Tips On Losing Weight For Teen Girls

Habits established during the teen years tend to persist into young adulthood and beyond, so there is plenty of incentive to create a healthy lifestyle now. Whatever your age, to lose weight you must eat fewer calories than you burn. Exercise burns calories and can help you lose weight, but the most important thing you can do to lose weight is decrease the number of calories you eat. You can also tip the scales downward by eating foods that increase your metabolism or block fat.

Don't Diet

Don't go on a diet. Diets require that you make drastic, temporary changes in the types of food you eat and how many calories you eat. Most people gain most of their weight back after they stop their diet. Instead, gradually create a new, healthier lifestyle that you will continue for the rest of your life. Learn how to eat the kinds of food that will help you lose weight and keep it off for good. Aim to make slow but steady changes to your diet. To start, reduce your daily intake by 500 to 1,000 calories. You'll lose 1 or 2 pounds per week, the amount recommended by MayoClinic.com.

Educate Yourself

Learn about the food you put in your mouth. Read package labels and use online calorie counters so you know how many calories the food you eat carries. Do research using health and fitness magazines and websites to learn about foods that keep you slim and healthy. You're going to be eating for the rest of your life, so you might as well learn how to do it right.

Go Fruity

On average, Americans get 20 percent of their calories from snacks, reports FAQs.org. Drop the chips, candy, cookies, crackers and sweets and eat fruit instead. Apples have a water-soluble fiber called pectin that binds with fat in food you eat, sending it out of your body with your waste. Oranges and citrus fruit also have water-soluble fiber. If you do indulge in an occasional traditional snack food, use pre-measured servings. A study in the June 2009 "Appetite" found that those who used calorie-controlled portions of snacks ate fewer snack calories.

Drink Smart

On average, 7 percent of Americans' calories come from soda. A typical, 20-oz, full-calorie soda can have 250 calories, but water has no calories and it curbs your appetite. Get inspired by nice restaurants that serve water before the meal. The February 2010 "Obesity" reports that people who drank a large glass of water before their meal lost more weight than those who didn't. Though it may be an acquired taste, learn to love green tea. It has no calories, has many health benefits and it burns fat and enhances weight loss, according to the February 2008 "Physiology & Behavior."

Forgo Fat

Banish burgers, tacos, pizza, hot dogs and fried foods from your daily diet. Save them for occasional special treats. Replace fatty meats with boneless chicken or turkey breast, whole milk with skim milk, and full-fat yogurt with low-fat yogurt. Keep the use of margarine, butter, cream, sour cream and cheese to a bare minimum.