Lose Weight Quickly

Lose Weight Quickly

If you are carrying a few extra pounds or are significantly overweight, chances are you have tried many diets over the years. And if you are like most people, you don’t want to be dieting for weeks or months – you want to lose weight quickly. After all, food is one of the easiest ways to get pleasure, find comfort, or celebrate. It’s legal, readily available, and you can’t avoid eating altogether. So it can be very frustrating and challenging to have to put significant restrictions on what you put into your mouth.

TV commercials, radio ads and internet ads are constantly bombarding us with the latest, greatest pill, gadget or diet that promises to help you lose weight quickly. They promise that you will lose 10 or 20 pounds in a few days, lose inches fast, or drop a dress size or two by the weekend. In fact, there are so many people wanting to lose those extra pounds, that the weight loss industry has become one of multi-billion dollar proportions.

They make it sound so easy to lose weight quickly that it makes you wonder why so many people are constantly battling their weight. The reality is, rapid weight loss diets, pills and other gimmicks actually can work in the short run. And a few people seem to maintain the weight loss, although the majority of people gain back all the weight and more once they discontinue the diet.

The following are two of the most popular methods to lose weight quickly:

Starvation or very low calories diets

Starvation diets usually involve extreme calorie restriction, often less than 500 calories per day. Very low calorie diets typically keep calorie intake below 1000. After the initial adjustment, your stomach will shrink to some degree which will help you tolerate eating so little food.

A few days on these diets is probably okay to lose weight quickly if you are healthy and want to drop only a few pounds for a short period of time. Keep in mind that the weight lost will usually be mostly water and not fat. As soon as you go off the diet you will gain most of it back.

Starvation diets are at best unhealthy and can be dangerous if you do it more than a few days. Your body will switch into starvation mode which means that your metabolism will slow down in order to preserve its energy resources. This essentially defeats the purpose, and when you go back to eating normally, you may be more prone to gaining weight.

Weight loss pills or supplements

If you want to take a pill or supplement to lose weight quickly, there are certainly plenty available. Most of these claim to speed up your metabolism, block fat absorption, or burn fat cells quickly and easily. Many of these products promise that you can eat whatever you want while you take them, while others require limited calories combined with regular exercise (which, of course, will help you lose weight anyway).

While regulations have become stricter in the USA and many other countries regarding the safety of many weight loss pills and substances, they still must be taken with caution. Many of them don’t live up to their claims, so don’t be surprised if you threw your money away. If you have certain health conditions, many of them can still be dangerous if you are not careful.

If you decide to pursue one of these methods to lose weight quickly, be sure to consult with your doctor first. No matter how much you want to be thinner, always remember that your health is far more important than being able to fit in those jeans you once wore or impressing your former classmates at a reunion!

BONUS : Lose Your Belly Fat

The stomach can become a problem area for many young and mature adults who are struggling with weight issues. Whether lax discipline or the demands of everyday living are to blame for the weight gain, you can take quick steps to lose your belly fat beginning in just a few weeks.

While it may take months to fully lose your belly fat, these initial steps can ensure that you shed those excess pounds and keep them off so your stomach remains trim. Even if you’ve carried around extra weight around your stomach for years, there are important steps you can take toward shedding those extra pounds to get the flat, toned stomach you’ve always wanted.

Heart of Steel, Not just Abs

Many individuals seeking to lose belly fat assume that crunches or abdominal exercises are the key to helping lose your belly fat. The reality, however, is that stomach muscles lay underneath the belly fat which is lost through a combination of exercises, healthy eating and smart daily decisions. No matter how many crunches you perform on a daily basis, you’re only strengthening your core abdominals without losing stomach fat unless you take a more complete approach to weight loss.

Take note that taking steps to lose your belly fat is also an important part of helping to alleviate potential causes of heart disease and other cardiovascular problems. The larger focus of your weight loss efforts should be on how to lose your belly fat as a means to improve your overall physical well being, rather than just toning your stomach in isolation. If you find your waist line increasing to the point that your jeans no longer fit, then it’s a good time to evaluate your overall healthy habits.

Causes of Excess Belly Fat

Over time, the body generally suffers a slow-down in metabolism which can result in early stage obesity and excess stomach fat for many individuals. While nature has its own rhythms, there are important steps you can take to counteract these effects. Just because your body naturally loses its fat fighting abilities doesn’t mean you have to accept excess weight – on the contrary, you can lose your belly fat through adjustments in your overall diet.

Rather than just avoiding the foods you like, try switching from white flours to whole grain carbohydrates which can help reduce blood sugar levels, resulting in different insulin response so the body can better process sugars. Switching to natural, whole grain foods can help lower your overall blood sugar and give you time to make adjustments in your exercise routine to begin to lose your belly fat.

To some extent, genetics play a role in weight gain and regulation, so keep in mind that it’s important to be proactive about your overall weight loss goals. Even if you haven’t changed your daily routine in years, shifts in the body over time may require you to make adjustments in order to effectively lose your belly fat.

These steps range from taking up a regular exercise regimen that combines cardiovascular exercise (raising your heart rate moderately for at least 30 minutes a day, including daily walks, group classes or fitness training) as well as reducing your overall intake of unhealthy food. You can take small steps to reducing your belly fat such as parking farther away at the store, taking the stairs instead of the elevator and opting for fruit instead of ice cream for dessert. Making small adjustments can help you to lose your belly fat gradually over time so you can look and feel great.