5 Tips to Lose 5 Pounds
McThis, Starbucks that...the world doesn't make it easy to lose weight. Easy access to sugary sweets and the convenience of delivery services means a constant barrage of temptation. But with a little discipline and planning-and these five simple tips-weight loss is well within your reach.
Dieting is tough, but not impossible. Losing weight is about making small, manageable changes and fusing them into a new healthy, lifestyle. Think of it as a simple math equation. You need to burn more calories than you consume. Sure, it might sound easy, but for lots of folks dieting is tougher than differential equations.
Let's try to make sense of the weight-loss figure counting. And no, you won't need a calculator. Chances are you already know the best way to subtract numbers from the scale.
It All Adds Up
A pound of fat has 3,500 calories. More specifically, to gain a pound of fat, you need to add 3,500 calories to your body. Conversely, to lose a pound, you have to burn 3,500 calories.
It's not much more complicated than that-input versus output. A cheeseburger has around 400 calories, while an apple has only 95. Jogging a mile burns around 150 calories, while sitting on the couch for an hour burns 70. Common sense tells us you're better off eating an apple and going for a run than plopping in front of the TV with a burger, but it's often hard to get motivated and stay motivated.
Here's some inspiration for you: your body is burning calories every second of your life. It's called your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)-the amount of energy your body needs to operate everything from your organs to your brain. BMR is the baseline calorie consumption you need to survive. And because your body already knows how to use calories, your job for weight loss is to help it out with healthy food and regular exercise.
The average 25-year old American woman is 5-foot-4 and weighs 150 pounds, with a BMR of 1,576 calories. That means she needs a little over 1,500 calories a day to keep her body functioning. Think of it like a car idling. Whatever gas the car needs to idle in the driveway is the number of calories your body needs to sit on couch. But something remarkable happens when she starts expending more calories than she consumes. Just like a car burns up more gas as it's speeding down the highway, your body goes through calories when you're up and moving.
Limit your food intake slightly and exercise even a little more, and you'll go through more stored up calories. And if you can burn 3,500 calories, you're going to lose a pound. Pretty cool, eh? It's just a simple math equation. If you want to lose five pounds, all you have to do is expend 17,500 calories. Sounds like a lot (it is), but you can do it with these five tips.
Eat a Healthy Diet
Your diet fuels your life. And good nutrition is the most important part of a healthy lifestyle. Say good-bye to drive-thru fast foods and hello to slow growing vegetables and lean proteins. Start with small changes, and you'll start to feel the benefits of watching what you eat.
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Keep a food journal. Write down what you eat. Recognize what you're eating. Find out how many calories are in your food and use this information to preplan your meals. There are a lot of great food tracking apps available on your smart phone to help you along the way.
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Focus on plants. Try eating whole grains instead of refined grains, incorporate fruits and vegetables over sweets, and drink coffee over soda pop. Chances are, if you can easily identify all the ingredients in what you're eating, you're making a healthy choice.
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Get your fiber. High-fiber foods-apples, pears, raspberries, carrots, bananas, broccoli, beets-have the nutrients your body needs and fiber to help you feel fuller, longer.
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Mix it up. Swap out your normal snacks with lower calorie options. Drop the 300-calorie bar for a cup of raw carrots. New foods expand your palate while treating your taste buds to an exciting array of flavors.
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Keep it real. Will power only takes you so far. If you make a mistake, don't beat yourself up. Enjoy your cheat day, recognize it for what it is, and try harder tomorrow.
Drink Ample Water
Your body needs water to survive. After all, it's composed of 60 percent water. Water lubricates our joints, delivers oxygen throughout the body, and helps regulate body temperature, just to name a few benefits. Best of all, when you drink enough water, you support your digestive system and help make minerals and nutrients available.
Staying hydrated is important for your health and well-being. You constantly lose water through both sweat and urine, so make sure to always drink enough water to meet your needs. Health authorities recommend the 8 x 8 Rule. Try to drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water every day. This equals about two liters. An easy tip is to get up every hour at work and head to the water cooler. You'll stretch your legs and meet your water demand for the day.
Drinking a glass of water not only helps with digestion, it preloads your system to help avoid overeating. Researchers estimate drinking water throughout the day increases metabolism, burning an additional 96 calories.
Get 8 Hours of Sleep
A sleep deprived body isn't good for anything. Without enough rest, your muscles never get a chance to recharge, your mind can be foggy, and your attitude suffers.
Too little sleep produces more of the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol triggers the reward center in your brain and makes you crave food. That's why greasy breakfasts taste so much better when you haven't slept enough.
You want your body to, instead, produce growth hormones while you're sleeping. This helps burn fat as well as repair and build muscle to increase strength and lose weight. When you wake up refreshed and ready to take on the day, you'll have better discipline with your diet and be more likely to exercise.
The optimal amount of sleep is between 7-9 hours. If life gets in the way-kids, busy schedules, work, travel-try making small changes. Stick with a new bedtime for five days. Limit screen time and focus on rest as a priority. FOMO is always there, but trust me-it'll still be there in the morning.
Exercise, Exercise, Exercise
Yep, you're going to have to move. But that's a good thing. Working out doesn't mean buying an expensive gym membership or signing up for one of those fancy classes. Getting your heart rate up is as easy as taking the dogs for a walk, or even doing housework.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests adults get 150 minutes of exercise a week. That's only 20 minutes a day-you just need to find time to get moving. Working out shouldn't be a chore. Exercise is an element of self-care, and you should relish each opportunity to live a healthy life. Here's a list of common activities and the calories you can burn in 30 minutes:
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Stretching, yoga: 149 calories
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Stationary bicycling: 391 calories
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Rowing machine: 260 calories
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Golfing (carrying clubs): 205 calories
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Swimming: 223 calories
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Snow shoeing: 298 calories
And for fun, you'll burn 98 calories playing pool, 172 gardening (pulling weeds), and 93 cooking dinner.
Find what you enjoy doing and make it an activity. It's a quick and easy way to lose calories throughout the day.
Supplement Your Diet
Give your diet a boost with quality vitamins. It's tough to get all the micronutrients your body needs from food. Try supplementing with a quality multivitamin. Vitamin D, nootropics, and olive leaf extract help the body process foods, extracting more nutrients, and helping your body be more efficient.
Taking a daily supplement anchors your day. As you start this healthy journey, you'll be surprised how easy it is to make better choices when you begin your day on the right foot.
Another great idea to lower your calories is to try a meal replacement shake. Whey-based shakes are rich in protein, and whey's ability to repair muscle makes it an ideal post-workout meal. Plus, they're super convenient to make and take with you.
Shedding Five Pounds
So, can you do it? Absolutely! Start small-rethink your diet, drink enough water, get some sleep, move more, and add a nutritional supplement. For more motivation, check out this article from What's Up, USANA? And while you're there, check out their superior supplements and nutritious shakes.
Now, get going. You're only five small steps away from a lighter, healthier you.
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About the Writer
Ben Raskin is a rock climber, banjo player, and student of Renaissance sculptures. He writes about weight loss, midcentury architecture, and the benefits of goat yoga. You can find him @USANABen.
