Dieting for weight loss is all about reducing your caloric intake, but may fad diets can be unsafe and leave you susceptible to putting back on the weight you've lost. Before embarking on the journey towards sustainable weight loss, spend some time researching the diet plan you've chosen to make sure it's a safe one. Avoid any diet that claims exaggerated or rapid weight loss, it's generally unhealthy or even dishonest.
Step 1
Write down everything you've consumed over one or two days each week. Keeping a journal periodically can be a dose of reality to make sure you are on track and following your diet. Use an online calorie counter to help you through the items that don't have nutrition labels (see Resources).
Step 2
Incorporate an exercise routine to help you lose weight and stay healthy. It is best to consult with a professional, but adding a mix of weight training and cardiovascular workouts three to five days a week will give you an edge on others trying to drop the pounds, and also ensure you keep it off.
Step 3
Drink a minimum of 12 glasses of water per day. The more water you drink, the less you retain, leaving you hydrated and leaner.
Step 4
Eat five to six smaller meals and snacks a day to increase the thermic effect of food (TEF), or calories expended from digestion. Regardless of the diet plan you are following, if it's a good one, it should have you eating small portions frequently throughout the day. Eating too much food at one time suppresses TEF and causes more calories to be stored, according to Exercise ETC, Inc. Additionally, eating more frequent meals regulates blood sugar, reducing the temptation to overeat.
Step 5
Eat breakfast. Eating breakfast alone can increase the number of calories burned in a day by 5 percent, according to Exercise ETC's article "Women, Metabolism, and Exercise."
Step 6
Eat until you are no longer hungry, not until you are full. Stop yourself from eating when you have removed the hunger sensation and you'll be in better shape--literally.
Step 7
Team up with a friend or coworker. Losing weight with a buddy helps to hold each of you accountable and significantly increase the chance that you will stick with the diet long enough to reap the rewards.
Step 8
Finally, check to make sure your diet plan provides nutrient balance. Diet plans such as Atkins are quite unhealthy because they try to significantly change the balance of nutrients in your body--leading to results that are often temporary. Jacqueline Berning, American Council on Exercise writer, states that a healthy diet should have approximately 20 percent of calories coming from protein, 25 percent from fat and 65 percent from carbohydrates.
References
- "Nutrition: American Council on Exercise Personal Training Manual"; Jacqueline Berning; 2007
- "Women, Exercise, and Metabolism"; Exercise ETC, Inc.; 2007
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