The health and fitness boom have brought with it a number of fad diets and “lose weight quick” programs. While they may help you lose pounds quickly, they tend to have a lot of side effects like electrolyte imbalances which can be sometimes fatal. A number of them are also too restrictive, which makes them difficult to sustain. Those who use these “quick weight reduction” methods are also at higher risk of suffering from yo-yoing weight, which can further dissuade you from carrying on with your weight loss attempts. If you wish to shed weight naturally, below are some tips.
Tips for Weight Loss
Reduce your calorie consumption and exercise more. Diet and exercise will still remain as the most recommended way of losing weight because they are the least intrusive. Because 3,500 calories equals 1 pound of fat, you need to burn 3,500 calories more than you take in to lose 1 pound. In theory, by cutting down 500 calories from your typical diet each day, you can lose a pound a week. But it is not as simple as that though as the weight you lose at the end of each week is not only from fat, but also with lean tissue and water. That said, you may need to decrease calories further to continue weight loss. It is not advised to fast for long periods or follow extreme calorie-restrictive diets because this can be counterproductive and dangerous. More often than not, a 1,000 calorie deficit per day can already help you in your weight loss efforts without endangering you. Cutting calories doesn’t have to be difficult. Just control your portion sizes and replace calorie-dense food with high fiber, low-calorie, nutrient-dense food.
According to the American College of Sports Medicine, spending around 150 to 250 minutes each week of moderate intensity aerobic physical activity is can help you prevent weight gain or lose a modest amount of weight. Spending more than 250 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic exercise each week can bring about clinically significant weight loss. It is also recommended to perform muscle strengthening exercises on at least three days of your week.
Keep a log what you eat. Many studies suggest that those who make a daily log of their diet and hours of exercise are better able to reach their target weight. By jotting down what you have eaten for the day, you are prevented from eating more than your daily recommended intake and stay motivated to stay in the program.
Consider hypnosis for weight loss. Hypnosis has long been used to help correct unhealthy behaviors. While you can learn the proper hypnosis techniques so that you can practice weight loss hypnosis on your own, it is often better to work with a professional hypnotherapist.
There are lots of fad diets and weight reduction programs these days that claim you can shed weight easily, but a lot of them are not safe or effective. The good news is that there are also natural methods to shed pounds. Go here for tips for weight loss.
