Weight Loss Tips


Tips for Weight Loss

(Photo by Sanja Gjenero)
(Photo by Sanja Gjenero)
  1. Determine a healthy weight range. Before you embark on a weight loss and fitness plan, determine whether or not you need to lose weight at all. Maintaining a healthy weight can reduce the risks of heart problems, diabetes and sleep apnea among other conditions. However, losing weight if you are already at a healthy weight can lead to problems. Consult your doctor or nutritionist to establish an appropriate weight loss goal for you.
  2. Lose weight slowly. According to epidemiologist Jennifer Linde, "A realistic goal is 1 to 2 pounds a week."[1] You're not going to lose 20 pounds in time for your high school reunion next weekend. If you did, it's likely you'd gain it back as quickly as you lost it. Why? Because, according to Dr. Melissa Conrad Stoppler, rapid "weight loss is almost impossible to maintain for most people. When food intake is severely restricted, the body begins to adapt to this state of poor nutrition by shutting down its metabolic rate, potentially making it even more difficult to lose weight."[2] Slow and steady wins the race.
  3. Set short term goals. Your overall goal may be to lose 50 pounds, but celebrate your successes along the way. Celebrating every 5 or 10 pound loss will keep you motivated.
  4. Focus on changing habits. The more slowly you lose weight the more likely you are to adopt the type of behaviors you'll need to maintain your weight loss. When you focus on living a new lifestyle instead of the daily ins and outs of dieting, you'll find your weight loss program easier to maintain. According to Dr. Stoppler, weight loss happens when you "adopt sensible eating habits and practice portion control...By replacing some unwise food choices with healthy ones, you'll be cutting back on calories. If you add some moderate physical activity, you have the perfect weight loss plan without the need for special or inconvenient (and often expensive) diet plans."[3]
  5. Build muscle. Dr. John Berardi, author of The Metabolism Advantage, explains that "putting on 5 to 10 pounds of lean muscle mass will boost your metabolism...the number of calories your body burns to maintain life will increase by roughly 100 calories every day."[4]
  6. Never crash diet. According to Dr. Melissa Conrad Stoppler, rapid "weight loss is almost impossible to maintain for most people. When food intake is severely restricted, the body begins to adapt to this state of poor nutrition by shutting down its metabolic rate, potentially making it even more difficult to lose weight."[5]
  7. Eat often, but eat right. Research from Georgia State University shows that "people who eat every 2 to 3 hours have less body fat and faster metabolisms than those who eat only 2 or 3 meals per day."[6] This is because your metabolism is stimulated every time you eat. Just be sure that what you're eating is healthy. Dr. Kristine Clarke of Pennsylvania State University recommends upping your intake of high-fiber vegetables and proteins like eggs, chicken and nuts.[7]
    Drink lots of water. (Creative Commons photo by Nick)
    Drink lots of water. (Creative Commons photo by Nick)
  8. Get some sleep. Dr. Sanjay Patel of Case Western Reserve University explains that "skimping on sleep can alter your metabolism."[8] Dr. Berardi concurs, "a lack of sleep can decrease the number of calories your body burns just resting."[9] So, catch some Zs.
  9. Understand why you eat. University of Maryland dietitian Jane Jakubczak explains that, "Emotional eating is eating for reasons other than hunger. Instead of the physical symptom of hunger initiating the eating, an emotion triggers the eating."[10] Figure out why you eat. Do you eat when you're bored? Do you eat when you're stressed? Do you eat for comfort? Understanding the circumstances under which you eat can help you change those circumstances or seek out non-eating alternatives to coping with stress, boredom or loneliness.
  10. Create a support network. Tell your friends and loved ones about your weight loss goals. They can help celebrate your successes, provide moral support in your weaker moments and steer you clear of obvious temptations. There are also free online dieting communities, message boards and social networks like DietTV where you can rely on the kindness of strangers to help you achieve your health and fitness goals.
