it off when you make this a part of your daily life.
After as little as a week, your body starts to assimilate your new lifestyle and you will feel more energetic, happier and proud when you step on that scale every week to 10 days. Not only will you lose weight, you will also lose inches around your waist, thighs and even your backside!
In less than a month, you could go down a dress or pant size and you will begin to look slim, trim and beautiful!
You can lose 1-3 lbs a week. That’s up to 12 lbs a month! Up to 36 lbs in just three months! You could even be a whopping 72 lbs slimmer in only six months!
You’d be a whole new person!!
You can even make a deal and challenge yourself that for every 8 to 10 pounds of weight loss, you can reward yourself with a new article of clothing or a small dessert.
So go get started right now!
YOU CAN DO IT!!
We truly hope this post has been helpful to you!
Please feel free to leave a comment below.