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How to lose weight fast

Things you can do to lose weight

By VidulaPublished 3 years ago 9 min read

You do not have to do everything at once, try one thing at a time and find what works for you.

Do

get active for 150 minutes a week – you can break this up into shorter sessions

aim to get your 5 A Day – 80g of fresh, canned or frozen fruit or vegetables count as 1 portion

aim to lose 1 to 2lbs, or 0.5 to 1kg, a week

read food labels – products with more green colour coding than amber and red are often a healthier option

swap sugary drinks for water – if you do not like the taste, add slices of lemon or lime for flavour

cut down on food that's high in sugar and fat – start by swapping sugary cereal for wholegrain alternatives

share your weight loss plan with someone you trust – they can help motivate you when you have a bad day

Don't

do not lose weight suddenly with diets

do not stock unhealthy food – popcorn, fruit and rice cakes can be healthier alternatives

do not skip meals – you might end up snacking more because you feel hungry

do not finish your plate if you're full – you can save leftover food for the next day

For most people, a weight loss goal of 1–2 pounds per week is considered safe. Cutting carbs, eating more protein, lifting weights, and getting more sleep are all actions that can promote sustainable weight loss.

Weight loss is not the answer to every health problem, but if your doctor recommends it, there are tips to help you lose weight safely. A steady weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds per week is recommended for the most effective long-term weight management.

That said, many eating plans designed to help you lose weight leave you feeling hungry or unsatisfied, or they cut out major food groups and are not sustainable. These are major reasons why you might find it hard to stick to a healthier eating plan.

Everyone has unique needs and different eating styles and tips may work better for you than someone else.

You may find you are able to lose weight by following a low carb diet or a diet that has a focus on whole foods, but there are some general principles that apply when you’re trying to lose weight.

Here are some science-backed tips to help you lose weight that include healthy eating, choosing carbs carefully, and that aim to:

reduce your appetite and hunger levels while keeping you satisfied

produce consistent weight loss over time

help improve your metabolic health at the same time

If you want to lose weight quickly, some of these tips may help, but quick weight loss is rarely sustainable. Focusing on long-term health and habits that you can stick with over time will help improve your health and are more likely to result in lasting weight loss.

How To Lose Weight Fast: 15 Expert-Backed Tips

People strive to lose weight for myriad reasons, and many fall into the fad diet trap promising real results fast. While there are certainly ways to accelerate your weight loss efforts, it’s important to understand that shedding pounds too quickly can actually backfire.

Like so many parts of life, safe, successful and sustainable weight loss is more about the journey and less about a scale-based destination and rapidly approaching deadline. Read on for expert advice on the best ways to lose weight—and keep it off.

Why Losing Weight Fast Isn’t the Best Goal

Though the allure of the “lose 5 pounds in a week” diet myth is strong, there are many reasons why speedy shedding may actually work against your best weight loss efforts.

First, when people lose weight rapidly, especially via fad or crash diets, they are typically unable to maintain it because the weight they lose is often more muscle mass and water and less fat mass compared to people who lose weight gradually.

“Maintaining lean muscle is important in weight loss because it plays a key role in metabolism,” says certified health coach and author of Sugar Shock and Beyond Sugar Shock Connie Bennett. “Muscle helps you burn more calories. But when you lose weight too quickly, you lose muscle and your body slows down calorie burning. Fast weight loss can even cause permanent slowing of metabolism.”

Rapid weight loss often leads to the dreaded yo-yo weight cycling many chronic dieters experience. In fact, a study of former contestants on NBC’s weight loss television show “The Biggest Loser” found the more pounds dropped quickly, the more the participant’s metabolism slowed. The study also found that the contestants regained a substantial amount of their lost weight in the six years following the competition.[1]

Another Australian study of 200 participants in The Lancet found that while dieters in the study lost the same amount of weight, the group that lost weight slowly lost 10% more body fat and 50% less lean muscle than the rapid weight loss group[2].

Further compounding the issue, when people lose weight rapidly, appetite often increases as metabolism decreases, making it almost impossible to keep the pounds off. A study in Obesity reports our bodies prompt us to eat 100 calories more per day for every pound lost[3].

Popular fad diets also very often result in nutrient deficiencies. “And rapid weight loss—especially when you cut carbs—is often largely water,” says registered dietitian Ellen Albertson, Ph.D., author of Rock Your Midlife. “What’s more, if daily calories are low, the body may also use muscle mass as fuel, further reducing metabolism, as muscle mass is metabolically active.”

The bottom line: Shedding weight sensibly is the way to go. Experts usually say a safe rate is losing around half a pound to 2 pounds a week. With that goal in mind, here are some tried-and-true ways to drop pounds and keep them off for good.

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15 Expert-Backed Tips for Safe and Sustainable Weight Loss

1. Implement Long-Term Lifestyle and Behavior Changes

When trying to lose weight, ban the word “diet,” suggests Albertson. Dieting can be unpleasant and make you hungry, so you constantly think about food, which is exactly what you don’t want when trying to lose weight. Instead, she recommends thinking of weight loss as a part of getting healthier and concentrating on taking care of your body first.

“Weight loss is complicated and you don’t have total control over the number on the scale, but you do have control over what you eat, how much you move and other factors that impact weight, such as stress and sleep,” says Albertson. She suggests setting SMART—specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-sensitive—goals and rewarding yourself when you hit them.

