Scientifically speaking, a daily caloric deficit is the only real way to lose weight. Considering that 1 lb. of fat contains about 3,500 calories, you need to create a deficit of 500 calories daily to lose 1 lb. per week. A calorie-restricted diet and increasing your levels of exercise are the only two real ways to do this. The number of variations on this theme might seem endless, but only some have been proven scientifically.
Big, Well-Balanced Breakfast
Eat a big and well balanced breakfast to lose weight, according to a study conducted by Dr. Daniela Jakubowicz, a clinical professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, and presented at the 2008 annual meeting of the Endocrine Society. The big breakfast consisted of a glass of milk, 3 oz. lean meat, two slices of cheese, two servings of whole grains, one serving of fat and 1 oz. milk chocolate or candy. The participants eating the big breakfast diet lost almost five times as much weight as those who followed a calorie-restricted low-carbohydrate diet.
Meal Replacements
Meal replacements are one real way to achieve significantly better initial weight loss than calorie restrictive dieting, according to a study conducted by the Department of Research and Development at Medifast Inc. and published in the March 2010 issue of "Nutrition Journal." Participants ate five meal replacements daily containing 90 to 110 calories each and one self-prepared meal. After 16 weeks, the participants using meal replacements not only demonstrated higher rates of compliance, they lost 12.3 percent of their bodyweight, compare to 6.9 percent in the calorie-restricted diet group.
Vegan Diet
Lose significantly more weight with a vegan diet than following the National Cholesterol Education Program low-fat diet, according to a study conducted by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and published in the September 2007 issue of the medical journal, "Obesity." After one year, participants on the vegan diet lost about 11 lbs. while those on the low-fat diet only lost about 4 lbs.
Exercise
Exercising is one real way to lose weight, but some activities burn more activities than others. To create a caloric deficit of 500 calories a day -- the deficit required to lose 1 lb. per week -- choose your physical activities according to your present weight. As you lose weight, the fewer calories you burn while exercising. A 160-lb. person needs to do one hour of high-impact aerobics, ice skating or stationary rowing to burn 500 calories. A 240-lb. person can do the aforementioned activities as well as one hour of low-impact aerobics, downhill skiing or softball to burn the necessary 500 calories.
References
- "Obesity"; A Two Year Randomized Weight Loss Trial Comparing a Vegan Diet to a More Moderate Low-Fat Diet; G.M. Turner-McGrievy, et al.; 2007
- Drugs.com: Big, Well-Balanced Breakfast Aids Weight Loss; 2008
- MayoClinic.com: Calories Burned in One Hour; 2009
- "Nutrition Journal"; Efficacy of a Meal Replacement Diet Plan Compared to a Food-Based Diet Plan After a Period of Weight Loss and Weight Maintenance; Lisa M. Davis, et al.; 2010
- MedlinePlus: Tips for Losing Weight
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