Don't be alarmed if your teen expresses an interest in losing weight. Instead of forbidding her to diet, teach her to maintain a healthy weight with regular exercise and by eating nutritious foods in moderation. Before your teen experiments with crash diets and liquid fasts, teach her the correct way to lose weight and keep it off. Talk to your teen's doctor before making any changes in her eating and exercise habits, especially if she has injuries or other health conditions.
Step 1
Take it slow. Even though your teen may be anxious to lose weight, it is unhealthy to lose weight too quickly. Instruct your teenager to aim for a weight loss of 1 to 2 lbs. per week. This is a safe and attainable weight loss that your teen can keep off in the long run. If your teen wants to lose 10 lbs., he can safely hit his goal weight in five weeks.
Step 2
Steer clear of crash and fad diets. Your teen may have read about fad diets that promise very quick weight loss. Usually, the diet involves eating the same low-calorie foods every day for several weeks. Tell your teen that although these diets may help you lose some weight, she will gain the weight right back as soon as she stops the diet.
Step 3
Swap foods that are high in saturated fat for leaner foods. Switch butter with olive oil, ground beef with ground turkey, steak for fish and full-fat milk with low-fat milk. Making these simple changes will drastically lower your child's caloric intake and help him lose weight.
Step 4
Encourage your teen to get outside and be active with her friends. Even if your teen is not an athletic type, she will burn calories doing any activity that gets her heart pumping, like biking, playing basketball and jump roping. When your teen is playing around with her friends, she may be less likely to feel discouraged and skip out on an exercise session.
Step 5
Allow your teen to eat about 100 to 200 calories per day of his favorite foods. Although your teen may be trying to lose weight and stay healthy, he may get discouraged if he feels like he's being deprived.
Step 6
Tweak your child's eating and exercise habits depending on her weight loss. Even if your teen thinks he's eating healthy foods and exercising, he may need to consume fewer calories or burn more calories if he's still not meeting his weight-loss goals. Continue encouraging your teen to be active and eat healthy foods until he reaches his goal weight.
Tips and Warnings
- Encourage your teen to wear comfortable clothing and supportive sneakers while exercising to prevent injury.
- Do not berate or scold your teen if he cheats on his diet -- you will only make him feel more discouraged.
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