Weight gain is a serious health concern, increasing your risk for diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. With so many weight-loss plans available, it's difficult to know which plan will help you meet your weight-loss goals. A simple way to lose weight and keep the weight off is healthy lifestyle changes. Setting realistic goals and using diet and exercise to meet those goals will assist in losing unwanted pounds.
Realistic Weight-loss Goals
If weight loss goals aren't realistic, you might be setting yourself up for failure. Set a goal to lose 1 to 2 lbs. per week. Initially, you might lose weight quicker than this as your body sheds water weight. However, over time, weight loss is closer to 1 to 2 lbs. a week. Accomplish this weight loss by creating a goal to shed 500 to 1,000 calories daily. You don't need to burn all of the calories from exercise. Combine exercise and diet to meet your goals. For example, to lose 1 lb., exercise to burn 200 calories and reduce daily calories by 300 calories.
Schedule Time for Exercise
For weight loss, you need 30 minutes of exercise most days of the week. This extra movement promotes calorie burning, resulting in weight loss. Brainstorm easy ways to fit exercise into your daily routine. For example, if you don't have enough time for a 30-minute session, try walking your dog for 15 minutes in the morning and climbing stairs at your work for 15 minutes. When shopping, select the parking spot farthest away from the store to fit in brisk walking. Take the bus to work and get off a couple stops early to schedule a morning walk.
Make Better Food Choices
Consistently selecting low-calorie foods will assist in meeting your weight-loss goals. Make weight loss easier by thinking about the number of servings you need daily. For example, you need at least three servings of fruits and four servings of vegetables each day. Select four to eight servings of carbohydrates daily. Whole-grain products need to make up the majority of your carbohydrate servings. Reduce fat intake to three to five servings daily. Select healthy sources like avocados and vegetable oils to meet this requirement. Focus on eating three to seven servings of low-fat dairy and healthy protein sources, like cottage cheese, beans, lentils and skinless chicken.
Stay Away from Fad Diets
Fad diets will undermine your weight-loss goals. These diets might deliver fast weight loss, initially. However, these diets can result in nutritional deficiencies and are difficult to follow long term. When choosing a diet, look for fad diet red flags, such as using specific food combinations. Claims that you don't need to exercise or must follow a rigid menu are also signs of fad diets. Stick to healthy long-term lifestyle changes to keep weight loss simple and meet your goals.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Weight Loss: 6 Strategies for Success
- Weight-control Information Network: Statistics Related to Overweight and Obesity
- American Dietetic Association: Staying Away From Fad Diets
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: How to Avoid Portion Size Pitfalls to Help Manage Your Weight
- MayoClinic.com: Exercise for Weight Loss: Calories Burned in 1 Hour
- MayoClinic.com: Food Pyramids: Explore These Healthy Diet Options
Member Comments