By Tony Robinson

You’ve made the decision to lose weight as quickly as possible. There are a number of things that can affect your weight loss. For instance, family history, or genetics, can play a significant role. Also, your weight loss may depend upon how much exercise you’re engaging in, as well as how much stress you are under. Theoretically, you could lose as much as 20 pounds a week. However, much of that weight could be water weight. That means that, once you go off your diet, you are likely to gain much of that weight back. Also, unless you engage in strength training, you will be losing muscle as well as fat, since about ¼ of the body’s weight consists of muscle. It is interesting to note that, at most, you can probably lose four pounds of fat in a given week.

Nature has a way of protecting the body against excessive weight loss. If, for instance, your calorie count suddenly drops, your body will compensate for the fact by reducing your metabolic rate. As a result, you’ll need fewer calories to maintain your weight. This explains why some people lose weight up to a point and then cannot lose any additional weight, no matter how hard they try.

If you lose weight quickly there’s a good chance that your health will be jeopardized. For instance, fast weight loss has been linked to the appearance of gall stones. Also, you may experience loose skin as your weight goes into free fall. Perhaps most distressing of all, if you experience rapid weight loss, there’s a good chance that you will gain the weight back again. This is because it is very difficult to maintain a healthy diet regimen. You may find yourself falling back into your bad eating habits after a period of deprivation.

(iloveindia.com) Given here are some easy and fast weight loss ideas:


* Make water your favorite drink. A person must have a minimum of 8 glasses of water in a day. Avoid taking soft drinks or carbonated beverages; moreover replace them with water. Water helps in reducing weight in the most effective manner.

* Don’t stuff yourself with food in a single sitting; instead have 5 to 6 small meals or snacks in a day. Eating several small meals helps the body to release less insulin, which keeps blood sugar steady and helps to control hunger.

* Make a habit of walking. Instead of driving car to the nearby market, prefer walking down. Walking is more important for people in sedentary jobs. Walk for at least 45 minutes every day; it helps in burning extra calories.

* Keep small plates for serving food because a study shows that the less food put in front of us, the less food we’ll eat. So downsize your food plates and coffee mugs, and say goodbye to those extra calories.

* Eat more vegetables during meals as water-rich foods like zucchini, tomatoes, and cucumbers reduce your overall calorie consumption. Some other water-rich foods include soups and salads; they are good source of nutrition.

* Use vegetables to make hefty meals. Like pasta salad loaded with vegetables like broccoli, carrots, and tomatoes can be eaten twice. Same applies for stir-fries; add vegetables to make a fluffier omelet.

* Avoid taking white foods as they contain large amounts of carbohydrates, which may further lead to weight gain. Replace white sugar, white rice, and white flour with whole grain breads and brown rice.

* Switch to ordinary coffee because coffee drinks at shops has extra calories, owing to whole milk, whipped cream, sugar, and sugary syrups. A cup of regular coffee, having skim milk brewed with good beans, tastes great and moreover has fewer calories.

* Use skimmed milk as it is high in calcium and low in calories. For coffee, use nonfat powdered milk.

* Prefer eating cereal for breakfast five days a week. Following this, you will consume more fiber and calcium, and less fat than those who eat other breakfast foods.

* Prefer having meals at home. We’re more likely to eat more – in fact, more high-fat, and high-calorie foods- when we eat out than eating at home.

* Try to eat slowly and put your fork or spoon down after every bite. Drink water often and talk about your day with your partner. If you eat slowly, you would feel contended with your meal.

* Eat only when your stomach wants food. Usually out of boredom, nervousness, habit, or frustration; many of us unnecessarily have food. If you want to have something specific, it’s probably a craving, not hunger.

* Prefer flavorings like hot sauce, salsa, and Cajun seasonings rather than butter and creamy or sugary sauces. These flavorings not only provide flavor with no fat and few calories, but the spicy ones also turn up digestive fires, causing your body to burn more calories.

* Eat fruit rather than drinking fruit juice. Eating whole foods will keep you satisfied for longer period of time than juice. Moreover, fruit juices are very high in calories.

* Eat equal portions of vegetables and grains at dinner. A cup of cooked rice or pasta has about 200 calories, while a cup of cooked veggies has just 50 calories. This will help to avoid a grain calorie overload, and high-fiber veggies will help satisfying your hunger.

* After every two hours, get up and walk around the office or your home for five minutes. A brisk five-minute walk after every two hours will you’re your body active.

* Once a week, make a habit of washing something thoroughly – could be floor, windows, shower cabin, bathroom tiles, car, etc. It helps in burning out about four calories for every minute spent in cleaning.

* Take a walk before dinner and it’ll not only burn calories, but also cut down your appetite.

* Prefer not eating with a large group as we tend to eat more when we eat with other people, probably because we spend more time at the table. When eating in groups take a note of time and leave the plate, as and when you have had enough.

* Skip watching TV for an hour and go for a walk instead. Or else, you have now time to finish your domestic chores.

* Take most of the calories before noon because studies tell that the more you eat in the morning, the less you’ll eat in the evening. Moreover, you will get more chances to burn off those early-day calories than late-night calories.

* Order alcohol by the glass, not the bottle. This way, you’ll be more aware of how much alcohol you’re intaking. Alcohol is high in calories, however moderate drinking can be good for your health.

* Stock your refrigerator with low-fat yogurt. Cut down 500 calories a day from your diet and eat yogurt three times a day for 12 weeks. It will help you lose more weight and body fat.

Fast weight loss also places you at greater risk for an eating disorder. Although the body has the capability of shedding a great deal of weight over a period of time, most medical experts agree that one should not expect to lose more than one or two pounds a week in order to remain healthy. This can be disappointing to a dieter, especially one that needs to lose about 50 pounds. However, doctors believe that the go-slow approach is best for long-term weight loss. There are a number of approaches you can use to lose weight. For instance, you might follow the Atkins plan, the Zone, or the diabetic diet. You might try Sugar Busters or the Carb Addict’s prescription for losing weight. However, it is vitally important that you accompany your diet plan with an effective exercise routine. As has been demonstrated here, rapid weight loss should be approached with caution. It is far better to lose a few pounds each week and maintain that weight loss over the long term. In essence, all good things take time, and that is particularly true when it comes to weight loss. Follow a reasonable diet, get plenty of exercise, and drink a good amount of water. That way, you should be able to slowly lose weight–without jeopardizing your health in the process.

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