According to 2008 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 20 percent of Americans struggle with obesity. Even exercise gets diverted by the television, the business of work and family life, and the rush of the day. With the right determination, discipline, direction and focus, you can lose weight fast.
Step 1
Develop healthier eating habits. Because your body stores excess calories as fat when you consume more energy than you need in a day, overeating poses a major problem. One solution is to stop urges by reducing hunger cravings before they start. For example, load up on apples and bananas at work. Eating fruits satisfies both your need for sweets and for snacks. Moreover, fruits provide fiber, which can prolong satiety. According to research at the Mayo Clinic, when you are not hungry, you are less likely to grab an unhealthy snack and more likely to avoid overeating at your next meal.
Step 2
Make smarter meal selections. Because saturated fats are unhealthy and high-fiber, high-protein meals are more filling, you should substitute red meats and fried foods for grilled fish, egg whites, chicken breast and whole grain pasta. Also, eat a salad before meals as much as possible and load up on vegetables whenever you can. Healthy foods might not sound appetizing, but a study in the "Journal of the American Dietetic Association" found that healthier foods like salad can reduce overall caloric consumption at meals. Similarly, research by the Mayo Clinic suggests sides like legumes, brown rice and sweet potatoes, which are high in fiber, will leave you with a greater feeling of satiation after meals, and anything that may lower your daily caloric intake is worth trying.
Step 3
Engage in intense, heart-pumping exercise. Strength training, which involves the use of different weight-resistant machines to increase muscle mass, will boost metabolism levels by increasing the body's expenditures of repairing muscle tissue throughout the day. Furthermore, according to the Mayo Clinic, interval training---the alternation between fast and slow cardio---will burn more calories in a shorter amount of time. As you reduce your daily calories by eating right and increase the amount of calories you expend with exercise, you will lose weight faster.
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