There are hundreds of fad diets and a mountain of misinformation about weight loss. But, if you boil it down to the basics losing weight isn’t all that complicated. In fact, there’s an exact science to it. There are several tricks and tips that can rapidly increase your weight loss.
In this article we’ll show you how to lose weight without starving yourself, by figuring out exactly how many calories you need to eat. Then we’ll cover the most effective exercise programs and supplements for weight loss.
Start with a solid foundation...
Shedding 10 pounds is a lot easier when you understand how much you need to eat. To find out how much energy (or calories) you body burns without exercise or dieting, simply use this formula:
1. Figure out your basal metabolic rate (BMR)
Shedding 10 pounds is a lot easier when you understand how much you need to eat. To find out how much energy (or calories) you body burns without exercise or dieting, simply use this formula:
For men: BMR = 10 x weight (kg) + 6.25 x height (cm) – 5 x age (years) + 5
For women: BMR = 10 x weight (kg) + 6.25 x height (cm) – 5 x age (years) – 161
This gives you the amount of calories that you need to eat to maintain your current weight. Now, one pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories. Multiply this by 10 pounds and divide by 14 days and we see that you need to burn 2500 calories per day.
So, your deficit over 14 days needs to be around 35,000 calories. This can be accomplished through a combination of nutrition and exercise.
2. Track your calories
According to a recent study by the European Prospective into Cancer and Nutrition, obese people underestimate how much sugar they eat each day. One way you can combat this is by tracking your calories. There are a number of well known apps to do this, with MyFitnessPal having the largest database. If you want to keep it old school, you could also keep a pocket journal for calorie tracking.
Of course, using short-term diets is one way to reduce fat rapidly, but the secret to long-term results is making smart tweaks to your lifestyle. Below are some of the best tactics to lose weight and keep it off!
Apply some fat burning and weight loss secrets...
1. Take it with a grain of salt
One of the fastest ways to shed weight is to reduce sodium (salt) in your diet. Sodium causes our bodies to retain water, and water is really heavy. Two cups of water weigh a pound! However, it would not be a wise idea to cut water out of your diet. A case of dehydration can win you a trip to the hospital – or worse.
High sodium foods to avoid:
- Chips
- Pizza
- Soy sauce
- Cured meats like salami or beef jerky
- Tomato sauce
- Canned vegetables
- Soup
- Cheese
2. Switch to zero calorie drinks
Sodas and juices add unnecessary calories to your diet and pounds to your stomach. Even worse, the simple sugars contained within these drinks are easily converted to fat by your body and the carbonation makes you look bloated.
What are your options?
- Coffee and teas make an excellent zero calorie substitute for soda and provide a fix for your caffeine cravings (as long as you aren’t adding sugar or cream to those).
- Water with zero calorie flavoring is a better substitute for juice. A slice of lemon or lime is perfect for a touch of flavor!
- You can try sugar-free cordial as a last resort
3. Take the extra step
There are a few hacks that can help you burn more calories without changing your daily routine too much. For example;
- Parking your car further away in a parking means more steps and calories burnt.
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
- Eat your lunch at a nearby park instead of at your desk
- If you really want to step it up, purchase a FitBit or pedometer to track your daily steps and calories burnt.
4. Eat high protein meals, particularly in the morning
You don’t need to chug raw eggs, Rocky. But having a high-protein meal in the morning has been found by the University of Missouri to decrease hunger cravings throughout the rest of the day for overweight teens. Protein is also the building block of muscle, and it is more difficult for your body to convert protein to fat than sugars. That is why sugary breakfast cereals and orange juice leave you feeling hungry later in the day. Greek yogurt, eggs, bacon, or a protein shake are a few healthy breakfast options that are packed with protein.
5. Perform HIIT Cardio (High Intensity Interval Training)
The principle behind this training methodology is that it’s possible to burn more calories with less time in the gym through intense training.
A basic high interval training session is performed on the treadmill by sprinting for 30 seconds followed by 60 seconds of jogging or walking. During your 60 second “recovery” time, the heart is still beating quickly and burning calories.
Once your heart rate drops back down after the minute of recovery, you want to get it up again with another sprint interval. The sprint and recovery periods should continue over a 20 minute session. Although LISS (Low Intensity Steady State) cardio will still burn calories, it takes much longer.
Here is a comparison of the two for a typical 160 pound female:
- HIIT Session: 200 Calories Burnt, 20 Minutes
- LISS Session: 200 Calories Burnt, 60 Minutes
6. Lift weights
Lifting weights will not only help you lose pounds but it will also build muscle. Circuit training offers the best of both worlds, by reducing the amount of rest periods between exercises.
Programs that incorporate compound lifts also help maximize fat loss. Compound lifts are effective because they engage multiple muscle groups. Some examples of compound lifts are the bench press, deadlift, barbell row, and squat.
The real beauty of weight training is that by increase the amount of lean muscle mass (the type that gives you shape and tone) increases the number of calories you burn each day.
Why? Because your body needs to actually burn calories in order to keep the muscle cells alive. So when you lift weights and increase muscle mass, you not only get great shape and tone but also free fat burning throughout the day!