Fast Weight Loss Regime For Women

If your current weight is over your ideal body weight range, you may reduce your risk of health problems such as arthritis, heart disease and diabetes if you lose some pounds. However, losing weight too quickly can backfire, especially if the weight loss comes from a poorly balanced diet or a "miracle" herbal supplement. Women who stick to the basics are most likely to experience long-term success in their weight loss endeavors.

Getting Started

Assess how much you need to lose to reach your own ideal body weight before you begin your weight loss regimen. Generally, women should weigh about 100 lbs for the initial five feet in height and add another 5 lbs for any inch in height over five feet. However, you may need to adjust your estimated desirable body weight by plus or minus 10 percent if you have a small or large body frame. Another factor in determining your health is your proportion of body fat. You may need to burn off excess body fat even if your weight is already "ideal," because women's body fat proportion shouldn't exceed 20 to 21 percent. Consult your dietitian or an exercise physiologist to get a better understanding of your weight and body fat percentage.

Warning Signs

Don't buy into a fast weight loss regime that sounds too promising to be true. A weight loss plan is likely harmful if: it forbids specific food groups or foods, it relies on vague expert evidence or celebrity anecdotes to prove its effectiveness, it relies on before and after photos as evidence, it claims to help you burn off more than 2 lbs in a week, it doesn't include tips on getting regular exercise and it doesn't offer tips on keeping off the weight once you have lost it.

Safe Goals

Resist the urge to burn off more than 2 lbs per week to boost your chances of having long-term success. Fast methods such as using laxatives and cutting out dramatic portions of calories can lead to malnutrition, dehydration and throwing in the towel. You might initially lose more weight in the beginning of your weight loss regime if you are making dramatic lifestyle changes, but the loss should taper off over time. To lose 1 to 2 lbs in a week you would need to lose an extra 3,500 to 7,000 calories per week, or about 500 to 1,000 calories each day.

Healthy Diet

You will cut hundreds of calories per day if you limit your intake of added sugars, saturated fats and trans fats. For example, you could avoid 300 or more calories by ditching at least two cans of regular soda per day and replacing them with water. You will cut your calorie load even further if you replace your whole milk with low-fat or fat free milk, your ice cream treats with sorbet or low-fat frozen yogurt and your alfredo sauce with tomato sauce. You will also naturally cut out calories if you remove excess fat from your cuts of beef and remove the skin from your poultry. Each day, aim for at least three fruit servings, four vegetable servings and seven grain servings -- half of which should be whole grains such as oatmeal and brown rice -- and emphasize healthy fats such as nut butters and olive oil.

Daily Activity

You will lose weight at a faster rate if you combine exercise with your low-calorie diet. Aim for a minimum of 30 minutes of steady aerobic exercise per day, though you may need at least 60 minutes per day to reach and maintain a desirable weight. Examples of aerobic exercise are bike riding, walking, kick boxing, swimming and dancing. If 30 to 60 minutes sounds too overwhelming, split it up into three smaller workout sessions of 10 or more minutes.