Losing weight is rarely as easy as gaining weight. An extra 15 lbs. can creep on stealthily after a few months off from the gym combined with mindless eating . Lose your extra 15 lbs. with a few easy-to-implement strategies. But remember, losing weight still takes willpower and effort.
Step 1
Cut out added sugars, which add about 355 extra calories to the average American's diet, says the American Heart Association. Eliminate soda, pastries, cookies, cakes, condiments like ketchup and barbecue sauce, candy and even some soups and salad dressings. Read labels, and if a product contains sugar, cane sugar, high fructose corn syrup, agave nectar, molasses, honey, sucrose or other "sugars," avoid it. Save this 355 calories per day to help you lose almost 3 lbs. per month, meaning you lose 15 lbs. in just five months.
Step 2
Eat whole, natural foods. Choose fresh vegetables and fruits as the foundation of your meals and augment with lean proteins, whole grains and a bit of unsaturated fat. Opt for green and orange produce, fish, poultry, brown rice, oatmeal, quinoa, olive oil, nuts and avocados at most meals. Avoid adding butter or cheese to enhance the flavors of vegetables.
Step 3
Control your portion sizes. Eating too much healthy food can still cause you to gain weight. Stick to just 1/2 cup of grains, 3 oz. of meat or fish and 1 cup of vegetables at meals. Keep your snacks to 150 to 200 calories--examples include 1 oz. of almonds, an apple with a low-fat string cheese, bell pepper strips with 2 tbsp. of hummus or a hard-boiled egg with five whole-grain crackers.
Step 4
Increase daily activity. Make movement a priority--either at the gym or at home. Burn 250 calories per day in addition to normal activity to yield another 1/2-lb. per week weight loss and lose the 15 lbs. faster. Perform a 1/2 hour of moderate intensity exercise on the elliptical trainer, go for a brisk walk for an hour or do a 1/2 hour of house cleaning to burn these calories.
Tips and Warnings
- Do not cut your caloric intake below 1,200 calories to lose weight more quickly. Joanne Larsen, R.D., on Ask the Dietitian says that 1,200 calories barely allows you to get all the nutrients you need daily, and dipping below this intake can lead to muscle loss, not fat loss.
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