10 Weight Loss Tips - How to Lose Weight

1. Burn more calories than you consume. If this makes you go: "D-uuuh!!", snap out of it and consider that this elementary aspect of dieting excapes countless clueless -- and doomed -- dieters. Tabloids may claim to have the "miracle foods" that'll allow you to eat like a pig and have the pounds melt off, but it's a load.

2. Establish your base metabolism, and set a target calorie goal approx. 500 calories below it. I wrote an article dedicated to establishing your metabolism earlier, so look it up in the article archive if you need a refresher.

3. Keep an honest log. Make estimates of how many calories you stuff yourself with every meal and tally up the total to make sure you stay within your target calorie goal. Convenient "mistakes," under-estimates and forgetfulness allows you to eat more now, but you're defeating the whole point of dieting.

One of the best tips for losing weight is to be consistent. Everyone wants to see immediate results and it can be really disheartening when you feel like you're making no progress. It's absolutely essential to stay patient and consistent because your workout program will produce results in time.

4. Actively choose good sources of fat. This may sound like stupid advice -- shouldn't you AVOID fat when dieting? Well, yes and no. You have to keep consuming some fat, just not going overboard. Avoid butter, bacon, whole milk, coconuts and such like the plague. Instead, make use of olive oil (virgin) and fatty fish. Peanut butter is an interesting topic. I used to put it in the same category as the "bad" fats. It belongs there, packing saturated fat as well as artery-clogging trans fatty acids. However, based on highly unscientific testimonies by others as well as personal experience, it seems like a handful of peanuts once in a while when dieting can do wonders in keeping energy levels up while not wreaking havoc with your overall diet. Strange and illogical? You betcha. But it just so happens to work anyway, kind of like bumblebees flying though they technically shouldn't be able to.

5. Eat small but frequent meals throughout the day. You've heard it a million times, I'm sure, but facts remain: In order to keep an even level of blood sugar, you have to eat small, balanced meals.

One of the handiest tips gained from many decades of dieting is to drink an entire glass of tomato or V-8 juice with 2 heaping tablespoons of bran stirred into it. You can also use psyllium seed husks. The reason for this is to give your stomach something to satisfy the need for bulk right away in the morning, and because it's low-calorie and high fiber, that breakfast drink will get things moving later in the day without adding much to your daily caloric intake.

6. Don't go wimpy on the weight training. When you diet, you're in the danger zone for losing muscle mass most of the time. To avoid this, keeping pumping iron, and be diligent about it!

7. Avoid alcohol. Given that barbeque-season is upon us, this can be tough when your friends bring out the ice-cold brewskis. The solution is simple: Only associate with other bodybuilders, so you at least won't be the lone dweeb sipping a diet soda! For those of you who have the ridiculous idea that your life should not revolve around bodybuilding: Snap out of it.

A great way to help you lose weight is to join an e-mailing list of websites and individuals that work to promote health and fitness. By joining an e-mail list like this, you can stay current on all of the latest fitness news and you can also gain tips.

8. Do cardio in moderation. Doing 45 mins on the stairmaster every day is a great way to get the pounds off quicker. 2 hours is not so great, since you're bound to start losing muscle mass. When and how much is individual (and depending on what you've had to eat earlier in the day) but avoid cardio sessions in excess of 1 hour. If you need the punishment do one session in the morning and one in the evening. Also remember to stay in the 65%-70% heart rate zone for optimal fat burn.

9. Schedule "cheating" days to stay sane. Dieting is no fun. No matter how gung-ho and motivated you are when you start out, you'll have days when everything is darkness and the world is out to get you. Make sure to get a treat once a week on a set day (Saturday is good) as it gives you something to look forward to. A juicy burger is fatty and calorie-dense, but if you prepare by doing extra cardio for three days in advance you'll come in right on target for the week.

A way to really motivate you to lose weight is to join an online weight loss group or forum. You can make friends online that will help motivate you to stay on target! You can also learn a lot about other people's experiences in weight loss and possible tips to stay on track.

10. Don't be afraid of soy. I used to avoid fake-meat products, but having been married to a vegetarian for 3+ years I've tried soy hot dogs, burgers, chicken patties, even riblets that taste just like the real thing. And here's the kicker: Soy products is mostly protein! Granted, soy protein is not the highest quality out there, but if you drink a glass of milk or have some other high-quality protein source with it you can bump up the overall quality in a hurry. Besides, soy has a number of great health benefits when eaten in moderation and contains very little fat.

