Expert advice to keep you out of the world of crash diets.
To be blunt, attempting to lose weight quickly (for whatever reason) is not the safest or smartest way to change your body composition. The internet is full of quick (but unsustainable) ways to lose weight, from crash dieting to cutting out entire food groups.
Your chances of maintaining or sustaining any type of weight loss may vary greatly depending on how you go about it, wise or dumb. Also, the sort of weight you lose will differ. (Take this as a warning to quit looking for ‘how can I lose weight fast,’ because it’s probably not what you want at all.
Drastically reducing calories and depriving your body of critical minerals and vitamins may result in a lower number on the scale, but you may not shed body fat – which is what most people mean when they say they want to know how to lose weight rapidly.
However, there are methods to lose weight effectively and efficiently – from eating enough to establishing realistic objectives, we picked together the finest professional suggestions to keep your fat loss journey on track in a safe, sustainable way.
1- Be realistic about timelines
There is a difference between trying to lose weight quickly and losing weight permanently and efficiently. A subtle difference, but a difference nonetheless.
According to experts and recent NHS guidance, safe weight loss is around 0.5 to 2 pounds per week, though this can vary depending on how much you need to lose. The more you have, the faster your initial rate of weight loss is likely to be, though this will eventually slow.
Losing weight faster than this over an extended period of time might lead to:
Malnutrition \sGallstones \sLethargy
Metabolic damage
One thing to keep in mind is that your pace of weight reduction may vary from week to week owing to hormone fluctuations and other biological processes.
‘It’s not a linear process,’ says Maximuscle personal trainer Dan Lambert. ‘Some weeks may be higher than others. Instead, calculate your average weekly weight reduction over a four-week period to prevent losing motivation.
2-Plan your fitness around your life
We’ve all been there: a new routine, a new dosage of resolve, and suddenly there’s nothing holding us back from our goals.
Then comes real life, in the shape of job, friends, family, and stress, and the incentive train has come and gone faster than you can say devoted.
Take an honest look at your calendar and identify where you can add workouts without throwing your entire life out the window.
We have a lot better chance of sticking to a habit if the time we devote to it fits our lifestyle, says Lambert. ‘Try three to four 45-minute gym workouts per week instead of five to six 90-minute exercises per week.
‘While the less time-consuming program may burn less calories, you’re much more likely to stick to it in the long run.
Because (as unappealing as it may sound), steady work over a long period of time yields the best outcomes – something that is easy to overlook while attempting to lose weight quickly.
3- Swerve overreaching
While we believe in setting lofty objectives and crushing them, there is such a thing as doing too much. This is especially true for your fitness and weight loss.
Overtraining happens when a person’s ability to recuperate from training is exceeded, according to Lambert. ‘This generally happens when we try to follow a plan that is too advanced for us, or when we incorporate training into a life that is already overburdened with stress, or when we don’t manage other elements of our health properly, such as sleep and diet.
When our systems are unable to adequately recuperate, a stress hormone called cortisol is generated, which might impair our capacity to burn fat. ‘This can contribute to weight gain, Lambert adds.
Chronic overtraining can also lead to illness and injury, putting our fat loss goals on hold.
To summarize, set big goals, but make sure to break them down into manageable, realistic chunks that keep you and your body at optimal stress levels.
4-Make strength training a priority
Building muscle through regular strength and resistance training has several advantages, one of which is, predictably, the development of lean muscle tissue. The more muscle you have, the more energy (and calories) your body must use to sustain it.
‘Strength training builds muscle, which boosts your body’s resting metabolic rate and everyday calorie expenditure,’ adds Lambert. ‘Pay attention to increasing strength and muscle and lifting with vigor.’
This strength training for beginners program is a wonderful place to start.
Alice Liveing’s 28-day course will help you master basic resistance training motions and technique.
Looking for a pre-made gym workout? Look no further.
5-Don’t forget about cardio
Now that we’ve established why strength training is so effective for fat reduction, let’s talk about why you shouldn’t scrimp on cardio. Aside from the cardiovascular (heart) advantages, frequent sweat workouts can aid with blood pressure, stamina, and mental clarity.
Cardio burns more calories per minute than strength training (although the greatest exercise routines include both), and there are so many different forms to select from: swimming, jogging, cycling, dance workouts, HIIT, and so on.
Maintaining a healthy heart via cardio and keeping your muscles challenged with strength training can put you on the road to success in no time.
6-Remember to get your NEAT in
No, we’re not talking about remembering to make your bed. NEAT stands for non-exercise activity thermogenesis and refers to anything that isn’t clearly defined as exercise. Consider walking up and down the stairs, doing household chores, playing with your children, and even fidgeting.
Surprisingly, NEAT exercise accounts for a large portion of your total daily energy expenditure (how many calories you burn per day) – far more than the 30 – 60 minutes you spend on your home or gym workout. Making sure you get enough NEAT in your weekly activity is an important part of maintaining a healthy calorie deficit, which is essential if you’re trying to lose body fat.
7-Get clever about measurements
Stepping on the bathroom scale every morning may not be the best way to stick to a healthy weight loss regime, especially if the number has a negative impact on your mental or emotional state. In fact, if you’re trying to lose weight quickly, keeping a close eye on your weight may be deceiving.
From menstrual cycle changes to water retention, there are numerous factors that influence how much you weigh. Instead, tracking your body fat percentage with callipers or smart scales could be the key to a more balanced and less volatile experience.
