Losing weight is a challenge that simply requires the basic principles of eating the right foods and getting enough physical exercise. Fad diets and pills do work to lose weight fast but more often than not these methods are not the best long term solution for your health. The best course of action is to take a look at your current diet and physical activity and make adjustments accordingly. Here are some tips that will get you started in the right direction.
Adjusting your diet
It is a simple fact that to lose weight you need to intake less calories than the number of calories you burn. Your body will burn calories just by performing everyday activities including sleeping. The logical first step is to get an idea of the number of calories that you intake on a daily basis. To assist there are a number of websites that will give you calorie counts for just about every food item including fast food and popular prepared meals found in grocery stores. For a period of at least one week carry a small notebook and enter every item that you eat and drink. Look these items up on the online source and add them up. For meals prepared at home simply find the calorie count based on the ingredients and the portion size you ate.
A healthy male aged 45 that exercises 3 times a week can consume about 2200 calories per day and maintain a healthy weight of 165 pounds. A male the same age with no exercise and overweight at 200 pounds will need to intake about 1700 calories to be at a level where weight loss would begin. Most of the websites that have the calorie counters will also have a calculator for you to enter your statistics to find your ideal daily calorie intake. Once you know what your daily intake should be you then make the necessary adjustments to your daily diet. A few tips on eating healthy are;
. Drink plenty of water.
. Choose lean meats and bake, broil or grill as opposed to frying.
. Eat healthy snacks in between meals such as raw fruits or vegetables. You will eat less at the next meal.
. Start off the day with a healthy breakfast. High fiber and low sugar cereals, fresh fruits, and oatmeal are some smart choices.
. Keep an eye on portion sizes.
Adjustments to physical activity.
To lose weight you should have about a 500 calorie difference between the calories consumed and the calories burned. For example if you set a daily diet that is 1700 calories per day you should set your physical activity to burn 2200 calories per day. The better calorie counting websites will have calculators for calories burned as well. Just like for the foods you eat daily for a week, write down in your small notebook all of the activities you do on a daily basis and for how long. You will see on the calculators that you can enter all activities including sleeping. After a week you will have a good idea of how many calories you burn on average daily and can add in activities to get you to the total you are looking to achieve. For most people 45 minutes of mild exercise will be enough to burn an extra 300 calories. Find ways to get those 45 minutes by spreading it out throughout the day with different types of activities such as;
. Choose lean meats and bake, broil or grill as opposed to frying.
. Eat healthy snacks in between meals such as raw fruits or vegetables. You will eat less at the next meal.
. Start off the day with a healthy breakfast. High fiber and low sugar cereals, fresh fruits, and oatmeal are some smart choices.
. Keep an eye on portion sizes.
Adjustments to physical activity.
To lose weight you should have about a 500 calorie difference between the calories consumed and the calories burned. For example if you set a daily diet that is 1700 calories per day you should set your physical activity to burn 2200 calories per day. The better calorie counting websites will have calculators for calories burned as well. Just like for the foods you eat daily for a week, write down in your small notebook all of the activities you do on a daily basis and for how long. You will see on the calculators that you can enter all activities including sleeping. After a week you will have a good idea of how many calories you burn on average daily and can add in activities to get you to the total you are looking to achieve. For most people 45 minutes of mild exercise will be enough to burn an extra 300 calories. Find ways to get those 45 minutes by spreading it out throughout the day with different types of activities such as;
. Take a 15 to 20 minutes brisk walk after dinner.
. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
. Ride a bicycle to work.
. Get involved on sports such as tennis, racquetball, cycling or swimming.
. Do some vigorous cleaning once a week like washing the floors or the car by hand.
. Use a snow shovel instead of a snow blower.
There are countless activities that can be added to your life that will not only help in losing weight but will also add some fun. The most important thing about using a plan to lose weight is to stick with it, have some patience and don't expect miracles overnight. A consistent approach will show results soon enough that will last a lifetime if you choose to do so.
Scott Henderson resides today in South Korea. He enjoys writing and other projects. One of Scott's latest projects is http://windturbinesforthehome.org a website devoted to wind power and how to obtain home wind generators.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Scott_Z_Henderson
. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
. Ride a bicycle to work.
. Get involved on sports such as tennis, racquetball, cycling or swimming.
. Do some vigorous cleaning once a week like washing the floors or the car by hand.
. Use a snow shovel instead of a snow blower.
There are countless activities that can be added to your life that will not only help in losing weight but will also add some fun. The most important thing about using a plan to lose weight is to stick with it, have some patience and don't expect miracles overnight. A consistent approach will show results soon enough that will last a lifetime if you choose to do so.
Scott Henderson resides today in South Korea. He enjoys writing and other projects. One of Scott's latest projects is http://windturbinesforthehome.org a website devoted to wind power and how to obtain home wind generators.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Scott_Z_Henderson
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