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8 Healthy Tips to Burn Fat and Lose Holiday Pounds |
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Written by Dan Burley
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The holidays are wonderful times of the year. It's a time to share memorable times with friends and family and it’s a great time to eat our favorite foods. Unfortunately, after all the parties and good times are over, we are left with an expanded waistline and the bathroom scale tells us it’s time to get serious about losing that weight.
Incorporate these 8 healthy lifestyle tips and you can get rid of that excess weight and feel better about your appearance. So here they are:
1. Don't Skip Meals, Especially Breakfast - Most people try desperately to lose weight by skipping meals but unfortunately this only leads to more weight gain. Your body goes into starvation mode which leads to overeating, usually late at night. Also repeatedly skipping meals will slow down your metabolism.
2. Forget the Bathroom Scale – Most people fail to lose weight because the bathroom scale does not meet their expectation of weight loss. Instead, focus on good habits that create weight loss.
3. Eat 5 Small Meals Each Day - Studies have shown that eating smaller meals more frequently through the day will raise your metabolism. It also keeps you satisfied and you are less likely to binge later in the day.
4. Plan Your Meals – Planning your meals for the day is one of the biggest things you can do to lose excess weight. Plan on 5 healthy small meals or snacks. Most women burn about 2000 calories per day, so to lose weight, plan 5 meals for a total of 1500 calories. The average male burns 2500 calories per day and should plan 2000 calories per day to lose weight. Below is a sample diet plan you may want to create:
Cereal or Oatmeal: 200 calories
Fruit: 100 calories
Coffee or tea (no sugar): 0 calories – use Splenda
Mid-Morning Snack
Protein Shake or fruit: 100 – 200 calories
Lunch
Chicken salad or chicken breast or sandwich on whole grain bread: 300 calories
Soup: 200 calories
Mid-Day Snack
½ sandwich with soup or Protein Shake or Lean Cuisine: 200 – 300 calories
Dinner
Meat – baked, broil or grilled (4 – 6 ounces)
chicken or beef or pork or venison or fish: 200 – 400 calories
vegetable – 2 servings: 100 calories
Sugar Free Jell-O with whip cream: 30 calories
5. Calories Count – To lose weight you must burn more calories than you take in. Contrary to popular opinion, our metabolism is very dynamic. It changes according to how often we eat, what we eat and the amount of movement we expend. A common mistake is to eat 1 or 2 big meals for the entire day which leaves your body in starvation mode for most of the day. Big time gap between meals causes your metabolism to slow down to conserve energy.
6. Schedule Exercise Time - Start right now. Write down your schedule and give yourself 25 to 30 minutes of cardio at least 3 times per week. If possible, schedule exercise 5 to 7 times per week. Exercise should not be strenuous and can include fast pace walking, cycling (stationary or real bike), elliptical or treadmill at the gym. Including an exercise routine will help increase the rate of fat loss.
7. Drink Plenty of Water – Drink a minimum of 8 cups of water but strive for 10 to 12 cups. Drink more water if you regularly exercise. A body that is fully hydrated can dump excess fat more efficiently, so take your water bottle and drink plenty of water.
8. Daily Journal Your Calorie Deficit - The focus is on healthy habits that lead to weight loss instead of actual weight loss that tends to fluctuate from day to day so by recording daily calorie deficit, you are actually journaling the fat loss process.
Remember it takes 3500 calories to burn 1 pound of fat. If you burn 2000 calories (without exercise) a day but you only eat 1500 calories, your deficit is 500 calories. It will take 7 days at that calorie deficit to burn 1 pound of fat. If you add 30 minutes of cardio a day which burns about 300 extra calories, you will increase the deficit to 800 calories per day which will decrease the time to burn a pound of fat to 4 ½ days.
By writing down your calorie deficit each day, you are aware of your progress without the pressure of getting on the scale. The nature of how your body dissipates excess weight can greatly vary so don’t weigh for several months. The focus should be on good eating habits and maintaining a healthy calorie deficit.
Journaling is easy. Most men burn about 2500 calories per day without exercise and most women burn 2000 calories per day without exercise. You may burn fewer calories, but this is a good baseline.
The average cardio exercise at a medium pace burns 600 calories per hour, so 30 minutes burns 300 calories. If you’re a woman, plan your meals at 1500 calories per day. Men should plan 2000 calories per day. See tip #4 for sample diet plan. Stick to your meal plan and add 30 minutes of cardio such as fast pace walking, elliptical, treadmill (use incline and faster speed) or stationary cycling.
Strive for 500 to 800 calorie deficit per day. Make it a game. By daily journaling, you stay motivated because your success is not dependent on the scale but rather by focusing on good, healthy eating habits that create fat loss. Even if you lose weight at a slower rate than predicted, you will still lose weight.
Avoid calorie deficit of more than 600 calories per day by ONLY DIETING because you inadvertently slow your metabolism down when you cut calories too much. Use exercise to increase calorie deficit.
You'll find that it's actually fun to journal your calorie deficit as you stay on plan by focusing on eating properly, slightly reducing calorie consumption and increasing exercise. Weight loss (particularly fat loss) will be the by-product of your effort.
Get pen and paper out right now. Write down a 5 meal per day plan based on your gender, 1500 calories for female and 2000 calories for men. You can add or subtract a few hundred calories later to compensate for your particular metabolism. Start your daily deficit journal and give yourself plenty of time to lose fat and inches. You can get rid of those holiday pounds and slim down at the same time.
Article written by Fitness Advisor and Internet Author Dan Burley. Dan has written many articles on fitness and weight loss and is editor to www.DietForum.com
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