Many of us have great difficulty losing weight.
There are many ways of losing weight, but ultimately it all comes down to losing calories.
The simplest weight loss one can give or receive is simply to eat fewer calories and you will lose more pounds.
Unfortunately, this is not as easy for most of us as it sounds, and just cutting back on calories isn't the total story, because it is important to keep a balanced diet.
You can easily reduce caloric intake if you know how to do it right.
You really don't have to starve yourself, or take real drastic measures that leave you feeling as if you are being deprived.
In fact, you can easily and painlessly cut your calories with any of the simple suggestions that follow.
Pay attention to these tips and you can begin losing weight without any special diets or pain.
Today really isn't too soon to start.
Lose Weight by Eating Less I know you've probably heard this before, but eating less really will help.
I'm not talking about a starvation diet here, just cutting back on portion size.
So many of us eat everything that is put in front of us, we don't know any other way.
This goes back to when you were a child.
Remember when your mother told you that you couldn't leave the table until you finished everything on your plate? Though this was probably to make sure you ate the things that were less appealing to you (like a certain vegetable, perhaps) the root of it was twofold: First, to have a balanced diet you did need to eat all of the food groups presented, not just the ones with the greatest appeal for the child's tastes.
Second, depending on how old you are now, many of our parents grew up in tough times, and the thought of throwing away perfectly good food was a terrible waste to them.
In America we are so used to "super size" meals we don't even realize how much we really eat.
Cutting the portion size, particularly on the items with higher caloric content will go a long way to losing weight.
Lose Weight by Changing What You Eat Changing what you eat will have you losing weight in nearly no time, by choosing healthier things to eat.
This doesn't mean you need to give up your favorite flavors, because if you check around, you can find alternate foods with nearly or exactly the same flavors as you are used to.
We used to visit a vegetarian restaurant in San Jose, California that had a wonderful array of items on their menu that were amazing.
We often took friends there for dinner, and they couldn't tell they were eating entrees that literally contained NO meat.
The flavors were just incredible and visually it was difficult to tell these meals were sans meat.
Today I'm sure they are even better, as there are now meat substitutes that even have the texture you are used to.
I'm not saying you need to go to this extreme, but mentioning it to plant the idea as an alternative.
Substituting a lower calorie reduced fat fudge pudding instead of a bowl of chocolate ice cream can satisfy your craving for chocolate, and is a lot less calories.
I'm sure the chocoholics among us will be disagreeing with me right now, but I'm sure you get the point.
You don't have to give up your favorite flavors, you just have to make healthier substitutions.
Other popular substitutions include lean cuts of meat instead of cuts with more fat (though your cooking methods may need to change a little, as lean cuts aren't as tender with the same cooking techniques), or air popped popcorn instead of the microwave in the bag kind.
Whole fruit is a lower calorie alternative to fruit juice, which usually contains added sugar, and low-fat dairy products substitute for whole-milk products.
Some of these changes also help reduce your cholesterol too! Lose Weight by Eating More (often) Yes, you can eat more and lose calories, thereby losing weight.
This may sound contrary to common sense, but eating more often can really help you in a couple of ways.
First, if you are eating less volume at your regular meals, and certainly fewer calories than you are used to, your body is going to tell you to eat more.
If it is between meals, this often means something that isn't going to help the calorie counting at all, like candy, ice cream or fatty snacks like chips.
By eating more often, you don't have these cravings, and the tendency is to stick with the plan.
Second, your metabolism keeps track of your caloric intake and how much you burn.
As you burn more than you eat, the body converts fat back to calories to fill the energy void, IF you don't succumb to the "eat now" signal and have a fattening snack.
If you've been on one of those "one meal a day" diets you know the way it feels.
The body is pretty smart.
When you eat only one meal a day, it packs as many of the calories away as fat to have them for the lean times between meals.
Then, it pokes at you with cravings for things you haven't eaten for years and many times, you succumb.
This satisfies the body's immediate need and it leaves the fat for a later time.
Thus, you tend to gain weight on such a diet.
If you are eating smaller meals more often, your metabolism learns that more is always around the corner and actually burns calories faster.
