Some people will argue that there are no quick and easy ways to lose weight. The truth is most people can drop their first 10 to 15 pounds pretty quickly. The real question is, can you lose it in a healthy way? The key to a healthy (or unhealthy) weight loss lies in your daily habits; it’s the little things you can do that all add up in a big way.
There seems to be a stigma associated with diet and weight loss. It”s a common belief that it has to be difficult and requires an incredible amount of will-power, extreme workouts, and starving yourself. Sure you can grit your teeth and do it the hard way, but why?
Weight loss doesn’t have to be that slow and painful; most of it should be enjoyable. If it is, you are a lot more likely to stick with it. With a good attitude, you can find all sorts of quick and easy ways to lose weight, and have fun doing so. Here are 26 ways you can use to shed 10 to 15 pounds fast!
Quick and easy ways to lose weight – Your Food
1. Stop Dieting – The main reason diets usually don’t work, is because they are hard to stick with over the long term. Depriving yourself of food not only leaves you feeling constantly hungry; it’s not healthy, and can damage your metabolism. Learn to see food as your friend; not your enemy. Start viewing the right foods as fuel for your body. Ditch the processed food and choose wholesome real foods; and you will have no shortage of helpings on your plate.
2. Drink Your Food – Drinking smoothies and all natural juicing are great for replacing meals. Smoothies will make you feel fuller and nourished to help curb a big appetite. Drinking smoothies and juicing is a good way to detox your body as well. It’s a tasty way to get your daily dose of protein, vitamins, nutrients, and antioxidants.
3. Get Protein from Nuts, Plants, & Fish – A big key to weight loss is giving your body what it needs. Protein from lean meats can be very beneficial for keeping your body healthy and going strong. Diversifying is a good idea too; there are certain proteins that you can only get from nuts, beans, veggies, and seafood that your body needs as well.
4. Water Based Foods and Fiber – Water based foods like apples or melon fill you up and satisfy your appetite. Especially focus on water based foods that are also high in fiber. According to the Journal of the National Medical Association; a healthy dose of fiber rich foods every day significantly decreases people’s risk of obesity; regardless of the amount of calories consumed.
5. Citrus – Eating citrusey fruits like oranges or grapefruit can noticeably curb your appetite. A study done by Scripps Clinic in San Diego has also shown that eating a half of a grapefruit before every meal helped their test subjects lose 3.6 pounds on average over a 12 week period. Citrus fruits have been known to help lower insulin levels and decrease the body’s fat storage as well.
6. Eat Before You Eat – Snacking on something healthy before a meal like fruits and veggies or nuts will curb the appetite and keep you from over eating. It’s much easier to eat right when you’re not starving.
7. Drink Oolong Tea – Many teas carry a plethora of health benefits. Oolong tea in particular; carries nutrients that help your body metabolize fat more rapidly. PubMed.gov shows a study in which people who drank a cup of oolong daily, lost 1 pound per week. That’s plenty of reason to drink it.
8. Water Up – Water is another good appetite buster. Many times people get the feeling that they are hungry when in fact they are dehydrated. So you can easily avoid a junk food binge by having a glass of water instead. Drinking plenty of water through the day also helps keep metabolism running high.
Quick and easy ways to lose weight – Your Habits
9. Have a Cheat Day – Missing your guilty pleasures a little bit? Don’t worry, you can build a cheat day into your diet every week and you’ll do just fine. Allowing a day to eat a cheat meal or two helps you by not making you feel completely deprived of that burger and fries you’ve been craving. Plus, giving yourself a little cheat day every here and there keeps your metabolism from building a tolerance to your diet; keeping it running stronger over the long term.
10. Have Fun Working Out – Some people are absolutely hooked on getting after it in the gym. But for most people, the motivation can wear off quickly. Why not change the way you work out? Making it more fun will bring you fresh motivation. Start looking at your workouts like you’re playing a game. If you treat it that way, you’ll probably find yourself becoming that person that can’t wait to get to the gym. Also, you can start exploring more group activities you love like volleyball, basketball, or biking. Switch up activities and keep things interesting. Or you can sign up for a yoga or kickboxing class. This should make working out feel more like a hobby than a chore.
11. Sleep Tight – Getting enough sleep is imperative to losing weight just as much as diet and exercise. Studies point out that depriving yourself of enough sleep decreases levels of the hormone leptin; which will increase your appetite, and your craving for fattening foods will go up.
12. Have Breakfast – Having a healthy breakfast shortly after waking up really does get your day started right, by getting your body started right. Eating breakfast sets the tone of the day for your metabolism; and keeps it from going into starvation mode and slowing down to conserve energy. It’s also important to couple this next one with it.
13. Eat All Day – What awesome news to be able to eat all day long! Eating smaller portions every 3 to 4 hours is good for our health. It keeps our metabolic rate up and our blood sugar down, while regulating insulin levels. Our bodies tend to work better by consuming smaller calories more often and burning them as we go.
