Exercise can aid in weight loss, but it's not a weight-loss panacea. Weight loss occurs when you consistently burn more calories than you consume. By making changes to your diet and adding un-intimidating physical activity to your schedule, even the most exercise-averse person can lose weight. To burn off a pound of fat, you have to burn 3,500 calories. By creating a daily 500-calorie deficit through diet and exercise, you can lose a pound of fat each week in a healthy and sustainable manner.
Step 1
Use an online food calorie calculator, such as the one found at CalorieKing or CaloriesCount to track your normal food consumption for one week. Make sure you record everything you eat and drink to get an accurate caloric intake number.
Step 2
Calculate your resting metabolic rate, or the number of calories you burn without any added activity, using an online calculator such as the one at CaloriesPerHour.com. This number provides you with a good estimate for the fewest number of calories you should consume for basic daily function.
Step 3
Subtract your resting metabolic rate from your average daily calorie consumption to determine the maximum number of calories you could cut from your diet.
Step 4
Analyze your weekly dietary consumption and determine where you can easily cut calories without drastically affecting your lifestyle. Aim to cut approximately 250 to 500 calories a day, trying to bring your daily calorie consumption within 300 calories of your resting metabolic rate.
Step 5
Increase your physical activity so that you're exercising 30 minutes a day, five days a week, doing moderate-intensity activity. You don't have to hit the gym or the treadmill--just go for a walk with a friend or spend time cleaning or gardening. If you can't fit 30 minutes in at once, just split up your activity throughout the day.
Step 6
Be patient and expect weight loss to come slowly and steadily. Focus on your diet and learn how to make healthy choices, such as adding colorful fruits and vegetables to every meal. If you look at your plate and see a lot of brown, yellow and beige, you know you're probably consuming more empty calories than if you loaded up on all the colors of the rainbow.
Step 7
Avoid making any dietary changes that you don't think you can do long-term. If you love the occasional scoop of ice cream, don't deny yourself that, but watch your serving size and make adjustments elsewhere to account for the additional calories.
Tips and Warnings
- Forgive yourself when you make mistakes. Everyone slips up and over-consumes sometimes. Pick yourself back up and get back on track with your healthy eating plan. Talk to a nutritionist or exercise specialist to get new ideas on how you can adjust your lifestyle to make room for healthy habits.
- Every weight loss program can come with risks; make sure you talk to your doctor before starting to get input on how to proceed.
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