The Best Weight Loss Fast

Excess weight has a tendency to take years to develop. It can appear in any location on your body and when it does, it can be difficult to deal with. Fast weight loss is a goal that can be achieved when you are willing to take it to the extreme. You need to completely change your eating habits, exercise habits and bad habits all in one fell swoop.

Step 1

Lose the cookies and cream. Foods that are high in fat, sugar and sodium need to be eliminated if you want to lose weight fast. This includes fast food, cakes, cookies, ice cream, muffins, doughnuts, deep fried foods and commercial baked goods. Have your diet consist only of nutrient-dense foods like fruits, vegetables, lean meats, seeds, nuts, beans, fish and whole grains. If you are a vegetarian, tofu is also fine.

Step 2

Overcome the nighttime munchies. When you eat late at night, your metabolism naturally slows down. If you were to eat right before going to sleep, you are susceptible to gain weight. Avoid late night eating altogether to promote fast weight loss.

Step 3

Leave the soda in the machine. Soda, milk shakes, fruit juices, sweetened teas, lattes and alcohol are all beverages that are high in calories and sugar. When you drink them, they can still add up on your body and cause weight gain. Drink water instead as it is calorie-free and it also helps keep you hydrated. The Institute of Medicine recommends that women get approximately 2.7 total liters of water a day and men get approximately 3.7 liters.

Step 4

Have a meal every two to three hours. Whenever you eat a meal, your body burns calories to digest the food. If you eat a huge meal, you will burn some calories for energy and the rest will be stored as fat. Your metabolism will also slow down. To increase your metabolism, eat a small, balanced meal every 2 to 3 hours throughout the whole day. An example of a meal you can have for lunch would be a salad with a chicken breast and a whole wheat roll.

Step 5

Eat as soon as you get up. When you run right out the door without eating in the morning, your metabolism will remain at a slow pace that will not be effective at burning calories. To increase your caloric expenditure, eat something. It can be a bowl of all-bran cereal, a hard boiled egg with whole wheat toast, yogurt with granola or apple slices with peanut butter.

Step 6

Do high-intensity cardio. Cardiovascular exercise is vital for fast weight loss. Perform it at a high intensity for 45 to 60 minutes three times a week on alternating days. Start with a five-minute light warm-up and finish with a five-minute light cool-down. Examples of exercises you can do include running, swimming, biking, elliptical training, kickboxing and stair climbing.

Step 7

Work out with weights. Weight training can help build muscle which can further increase your metabolism. Do exercises that target all your major muscle groups like bench presses, upright rows, lat pull downs, triceps push downs, biceps curls and lunges. Do 12 to 15 reps with moderate weights and do three to four sets of each exercise. Do weight training on the three alternating days of your cardio.

References

Article reviewed by Helen Covington Last updated on: Nov 1, 2009

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