  11. Drink lots of water. Many people confuse hunger with thirst.[11] Why eat a ton of extra calories when all you need to satiate yourself is a glass of water? Water is also a superior alternative to calorie-laden sodas and alcoholic beverages. If you don't like water, Dr. Cynthia Sass recommends adding "citrus or a splash of juice, or brew infused teas like mango or peach, which have lots of flavor but no calories."
  12. Eat slowly. It takes your body 20 minutes to signal to the brain that it's full.[12] Give your mind a chance to catch up with your body. Eat slowly and deliberately.
  13. Change your lifestyle. "Diet" is the ultimate four letter word. It conjures up feelings of deprivation and guilt. Understanding your diet, not as a temporary solution, but as a long-term change in your habits makes it more likely that you will lose the weight you want to lose and keep it off.
  14. Eat several mini-meals throughout the day. Obesity researcher Dr. Rebecca Reeves reports that studies "show people who eat 4-5 meals or snacks per day are better able to control their appetite and weight."[13] Dr. Reeves recommends dividing your daily calories into smaller meals to be enjoyed throughout the day.
  15. Do a type of exercise you love. It may sound obvious, but you're not going to continue doing something that bores you to tears. If gyms make you uncomfortable, try a physical activity you might actually enjoy. Take a martial arts class, learn the tango or scale an indoor climbing wall. There are also outdoor and team activities. Join a soccer league, or try a marathon training group.
  16. Incorporate exercise everyday. Keep yourself active by walking more, taking the stairs or parking further away from store entrances.
  17. Switch your exercise routine up. It's important to get both aerobic (cardiovascular) and anaerobic (muscle-building) exercise. One will help you lose weight. The other will tone and strength your body - making your metabolism more efficient. As natural health researcher Mike Adams explains that it's your "lean body mass, the muscle mass underneath your body fat, that burns calories 24/7, allowing you to eat more calories without gaining weight."[14]
  18. Take before and after photos. Internet entrepreneur and blogger Chris Pirillo recommends taking photos of yourself before and after you've accomplished your weight loss goals. It's helpful to take a step back and see our bodies as others see them.
    Lose weight slowly. (Photo by Julia Freeman-Woolpert)
    Lose weight slowly. (Photo by Julia Freeman-Woolpert)
  19. Keep a food journal. A food journal is the best way to understand what you really eat. The eating patterns and cheats you've been in denial about become much clearer when they're in black and white. If that's not enough to convince you, a study in Obesity Research showed that subjects dropped much more weight when their note-taking was the most consistent. What should you record in your food journal? The time you ate, what you ate and its caloric value, what was going on when you ate, who you were with and how you felt afterward.
  20. Use an online tracking service. Use the power of the internet to not only keep your food journal, but to meet other dieters and stay motivated. There are a number of free services like Traineo and The Daily Plate, which do everything from create weight loss graphs to count your calories for you. The service stickK.com will even let you put a contract out on yourself—you don't achieve your goals, and they'll send your cold hard cash to charity.
  21. Do not take weight loss drugs. There is no magic pill for losing weight, and most weight loss drugs cause dangerous side effects. Do not take any medication for weight loss unless you are under the supervision of a doctor.
  22. Do not starve yourself. Reducing caloric intake too drastically will cause your metabolism to slow. You'll actually lose weight more slowly. You are also more likely to gain back the weight you lost because you didn't change your eating habits over time. Starvation can also lead to extremely serious eating disorders.[15]
  23. Don't listen to naysayers. Even the people you love the most may try to sabotage your diet or fitness routine. They may not even realize they're doing it, but many people fear change. Who will you become? What do your healthy choices say about their less healthy ones? All you can do is ask for their support, but your commitment is to your health not to making others feel comfortable.

Have any more great tips for Weight Loss Tips? Post your tips to the discussion board or email them to Julia: Julia at mahalo dot com.

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