When you have extra weight to lose, you may be tempted to use diet pills to assist your weight loss. Since diet pills don't have to uphold the same standards of prescription drugs, they can be sold with limited proof of safety or effectiveness, according to MayoClinic.com. Losing weight comes down to burning off more calories than you consume. Increase your level of physical activity and follow a healthful diet to lose weight without pills.
Eat Fewer Calories
Decreasing your daily calorie intake helps create a calorie deficit, which encourages weight loss. Track your calories daily using an online food journal, such as The Daily Plate at LIVESTRONG.com. Monitor your calorie consumption for one week. Add the totals for the week and divide this number by seven to calculate your daily calorie intake. Subtract 500 from your daily amount to calculate your caloric goal to lose 1 lb. per week.
Eat Healthy Foods
Follow a diet that consists of foods in their natural form. Prepare your meals with chicken, turkey, ground beef, lean cuts of steak, fish, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, vegetables, healthy fats like nuts and olive oil, fruits and whole grains. Try to avoid processed foods like frozen dinners and preseasoned meals that are high in sodium, fats, refined sugars and chemical preservatives, which encourage weight gain.
Resistance Training
Building muscle through resistance training boosts the metabolism to increase the number of calories you burn daily. Engage in full body workouts three days per week. Perform one exercise per muscle group, like lunges for legs, pushups for chest, assisted pullups for back, stability ball crunches for abs, triceps dips, hammer curls for biceps and overhead shoulder press. Execute each exercise for four sets of 12 repetitions. Lift with moderately heavy resistance, so your muscles are approaching failure by the last few repetitions.
Aerobic Activity
Participate in 30 to 40 minutes of aerobic activity four to five days per week to burn off fat deposits and give your body a leaner appearance. Ride your bike outdoors, go for a jog, walk on the treadmill or step on the elliptical machine. Take a group fitness class such as step aerobics or boxing to add variety to your cardiovascular workouts.
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