Losing 10 to 20 pounds requires changing the way you eat and exercise. Combining decreased caloric intake with increased physical activity is the best way to ensure weight loss. However, not all calories are created equally. Protein, for example, has a thermic effect on the body and is less likely to be stored as body fat, as compared to carbohydrates and fats. Moreover, not all forms of exercise have the same effect on the body. Follow a few simple guidelines to optimize your metabolism and get the most out of your workouts, in order to safely lose 10 to 20 pounds.
Step 1
Eat five or six smaller meals throughout the day, spaced two to three hours apart to optimize your metabolism. For example, have three meals with two or three mid-meal snacks between them. "The Abs Diet" by David Zinczenko explains that this dietary strategy stabilizes blood sugar, suppresses hunger and prevents overproduction of cortisol. This stress hormone can cause muscle-wasting and fat storage.
Step 2
Do resistance training workouts at least three days per week. Weight training burns fat in many different ways and can directly target trouble areas such as the thighs and stomach area. Besides burning calories while you do it, this form of training can burn calories for up to 48 hours after your workout. Resistance training also builds metabolically active muscle, which can burn calories at rest every moment, every day of your life.
Step 3
Do cardiovascular exercise three to five days per week. Thirty to 60 minutes of cardio can help burn extra calories. Cardio is cumulative, so several short sessions are just as good as one long workout. On resistance training days, do your cardio immediately after the resistance training to encourage fat burning. On other days, do cardio on an empty stomach upon waking.
Step 4
Eat more protein. Since protein has a thermic effect, it can help you burn more calories. This is because it takes the body a lot of energy to digest protein---up to 30 percent of the calories it contains. Try to take in one gram of protein per pound of your body weight. Good sources of lean protein are chicken, turkey, fish or dairy.
Step 5
Take a serving of whey protein before and after your workouts to improve recovery and performance. Whey protein also makes a great mid-meal snack or meal-replacement. Select a whey product that contains 20 g of protein or more per serving, with low sugar.
Step 6
Have a cheat meal one day per week. While cheating will get you into trouble in other realms, it is absolutely necessary to keep your diet on track. Cheat meals prevent food cravings and supply a psychological vacation from your diet. More importantly, they keep your body from decreasing metabolic rate in response to reduced caloric intake. Eating whatever you want once a week will actually make your body burn fat faster, according to "Combat the Fat" author Jeff Anderson.
Things You'll Need
- Whey protein
References
- "Combat the Fat"; Jeff Anderson; CQC LLC, 2008
- "The Abs Diet;" David Zinczenko; 2004
- "The Fat Burning Bible;" Mackie Shilstone; 2005
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