Then, because you still aren't eating quite as many calories as before, it uses some of the stored fat and you lose weight.
Lose Weight with Activities If you are like me, you are probably too busy to take time for long workouts or running or other "extra" exercises, or find them too boring to endure.
To burn calories and lose weight while being more productive, you can change how you run errands or do chores..
Gardening and lawn work can burn a surprising number of calories.
Depending on what you do and how much you weigh, you could burn up to 700 calories an hour just by working in your yard.
This can have other benefits too, like higher satisfaction with how the place looks.
Doing it yourself instead of paying a gardener can reduce your weight while it puts money back in your pocket.
When you run errands, you can park at the far end of the parking lot at the store.
The extra distance will help, particularly if you don't dally.
Take the kids or pets to the park now and then.
An hour of swinging, sliding, and Frisbee catching will get rid of 300 calories or more.
Activities with the kids or pets will create a closer knit, happier family while you lose those pounds.
Lose Weight with an Exercise Program I know you already think you don't have the time, but perhaps you can ease into it with something that helps you in multiple ways, once you get started.
Many people find they enjoy the practice of Yoga.
Yoga is easily learned, much less boring than running on that treadmill at the gym, and still builds strength, increases flexibility, and helps prevent heart and metabolic diseases.
It also reduces stress, among other physical and emotional benefits.
The regular practice of Yoga can be accomplished in less time than it would take you to drive over to the gym, leaving you more time for things that are more fun or productive.
Don't over-do it, as little as 15 minutes or so a day is plenty to start.
You will automatically increase to a half hour or so once you get more interested and feel better.
You can find good Yoga sequences for beginners online, and in many areas there are free classes locally available to get you started, or if you need a support group.
Don't worry about the advanced poses, take it easy and they will come if you want to advance.
Even the most practiced master started at the beginning.
Now that you've learned how to lose weight by losing calories without depriving yourself, you need to take action yourself.
Don't put it off, and don't try to do everything at once.
Try to make one small change each week until you've grown accustomed to your new routine.
After a
There are many ways of losing weight, but ultimately it all comes down to losing calories.
The simplest weight loss one can give or receive is simply to eat fewer calories and you will lose more pounds.
Unfortunately, this is not as easy for most of us as it sounds, and just cutting back on calories isn't the total story, because it is important to keep a balanced diet.
You can easily reduce caloric intake if you know how to do it right.
You really don't have to starve yourself, or take real drastic measures that leave you feeling as if you are being deprived.
In fact, you can easily and painlessly cut your calories with any of the simple suggestions that follow.
Pay attention to these tips and you can begin losing weight without any special diets or pain.
Today really isn't too soon to start.
Lose Weight by Eating Less I know you've probably heard this before, but eating less really will help.
I'm not talking about a starvation diet here, just cutting back on portion size.
So many of us eat everything that is put in front of us, we don't know any other way.
This goes back to when you were a child.
Remember when your mother told you that you couldn't leave the table until you finished everything on your plate? Though this was probably to make sure you ate the things that were less appealing to you (like a certain vegetable, perhaps) the root of it was twofold: First, to have a balanced diet you did need to eat all of the food groups presented, not just the ones with the greatest appeal for the child's tastes.
Second, depending on how old you are now, many of our parents grew up in tough times, and the thought of throwing away perfectly good food was a terrible waste to them.
In America we are so used to "super size" meals we don't even realize how much we really eat.
Cutting the portion size, particularly on the items with higher caloric content will go a long way to losing weight.
Lose Weight by Changing What You Eat Changing what you eat will have you losing weight in nearly no time, by choosing healthier things to eat.
This doesn't mean you need to give up your favorite flavors, because if you check around, you can find alternate foods with nearly or exactly the same flavors as you are used to.
We used to visit a vegetarian restaurant in San Jose, California that had a wonderful array of items on their menu that were amazing.
We often took friends there for dinner, and they couldn't tell they were eating entrees that literally contained NO meat.
The flavors were just incredible and visually it was difficult to tell these meals were sans meat.