Ways to Lose Weight - 7 Calorie Burning Tips

Sedentary people burn about one-third less calories per day.  By simply taking every opportunity to move can make quite a dramatic difference to the amount of calories you burn in one day. Small movements will add up over time to lots of calories.  The trick is to keep moving throughout your day. Write the word ‘move’ on post-it notes and put them in places you’ll notice them when you’re sitting still. Then, take every opportunity to move – here’s some ideas for burning extra calories:

Tap your feet

Swing your legs

Stand up and stretch

Count your calories, daily. Look for ways to cut bad foods out of your diet. Substitute fattening foods for things that have low calories and less fat.

Move your head from side to side

Change position

Wriggle and fidget

An apple can be a great tool to keep the doctor away, but it can also be a great aid in weight loss. Having an apple before a meal or as a snack can satisfy a craving for something sweet or crunchy while barely adding any calories. Apples are naturally rich in vitamins which will help you stay healthy while losing weight and pack a good punch of fiber which not only makes you feel full but also aids in healthy digestion.

Pace up and down

Use the restroom upstairs

Park in the furthest corner of the parking lot

A great tip weight loss tip is to eat "heavy" foods. What makes you feel full is not really the calories in your food but the weight of what you eat. If you consume heavier-weight foods like oranges, watermelon, grapefruit and broccoli, you will fill up faster and end up eating less calories overall.

Stand up when you’re on the phone and step from side to side

Clench and release your muscles

2) Eat Little and Often

When trying to lose weight, using transportation other than automobiles can help. Physical transportation, like running or bicycling, can help you burn calories while you get from point a to point b. Calories are stored by the body as they build up. By burning calories through exercise, though, this storage is prevented.

Evidence suggests that eating small meals every 2-4 hours will keep your metabolism burning faster than larger, less frequent meals. When you eat small amounts often your body is constantly working to digest and absorb food which requires energy. 

3) Eat Fat

If you want feel good and keep the fat off you need to first put it in.  Fat not only tastes good our bodies need it to work efficiently.  By consuming several servings of ‘healthy’ fats every day you will actually increase your calorie burning potential.  Try incorporating fats like Flaxseed oil, hempseed oil, olive oil, avocados, salmon, albacore tuna, nuts and seeds into your diet daily.

A great way to help you lose weight is to use the more rigorous cardio equipment at your gym. There is a lot of different equipment but they're not all equal in terms of how many calories they burn. Machines like the stair master and elliptical burn a lot of calories.

4) Drink Cold Water

Evidence shows that your body might expend more calories trying to raise cold water to the temperature of your body then hot beverages. And overall being well hydrated will help your body’s metabolic processes burn quicker.

5) Exercise With Weights

Eating breakfast is essential if you want to lose weight and stay trim. Such an idea seems like common sense, yet a lot of people skip breakfast to skip calories. You won't take in as many calories, but you may end up craving food at lunch. It might also cause you to reach for unhealthy snacks between meals.

Training with weights boosts your metabolism in a number of ways. By lifting weights you will build muscle tissue. And muscle tissue is metabolically active, so it requires calories even when at rest and so it helps to increase fat-burning enzymes in your body.

6) Spice up

When you are watching what you eat, don't forget to also watch what you drink. Research the calories of your favorite beverages so that you can fit them into your diet comfortably. Also, switch to "light" versions of your drinks of choice to 'shave excess calories off' your daily intake.

Eating hot spices might speed up your metabolism.  Just half a teaspoon of cinnamon per day can help boost metabolism and keep blood sugar levels in check. Can’t stand the thought of cinnamon in your morning cup of coffee? Spice up with cayenne, crushed red pepper or wasabi.

7) Eat More Protein

Protein requires a more complex chemical breakdown by your body in order to be digested and used as fuel. For example, 100 calories of protein may take up to 30 calories to process.   Protein also takes longer to digest and helps to stabilize blood sugar for longer periods of time  and this can help you to not overeat later in the day.  Eat a portion of protein at every meal and as part of your snacks and you will increase the total number of calories you burn each day.