Perform regular cardio exercise five days a week to torch calories and lose weight. Examples include swimming, cycling, jogging or speed walking. If you burn 500 calories with each session of cardio exercise days a week, you can lose 2 lbs. in three weeks. Get your doctor's approval before beginning any new exercise regimen.
Intensity
MayoClinic.com recommends moderate-intensity exercise over light or vigorous physical activity. Light exercise may not allow you to reach your weight loss goals, while too vigorous activity increases risk of injury and burnout. If you're exercising at moderate intensity, you should be breathing faster, sweating lightly and feeling some muscle strain. You should be able to carry on a conversation with brief sentences but not be able to sing. Determine your maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from 220. Healthy adults should aim for a target heart rate of 70 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. If you don't regularly exercise, aim for 40 to 50 percent of your maximum heart rate.
Time
The American College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Association recommend that most healthy adults under age 65 perform moderately intense cardio exercise for 30 minutes a day, five days a week. To lose weight or maintain weight loss, it may be necessary to get 60 to 90 minutes of physical activity. Start small and gradually progress the duration of your activity by 10 percent each week. Work out with a friend to beat boredom. Accumulate 60 to 90 minutes of exercise in short bursts throughout the day if necessary.
Diet
Combining diet with exercise tends to produce superior results to either weight loss method alone, according to a 1997 meta-analysis published by W.C. Miller and colleagues in the "International Journal of Obesity." The researchers reviewed peer-reviewed scientific journals of the past 25 years for studies of aerobic exercise and weight loss and found that a 15-week diet or diet plus exercise program can produce a weight loss of about 11 kg, or 24.3 lbs. Reduce your diet by 500 calories each day to lose 1 lb. a week. Choose energy-dense foods, or those that contain few calories and relatively high volume, such as fruits and vegetables.
Tips
Choose activities that appeal to you so you'll be likely to stick with your plan. Perform interval workouts to burn more calories. Vary your routine to prevent boredom. Listen to upbeat music while exercising if it gives you energy and helps you to work out longer. Warm up before each workout and cool down at the end. Don't forget to stretch to reduce risk of injury. Drink plenty of fluids. Have about 20 oz. of liquid an hour before your workout. Fuel your workout with a small snack an hour before exercise. Refuel within 15 minutes of exercise.
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