14. Skip Calorie Counting – Calorie counting is thing you can take off your to do list. The quality and the type of calories is much more important than the amount you take in. Healthy calories from whole foods give your body the essential vitamins, nutrients, and proteins you need. As far as calorie counting does go; you will typically get more bang for your buck from wholesome foods. Healthy foods are typically lower in calories than processed foods per volume.
15. Junk the Junk Food – Empty calories from processed foods keep you feeling always hungry, sluggish, and unsatisfied; which will make you more likely to overeat on more of the wrong foods. It’s a vicious cycle with a simple solution. If you eat the right wholesome foods, you will feel more satisfied and energized.
16. Forget “Low Fat” Dairy – There’s something the dairy industry doesn’t really shine much light on. The lower fat milk, cheese, and creamers usually have higher levels of sugar. When sugar is not burned off right away, it converts into stored fat. A study done in 2015 suggests that the lower the fat content in dairy products, the higher the risk of diabetes.
Quick and easy ways to lose weight – Your Workout Game
17. Move Around – If you’re looking to lose that 10 or 15 pounds quickly, you don’t necessarily need to spend all your time in the gym unless you prefer to. There are plenty of opportunities all around you throughout your day to be active. You can park farther down the lot at the grocery store; or take the stairs instead of the elevator when you can. You can replace your riding mower for a walking mower. These little tweaks can be worked into your day so easily, and they all add up, with no extra gym visit required.
18. Tidy Up – This is another moving around thing. Doing household chores for just 30 minutes a day can help get your metabolism jumpstarted and supplement some light cardio and lifting. It;s about the same as walking for 30 minutes. You’re going to clean the place anyway; you might as well realize the benefits of it.
19. Burpees – Burpees are a complete head-to-toe workout with short powerful bursts of body resistance exercise. Burpees utilize muscles in your arms, legs, back, abs, shoulders, and butt. They are essential to add into your home workout routine. Burpees are also a great cardio and strength building exercise.
20. Lift Fast & Furious – There’s no harm in a long, slow, & steady workout. Although, you can also benefit greatly from a quick one if you are short on time or want to get right to the point. Short duration workouts with high intensity (within safe reason) are effective calorie burners that get your heart rate and metabolism going for the day. Getting in a fast workout also helps improve your focus through the day and helps boost your mood, releasing endorphins and leaving you feeling more vibrant.
21. Short Sprints – Like short workouts, short burst sprints can give you the same effect and health benefits.
Quick and easy ways to lose weight – Your Happiness
22. Gratitude – Gratitude is a powerful state of mind. It puts you into a natural relaxed, feel good state. When you are in good spirits, your body physically functions better and more naturally. It calms you, helps lower blood pressure, and releases endorphins in your brain that help your overall health and happiness. Take a few moments during the day, before after bed, or any time; and take some inventory of the things you have to be happy and grateful for.
23. Flush Anxiety – Anxiety is no good for you. Aside from feeling uneasy; being stressed out can throw off your whole body; including your metabolism and your body’s tendency to hold on to fat instead of burn it. Studies have suggested signs of linking stress to weight gain; both for physically and psychologically. Anxiety and stress have a way of triggering cravings and lead to unhealthy binging. The habit of stress over the long term has also been found to be one of the root causes of many diseases. It’s very important, for your physical and emotional health to find a good stress management system; and develop your own healthy methods of dealing with it.
24. Yoga – There are reasons why yoga has been practiced for thousands of years. Yoga has been found to do all sorts of amazing things for your mind, body, and spirit. Among the physical benefits; yoga can regulate blood pressure, strengthen your immune system, balance hormones and reset your metabolism. There may not be a more all-around versatile method for exercise than yoga; it does so many good things! There are many different kinds of yoga you can practice to find what particular brand is right for you, so to speak. It is definitely worth it to add some yoga into your workout repertoire. So grab a yoga mat, sign up for a class, or watch some yoga videos, and have some fun with it!
25. Meditate – Meditation is a powerful way to reset your mind and body, getting you back on the right track. Even just a few minutes of meditation per day can bring you some moments of clarity. Meditation helps regulate blood pressure and circulation, and releases tension in the muscles. Thus helping your body turn on the switch to your metabolism; and help you burn fat. Not to mention, you are likely to get more enjoyment, and more accomplished in your day with meditation setting you on the right foot.
26. Take a Walk – Walking increases blood flow, releases endorphins, burns calories, and primes your metabolism. So why not get into the habit, and go for a walk after dinner (or any other time you would enjoy it)? Surprisingly, even just a 15 to 20 minute walk, has been found to have very similar effectiveness to jogging. Staying active is a cornerstone to weight loss ; weather a little or a lot. You pick the pace that’s right for you.
There’s no shortage of quick and easy ways to lose weight in a healthy way; and have fun doing it! So why not ditch the whole “hard way” mentality, and depriving yourself? Nobody should feel like they are being punished when they are trying to lose 10 or 15 pounds, or more. Losing weight can and should be a mostly enjoyable experience. The more fun you have, the more you’ll want to stick to it long-term.
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