Today I'm sure they are even better, as there are now meat substitutes that even have the texture you are used to.
I'm not saying you need to go to this extreme, but mentioning it to plant the idea as an alternative.
Substituting a lower calorie reduced fat fudge pudding instead of a bowl of chocolate ice cream can satisfy your craving for chocolate, and is a lot less calories.
I'm sure the chocoholics among us will be disagreeing with me right now, but I'm sure you get the point.
You don't have to give up your favorite flavors, you just have to make healthier substitutions.
Other popular substitutions include lean cuts of meat instead of cuts with more fat (though your cooking methods may need to change a little, as lean cuts aren't as tender with the same cooking techniques), or air popped popcorn instead of the microwave in the bag kind.
Whole fruit is a lower calorie alternative to fruit juice, which usually contains added sugar, and low-fat dairy products substitute for whole-milk products.
Some of these changes also help reduce your cholesterol too! Lose Weight by Eating More (often) Yes, you can eat more and lose calories, thereby losing weight.
This may sound contrary to common sense, but eating more often can really help you in a couple of ways.
First, if you are eating less volume at your regular meals, and certainly fewer calories than you are used to, your body is going to tell you to eat more.
If it is between meals, this often means something that isn't going to help the calorie counting at all, like candy, ice cream or fatty snacks like chips.
By eating more often, you don't have these cravings, and the tendency is to stick with the plan.
Second, your metabolism keeps track of your caloric intake and how much you burn.
As you burn more than you eat, the body converts fat back to calories to fill the energy void, IF you don't succumb to the "eat now" signal and have a fattening snack.
If you've been on one of those "one meal a day" diets you know the way it feels.
The body is pretty smart.
When you eat only one meal a day, it packs as many of the calories away as fat to have them for the lean times between meals.
Then, it pokes at you with cravings for things you haven't eaten for years and many times, you succumb.
This satisfies the body's immediate need and it leaves the fat for a later time.
Thus, you tend to gain weight on such a diet.
If you are eating smaller meals more often, your metabolism learns that more is always around the corner and actually burns calories faster.
Then, because you still aren't eating quite as many calories as before, it uses some of the stored fat and you lose weight.
Lose Weight with Activities If you are like me, you are probably too busy to take time for long workouts or running or other "extra" exercises, or find them too boring to endure.
To burn calories and lose weight while being more productive, you can change how you run errands or do chores..
Gardening and lawn work can burn a surprising number of calories.
Depending on what you do and how much you weigh, you could burn up to 700 calories an hour just by working in your yard.
This can have other benefits too, like higher satisfaction with how the place looks.
Doing it yourself instead of paying a gardener can reduce your weight while it puts money back in your pocket.
When you run errands, you can park at the far end of the parking lot at the store.
The extra distance will help, particularly if you don't dally.
Take the kids or pets to the park now and then.
An hour of swinging, sliding, and Frisbee catching will get rid of 300 calories or more.
Activities with the kids or pets will create a closer knit, happier family while you lose those pounds.
Lose Weight with an Exercise Program I know you already think you don't have the time, but perhaps you can ease into it with something that helps you in multiple ways, once you get started.
Many people find they enjoy the practice of Yoga.
Yoga is easily learned, much less boring than running on that treadmill at the gym, and still builds strength, increases flexibility, and helps prevent heart and metabolic diseases.
It also reduces stress, among other physical and emotional benefits.
The regular practice of Yoga can be accomplished in less time than it would take you to drive over to the gym, leaving you more time for things that are more fun or productive.
Don't over-do it, as little as 15 minutes or so a day is plenty to start.
You will automatically increase to a half hour or so once you get more interested and feel better.
You can find good Yoga sequences for beginners online, and in many areas there are free classes locally available to get you started, or if you need a support group.
Don't worry about the advanced poses, take it easy and they will come if you want to advance.
Even the most practiced master started at the beginning.
Now that you've learned how to lose weight by losing calories without depriving yourself, you need to take action yourself.
Don't put it off, and don't try to do everything at once.
Try to make one small change each week until you've grown accustomed to your new routine.
After a