Even if weight loss is your top priority, measuring other metrics such as sleep quality and daily demeanor can be just as rewarding.
how much energy you have, whether you feel stronger or have more stamina
8-Recovering properly is essential to lose weight fast
A word to the wise: if you don’t recuperate properly, you’re selling yourself and your prospective outcomes short. Because if you don’t make it a priority, you’re probably sacrificing in other parts of your life as well. For example, if you don’t get enough rest and relaxation, your body won’t be able to mend correctly, which means you won’t be able to lift as much or as well, or run as far or as quickly.
You must allow your body to recover from the labor you’ve been performing all week. Your muscles require time to desensitize and adjust to the improvements you’ve previously achieved. You will burn out if you strain your intellect too hard at work. It’s the same with your body,’ Jemma McKenzie-Brown, Barry’s Bootcamp trainer, previously explained to WH.
And she’s not incorrect. Taking a day off isn’t just for recovery; it’s also for mental and physical preparation for what’s ahead.
Not to mention that you’ll most likely be sacrificing the things that make life enjoyable, like as meeting friends, getting adequate sleep, or taking a day off from the gym.
‘For a fat reduction program to be sustainable, it must be entertaining, uncomplicated, and reasonably easy to follow without interfering with aspects of your life that are important to you,’ says Lambert.
Remember, we’re attempting to improve your body composition for the long run, not simply for the short term. You can take a day off, believe us.
9- Eat enough
We’ll be blunt: consuming less calories than your body demands will result in weight reduction. But only for a short time. When you revert to typical eating patterns or consume the amount your body requires to survive, you will most likely gain the weight back and more. Not ideal.
‘Most individuals become fed up and don’t stick to these [crash] diets because they’re not sustainable,’ says registered dietitian Tai Ibitoye, adding that ‘nearly everyone regains weight after they’ve quit these diets.’
Instead, recognizing what your body and routine require to lose weight, prioritizing nutrient-dense, full foods, and being conscious of portion sizes will get you further than any harmful and unsustainable restrictive diet ever would. Promise.
Aim to eat three regular, balanced meals throughout the day and avoid skipping meals as you may miss out on important nutrients and end up snacking more as you feel more hungry,’ says Ibitoye.
10-Double down on fibre
Fibre not only helps keep digestion regular, but it also keeps you feeling fuller for longer. When satiation is the goal, that’s never a bad thing.
Ibitoye recommends including more of the following fiber-rich foods in your diet :
Fruit
Vegetables
Oats
Whole-grain pitta bread
Brown rice and pasta
Beans
Peas
Lentils
11-Consider cutting down on the sauce
Alcohol, not mayonnaise. Not only does sugar raise your blood sugar (causing your body to store extra fat from food), but the need-to-eat-everything mindset that follows a night of drinking can undercut your good intentions the rest of the time.
‘One gram of alcohol has 7 calories, whereas carbs and protein have 4 calories per gram,’ explains Ibitoye. ‘Try to have several alcohol-free days each week and instead opt for non-alcoholic or low-alcohol drinks.’
And, if you’re hungover, you should skip your workout. Not only are you dehydrated (which exercise will intensify), but your chance of injury is significantly increased.
12-Make H20 your new best mate
Drink some water . Long story short, drink water.
‘Aim for two litres of fluids each day to keep hydrated throughout the day – you may need more if you’re active, sweating, or have a high temperature,’ explains Ibitoye.
Drinking plenty of water keeps your body running smoothly, prevents headaches, and aids with digestion. Whether you want to carry a reusable water bottle or run with a running water bottle, drinking extra water does not have to be difficult. Setting minor objectives, such as drinking a litre of water before lunch, might help you stay on track.
If slugging a straight glass isn’t your thing, eating items high in water content (soups, fruits, and veggies) will also help you reach your target.
13-Snack mindfully
Do you enjoy a good snack? Yes, we do. Those continual grazings and “little” handfuls, on the other hand, might lead us beyond what we need to achieve our objectives.
Ibitoye recommends limiting them to a thoughtful portion – what you need to feel satisfied but not stuffed – and picking for nutritious snacks like :
Fruit bowls
Fruit slices with nut butter
Low-fat hummus on vegetable sticks
Popcorn, plain or gently salted
a sprinkling of nuts
Yogurt with low fat
Simple crackers
Oatcakes
14-Don’t forget about sleep
Eight hours of restorative, high-quality sleep? We enjoy seeing it! And it isn’t just us. Your body does as well, particularly if you’re attempting to reduce weight.
According to Ibitoye,’some studies have revealed that sleep deprivation is connected with higher ghrelin levels – often known as “the hunger hormone” – and increased food consumption.’ While more study is needed in this area of nutritional science, overall NHS guidelines indicate that individuals get between six and nine hours of sleep every night.
15-Manage stress
If you’ve ever gorged on chocolate digestives after a particularly stressful day at work, you’ll understand how stress may affect your appetite, desires, and weight reduction attempts.
‘It’s crucial to establish effective coping techniques to keep your stress at bay,’ says Ibitoye. ‘This might look different for various individuals, such as finding time to rest, practicing relaxation methods, utilizing meditation apps like Calm or Headspace, talking to a loved one, journaling, or speaking to a health professional for guidance and support.
16-Think about the bigger picture
To reduce weight quickly or slowly, your body must feel safe and healthy enough to do it. And it’s unlikely to feel in a position to do so without good stress management, sleep, recuperation, exercise, and nutrition.
Keep an eye on the big picture and don’t get discouraged if it’s not happening as quickly as you’d like – long-term, healthy weight loss is always preferable to a quick fix.
