Losing weight and making changes to promote a healthier lifestyle will lead to long-term benefits. However, with so many gimmicks surfacing and resurfacing, finding the road to get there can be confusing. One to two pounds a week is a healthy rate of weight loss, according to American Dietetics Association editor and registered dietitian Joanne Larsen. With the appropriate plan, you can steadily lose weight and keep it off.
Step 1
Monitor your nutrition. It is important to watch the amount and type of calories you consume. Your diet should consist of 55 percent of its calories from carbohydrate sources like vegetables and whole-grains, says Larsen. Additionally, 15 percent of your calories should be from protein such as chicken and turkey, while 30 percent should be from unsaturated fats like olive oil.These percentages are based on calories. Protein and carbohydrate both provide 4 calories for every gram consumed while fat has 9.
Step 2
Run. Rhythmic cardiovascular exercise like running is effective for losing weight and improving your cardiovascular and physical health. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends exercising five days a week for an hour each time.
Step 3
Lift weights to help improve short-term and long-term weight loss. The use of an external force to challenge your muscles will help them grow and increase the amount of calories you burn by sitting around. Lift weights three times a week with a day of rest in between. Perform exercises for your entire body for three sets of 15 to 25 repetitions, according to the National Academy of Sports Medicine. An example of this type of exercise routine begins with leg lifts and oblique crunches for your abdominal muscles, then continues with bench presses and seated rows for your upper body, and squats and hamstring curls for your lower body.
Step 4
Take fish oil. Regular fish oil supplements have been shown to decrease the amount of insulin in the blood by as much as 50 percent. Additionally, subjects who took fish oil increased their body's ability to burn fat and lost more weight than others who did not.
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