2. Focus on the First 5% to 10%

Instead of saying, “I need to lose 25 pounds,” and overwhelming yourself with what seems like an impossible goal, look toward the health benefits that can come from even modest weight loss.

“Set smaller, achievable targets,” suggests Bennett. “Losing only 5% to 10% of your total body weight (TBW) can greatly improve your health and lower your risk for illnesses, such as type 2 diabetes, stroke, cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer.”

3. Reduce Your Intake of Ultra-Processed Carbs and Sweets

A study in the Journal of the American Medical Association reveals what you eat is most important for weight loss[4]. The pounds will come off more quickly if you improve the quality of the foods you ingest.

“One of the healthiest ways to shed weight is to reduce your intake of sugar and rapidly metabolized carbohydrates,” says Bennett. “In particular, you want to cut out or drastically curtail your intake of high-glycemic-load foods, such as sugary snacks, processed carbs and soft drinks. When you avoid or cut back on French fries, chips, crackers and the like, you’ll speed up your weight loss.”

4. Eat More Plants

Research shows a plant-based diet not only promotes weight loss, but is also easier to stick to than a low-calorie diet[5]. Plus, it’s nutrient dense and has numerous health benefits.

“Produce supports weight loss because it’s rich in fiber and water, which are both calorie-free yet take up space in your stomach so you feel full,” says Albertson. In fact, a Brazilian study found a direct correlation between increased fruit and vegetable consumption and enhanced weight loss[6].

Albertson suggests aiming to consume five daily servings of produce to start and working up to seven to nine servings a day. “Start your day with a green smoothie, have a salad or cut up vegetables with your lunch and eat fruit for snacks and desserts,” she says. “For supper, have more stir frys, incorporate veggies into your pasta dishes and stir them into soups.”

How To Safely Lose Weight

Keeping weight off requires making changes you can sustain long-term. Therefore, the key to losing weight fast, and maintaining a healthy body weight, is to rethink some of your eating and lifestyle habits.

Eat More Vegetables

Try incorporating vegetables into every meal. Vegetables can be low in carbs and pack fiber, water, and nutrients. Research has found that aiming to consume three servings of vegetables daily, or one serving per meal, is optimal.13

A serving might include raw, sautéed, roasted, or filled green vegetables. Try mixing up the colors and types of vegetables to take in more nutrients and antioxidants.

For each meal, try some of the following:

Breakfast: Blend spinach or kale into a smoothie at breakfast, or sauté vegetables like tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, and greens with eggs.

Lunch: Make an entrée salad or Buddha bowl your go-to lunch, with a base of greens and vegetables the size of two handfuls.

Dinner: Opt for cooked vegetables, like in a stir-fried dish. Or cover half of your dinner plate with sautéed or oven-roasted vegetables, such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, green beans, eggplant, or cauliflower.

Build Balanced Meals

Round out your meals with lean proteins, healthy fats, and whole-grain carbs.14 Proteins can include plant or animal sources, such as pea protein powder, lentils, beans, pasture-raised eggs, or fish.

Healthy fats boost satiety and keep you fuller longer. To get your fill, blend nut butter in a smoothie, serve avocado with eggs, toss salads with extra virgin olive oil vinaigrette, and drizzle pesto over cooked vegetables.

Finally, don't omit nutrient-rich, whole-grain carbs like brown rice and quinoa, starchy vegetables like skin-on potatoes and butternut squash, and fresh fruits. To meet your energy needs, consume at least one cup or one-half cup of cooked, fresh carbs at each meal. Not eating enough carbs might result in lingering hunger or cravings, plus spontaneous snacking that hinders results.

In other words, avoid falling into the old trap of making meals out of steamed vegetables and plain grilled chicken. In addition to feeling hungry, you'll burn out quickly and deprive your body of essential nutrients.

Drink Water

You do not have to give up coffee to lose and maintain weight. Still, try your coffee with unsweetened plant-based milk, sugar in the raw, maple syrup, or cinnamon rather than refined or artificial sugars or cream.

After a cup or two of coffee, switch to water. Experts advise consuming 91–125 fluid ounces, spread evenly throughout the day.15 Your water intake may vary depending on your weight and activity level. For example, you will want to replenish any lost weight with water if you exercise.16

You can flavor water with all-natural ingredients like citrus, fresh mint, cucumber, ginger, or in-season fruit if you do not enjoy the taste of plain water.

Try to limit your alcohol intake. Often, alcohol is high in empty calories and low in nutrients.17 For a long-term strategy, limit alcohol to a few weekly occasions. Stick with cocktails made with sparkling water rather than soda, tonic water, or fruit juice.

Get Regular Exercise

In addition to diet, physical activity is a key part of weight loss. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises exercising for 150 minutes weekly, which equals 30 minutes daily, five days per week.18 Try incorporating light-to-moderate aerobic and strength exercises.19

Beyond weight loss, physical activity has several benefits, such as:20

Builds strong muscles

Helps protect against and manage cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes

Energizes you

Promotes healthy sleeping patterns

Supports your mental healthy by reducing stress, anxiety, and depression

A Quick Review

Extreme methods of weight loss often foster unhealthy habits and run the risk of regaining lost weight. Plus, highly calorie-restrictive diets are not recommended for everyone and can lead to nutrient deficiencies without proper medical supervision.

Instead of adopting a diet that promises rapid weight loss, manage your weight with a sustainable eating plan that gives you all your recommended nutrients. Lean on your support system when you need it, and exercise regularly for maximum long-term health benefits.

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Vidula

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