Let’s face it: no matter what people say, you can’t just wish away that excess weight.
There’s no “miracle” or “trick” or anything that is going to just make you thin and let you go on with your life.
The sooner you accept that, the sooner you’ll be on your way to actually losing weight like you want to.
Weight loss, like any personal improvement, takes a dedicated effort. It’s not going to be easy, but you can bet that if you really want it, it will be worth it.
What Now?
Moving on, let’s talk about things that do work to help people lose weight. First, cardio is a must. Walking, jogging, running or even skipping if you want has to happen. Cardio is what gets that heart rate and metabolism up to burn calories. That’s exercise 101, though, so it should be old news. Now, for the big tips that many people overlook:
1. You have to burn more calories than you take in. Most people understand this conceptually, but in practice, it can be difficult. Eat less, exercise more, or both. Your exercise routine has to be more activity than you normally do.
A walk once a week isn’t going to do much if you already work in retail and stand on your feet all day, for example. Think hard about your current level of activity, then triple or quadruple it to lose the weight you want.
2. Men and women are different, especially when it comes to losing weight. Certain exercises or diet changes might be more or less effective depending on your gender. Our bodies work differently, our genes are different, our minds are even different.
Thus, when you are looking for the best ways to lose weight, you need to put your gender under the microscope to get good information. Check out “Women’s Health” and “Men’s Health” for starters.
3. Stop starving yourself. Women especially tend to skip meals or cut calories significantly in order to lose weight. If you don’t give your body calories regularly, it will go all Doomsday Preppers on you and start storing that fat away where no exercise can get to it.
Eat healthy and eat regularly. Just don’t binge on junk food and trade your favorites for low fat, low-cal alternatives.
4. It is not a “D-I-E-T.” That is an evil four-letter word that is only going to discourage you and encourage unhealthy behavior. Losing weight is a lifestyle change. It’s a commitment to being more active and eating better so that you can be a healthier person.
Diets are quick-fix “solutions,” gimmicks, fads and tricks with no long-term planning in sight. It’s common sense: If you’re on a diet and you lose weight, when you stop the diet, the weight loss will probably stop, too.
It’s About Health, Not Weight
Losing weight takes work, but it doesn’t have to be unbearable. If you are happy about the positive changes that you are making in your life, you’ll be much happier in your weight loss, even if it does take some extra effort.
If you’re really committed to this cause, cut out processed foods of all kinds. All the tasty treats you like are the worst things you can eat. Most health professionals and articles on healthy eating suggest shopping ONLY on the outside aisles of the grocery store. Get rid of the frou-frou coffee, the energy drinks, the soda (or “pop” to some) and all the other refined sugars that you pour into your body on a daily basis.
A good, healthy eating routine and a good workout plan need to be combined to create an effective weight loss solution for you, whether you want to lose 10 pounds or 100.
Get Healthy All Over
Yoga, meditation and mental clarity can all help get your body get back on track. The ultimate goal is to have a healthy body and mind, after all, and one begets the other. Rather than starting a “diet” or trying to find a weight loss “trick,” why not consider a lifestyle change and do things the right way?
You’ll look better, feel better and see much better results with weight loss in the long-run.
