“How can I fit into this dress in just a couple of weeks?”
“How can I lose 5 lbs before I go down South?”
“Reunion next month. Can I lose 10 lbs?”
These are questions that I hear all the time. And testimonials can be found all over the Internet and Television suggesting that it’s actually possible to lose obscene amounts of weight quickly and easily.
Well, is it true? Can you lose weight fast? Yes you can! As unbelievable as it may be, you can lose weight quickly and astonishingly enough, without sacrificing hours per day and without starving yourself.
Unfortunately there are such things as unrealistic goals. Those testimonials where people lose 10 lbs in one week are either extreme cases or incredibly exaggerated. But, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t strive to lose the weight or inches that you want to lose in order to meet a short term goal.
Here are some tips to lose weight quickly.
Increase your metabolism. Amazing things can happen when you simply spread your eating out through the day. Eat 5 to 6 times during the day instead of your usual three. Keep feeding yourself and your metabolism will work harder to keep up. Many people find that simply eating the same types of food that they usually do but spreading it out into 5 to 6 smaller meals throughout the day causes their metabolism to increase and fat is lost.
A good suggestion is to eat 6 times per day, every 3 hours. Maybe at 6am, 9am, 12pm, 3pm, 6pm and 9pm. Even if not hungry, it’s important to eat. Not eating and instead starving yourself will cause your body to go into a starvation mode in which your body may attempt to hold on to fat, rather than lose it.
Work large muscle groups. Do squats or lunges which impact your quads. If you don’t feel comfortable with barbell squats, do dumbbell squats or even air squats. Leg presses are also useful for working the hamstrings and quadriceps muscles. Core exercises - leg lifts, sit-ups, planks also work large sets of muscles. Working larger muscle groups will burn more calories. It also enables greater caloric burn in less time, helping to maximize the effectiveness of a single workout.
Perform circuits. Put 2 or three different exercises together and do them back to back with a medium to high intensity. This sort of high intensity circuit training will cause increase caloric burn during the workout, enable you to get in and out of the gym quickly and an abundance of evidence exists suggesting that your metabolic rate increases and remains high for hours after your workout, well into a resting state.
Eat a balanced diet. Many suggest to focus on protein, but ultimately, that can cause unbalanced hormones and can lead to feeling pretty blah. Skip the sugar completely. And skip foods that easily turn into sugar. Sugar causes insulin to rise and as such an unbalanced hormonal state in which fat is easily stored and held. skip out on simple breads. Whole wheat if anything. Eat lots of veggies and small amounts of protein at every meal. Chicken or fish preferably. Stay away from super high fat foods simply because of the high calories that come with them. But don’t shy away from fat all together. Fat from things like nuts and olives are very healthy and can help give you a feeling of satiety during a meal.
Personally, I try to avoid eating out as much as possible and I have some staple meals that take virtually no time to prepare. Salads can be purchased pre-made at most grocery stores in a variety of various styles. I also like to get pre-cooked chicken strips. Nitrate and preservative free packages have also recently come out on the market. Apples and berries also help supplement my morning Kashi cereal with low fat milk. Egg whites, hard boiled eggs and lots and lots of frozen veggies. Did I already mention the frozen veggies? Having apples close at hand are good for the inevitable snack craving.
Get your sleep! An often overlooked but essential part of dieting is sleeping. Evidence exists that suggests poor sleeping patterns or inefficient amounts of sleep can lead to complications in weight loss. Get at least 7 hours of sleep and if you sleep in til 9am on Sunday, you’re actually doing your body good.
With these tips and a good exercise program, losing weight quickly may not actually be that out of your reach.
No Comments, Comment or Ping
Reply to “How to Lose Weight Fast”