When you are overweight and desperate for a change, there are a lot of temptations available to facilitate the process. Fat burners, appetite suppressants, herbal formulas and energy boosters all grace the shelves of drugstores and supermarkets to purportedly give you a competitive edge in the fight against fat. These products might have some effectiveness, but they are not the healthiest options. If you want quick weight loss, you can take a safer approach that will give you the same benefits as supplements, but without the side effects.
Step 1
Restrict your caloric intake to force your body to burn fat for energy. Reduce your intake by 500 to 1,000 calories a day. Do not go below 1,200 calories a day if you are female and 1,800 calories a day if you are male.
Step 2
Keep your intake of food completely clean. Eat nothing but fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, lean meats, fish, low-fat dairy, whole grains and beans.
Step 3
Start your day with a small, balanced meal to kick-start your metabolism. Have a bowl of high-fiber cereal or oatmeal with low-fat milk before leaving for work in the morning.
Step 4
Eat a small, balanced meal every 2 to 3 hours for the rest of the day to keep your metabolism and energy levels elevated. Make sure every meal has a combination of lean protein and complex carbs that are high in fiber.
Step 5
Drink at least 10 cups of ice-cold water a day. Replace all the soda, beer, wine, lattes, fruit drinks, sweetened teas and milkshakes with water to save yourself calories and to hydrate your body.
Step 6
Increase your metabolism even more through weight training. Perform exercises that target all of your major muscle groups to build as much muscle as possible. Do exercises like chest presses, shoulder presses, one arm back rows, triceps dips, twist curls, ab crunches and squats. Work out three times a week every other day, and do three to four sets with 12 to 15 reps.
Step 7
Do at least 60 minutes of cardio three times a week. Perform any type of cardiovascular exercise that you find enjoyable, like running, racquetball, cross-country skiing, spinning, elliptical training or swimming. Cardiovascular exercise is efficient at burning calories.
Step 8
Be active on your off day and work days. Go for a 30-minute fast-paced walk or bike ride on your off day from working out. Use the farthest bathroom from your desk at work, park further away from your destinations and get up and walk around the house during commercial breaks when you are watching television. Do anything you can to fit extra activity into your day.
Tips and Warnings
- It takes a 3,500-calorie restriction to burn a pound of fat. If you decrease your daily intake by 500 calories and burn 350 to 500 calories through exercise on a daily basis, you can conceivably lose 1 1/2 to 2 lb. a week. Ice-cold water slightly raises metabolism due to the body burning excess calories to warm it up.
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