To lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. The Centers for Disease Control recommends a slow and steady rate of weight loss to ensure long-term success. You can jump-start your weight loss, though, by incorporating multiple approaches at once. Losing 1 pound requires you to burn 3,500 more calories than you eat. Make this deficit add up quickly through a combination of diet and exercise strategies.
Interval Train
When you exercise, try including a few interval training sessions per week to increase your fat-burning capacity. According to a study in the April 2007 edition of the Journal of Applied Physiology, after just two weeks, women who performed seven hour-long sessions of high-intensity interval training---alternating four minutes of peak intensity cardio exercise with two minutes of rest---increased their capacity for fat oxidation. Interval training also helps you burn more calories than working at a steady pace.
Lift Weights
Strength training helps you build lean muscle mass. A body that has a higher percentage of lean muscle burns calories more efficiently at rest. People new to weightlifting experience results more quickly than experienced lifters. If you do not have access to a gym, do body weight exercises like squats and pushups.
Stop Drinking Calories
Put down the sodas, fruit juices and energy drinks. These products offer little in the way of nutrition or satiation, but they pile on calories. If you eliminate 8 ounces of apple juice at breakfast, 20 ounces of soda at lunch and an afternoon energy-drink pick-me-up, you can save more than 500 calories per day. In one week, this is equivalent to a 1-pound weight loss.
Up Your Dairy Intake
Eating five servings of dairy daily helps you lose weight in just 12 weeks, according to a 2009 study from Curtin University in Australia. Dieters who ate foods like low-fat cottage cheese and plain yogurt five times a day lost more weight and fat than their counterparts who ate only three servings of these foods.
Increase Protein
Eating a slightly higher amount of protein daily can help you feel full and reduce cravings. According to a study by the Harvard School of Public Health, high-protein diets can help reduce overall calorie intake and result in increased weight loss. Be sure to choose healthy versions of protein---like chicken breast, fish and soy--over fatty cuts of meat. Do not eat protein at the expense of other nutrients; the Institute of Medicine recommends 35 percent of daily calories as the high end of protein consumption.
Eat Regularly
Try eating three meals and two snacks daily to prevent becoming overly hungry and inadvertently overconsuming at your next sitting. Divide your daily calorie allotment by five, and consume an equal amount at five meals eaten at regular three- to four-hour intervals. This also helps your metabolism burn steadily throughout the day.
Eat Soup
Start your meal with a cup of broth-based soup to reduce overall calories eaten. A study in the journal Appetite concluded that people who ate soup as an appetizer ate about 20 percent less overall at the subsequent meal. If you usually consume an 800-calorie dinner, this results in a savings of about 160 calories. Do this daily for just one meal and lose one-third of a pound per week.
Reduce Portions
Invest in a kitchen scale, and weigh more calorie-dense foods like starches and proteins. Stick to a ½-cup serving of starches and 3 to 4 ounces of protein. Fill up on fresh vegetables, particularly colorful varieties like leafy greens, bell peppers, eggplant and tomatoes. Vegetables are low in calories but high in water and fiber, which helps fill you up.
Moderate Alcohol
If you choose to drink alcohol, stick to just one or two drinks, and make low-calorie choices. Skip the 400-calorie margarita and opt for a glass of white wine, which contains about 90 calories, or a light beer at about 110 calories. Over the course of a Friday and Saturday night, this can save you between 600 and 1,200 calories---another one-third of a pound per week.
Move More
While structured exercise at the gym helps you burn calories, this only accounts for one or two hours of your day. During the rest of the day, create reasons to move. Walk to visit a co-worker in person rather than sending an email. Park farther away from stores. Clean your own house. Walk the dog twice a day. Run around the playground with your kids. These informal exercise activities add up and help you burn more overall daily calories, resulting in a faster rate of weight loss. Burn an extra 500 calories a day through these movements, and lose a pound per week.
References
- Journal of Applied Physiology: Two Weeks of High-Intensity Aerobic Interval Training Increases the Capacity for Fat Oxidation During Exercise in Women.
- Journal of the American College of Nutrition: The Effects of High Protein Diets on Thermogenesis, Satiety and Weight Loss: A Critical Review.:
- Appetite: Soup Preloads in a Variety of Forms Reduce Meal Energy Intake
- Curtin News: Higher Dairy Intake May Prevent Obesity
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Losing Weight
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