If you're like many dieters, you don't mind changing your eating habits and you aren't even bothered by the workouts you need to do to slim down. But you'd like to lose weight faster. Waiting for weeks to see results on the scale is not fun.
So why not supercharge your weight loss plan? There are simple changes you can make to your daily routine and to the eating habits that will help you eat less, burn more calories and keep your weight loss program on track. And with your diet in hyperdrive, you'll get the results you want and deserve in less time.
1- Cut Meals in Half
No time to count calories? No problem! Just cut most of your meals and snacks in half. You'll eat less and slim down quickly. Very often meal items are too big anyway. By cutting them in half, you're probably serving yourself the correct portion sizes for weight loss.
And don't forget about your drinks. You can cut those in half too. Don't worry about reducing no-calorie drinks like water and black coffee, but go ahead and pour out half of your creamy lattes, sports drinks and other drinks that are bad for your diet.
2- Ban Juice in Smoothies
Are you a fan of smoothies? A healthy low-calorie fruit or vegetable smoothie can be a good meal substitute or mid-day snack. Many dieters use them to lose weight. But they'll help you lose weight faster if you don't use juice when you make them.
Fruit juices add calories and sugar to your blended drinks. Unfortunately, juice doesn't provide a lot of benefits. Whole fruit, however, is better for your diet. You'll get flavor, texture and the benefit of important nutrients when you add whole fruit. And the fiber in whole fruit helps you to eat less and slim down.
So how do you blend your creamy drink without juice? Just add water and a little bit of ice. You won't miss the juice, and your body will thank you for leaving the calories behind.
3- Multitask During Workouts
The best weight loss program should include exercise. Cardio workouts to burn fat, stretching exercises to boost flexibility and strength training to shape a tight body are all important. But who has time to do all that work?
With a little bit of gym savvy, you can do it all at the same time. When you're at the health club, skip the weight training machines and the cardio equipment. Instead, head to the gym floor and do full body weight exercises instead. Movements like the walking lunge increase your heart rate to burn fat, tighten and tone the lower body and even increase the range of motion in your hips and thighs.
When you don't waste time moving from machine to machine, you can do a few extra exercise and burn more fat in less time. Body weight exercises are also easy to do at home. So there's never a reason to skip your workout if you can't get to the gym.
4- Add Low-Calorie Volume to Every Meal
If you cut your meal in half to supercharge your diet, your dinner plate may look empty. You're not likely to feel satisfied with a meal that looks small. Boost the volume on your plate with no-calorie or low-calorie foods.
Keep fresh lettuce in the fridge and use it to increase the size of your sandwich, salad or tacos. Making a casserole? Keep frozen vegetables on hand and add chopped carrots peas or corn to the mix. You can even make rice and grains more substantial by adding onions and peppers.
Boosting volume with veggies will add very few calories to your meal but can help to provide greater meal satisfaction and enjoyment. When you feel full and happy, you're likely to eat less in the hours after your meal.
5- Just Say No to the Elevator
Stair climbing burns mega calories. It's also a quick and efficient way to get a great looking backside and leaner legs. But you may not want to do a complete stair climbing workout every day.
Instead, just climb a few flights of stairs here and there throughout your normal daily activities. Skip the elevator at work, avoid the escalator at the mall and make the extra effort when you're at home. You burn almost 10 calories per minute when you hike up the stairs. Your total number might reach a hundred calories or more throughout the day. This simple trick could help you to lose an extra half pound or even an extra pound each week.
6- Go Sober
You may not want to give up alcohol completely, but if you can ban booze for a few weeks, you'll notice a difference on the scale. There are many different weight loss benefits that you'll enjoy if you go sober.
First, if you drink water instead of wine at happy hours and other festive events, you'll significantly decrease your calorie intake. A single glass of wine provides about 125 calories or more. Cocktails can provide 200 or more.
Next, you'll also be less likely to munch on high-fat and high-calorie foods if you avoid alcohol. And lastly, you're more likely to keep your workout plan on track if you don't have to deal with a morning-after headache and exhaustion. Then end result? Fewer diet slip-ups and faster weight loss results.
7- Start Each Meal With Broth
Before you eat lunch or dinner, enjoy a cup of warm, clear broth. Chicken stock, vegetable broth and even beef are popular options. These comforting soups provide very few calories, and they help you to eat less in a few different ways.
First, they fill you up, so you don't want to eat as much. And the warm broth also slows down the eating process. If you learn to eat more slowly, you're more likely to feel and acknowledge the signs of fullness so that you stop eating when you need to.
8- Wear a Belt
You may have heard of waist training to lose weight. Or perhaps you're familiar with the corset diet, made popular by several Hollywood celebs. These diets work for some women because a tight corset or waist trainer makes it uncomfortable to overeat. So you stick to your diet and slim down faster.
But you don't need to buy an expensive (and often uncomfortable) garment to take advantage of this trick. Simply wear a belt to get the same effect. Make sure the belt you choose fits snugly around your waist, rather than your hips. Then as you eat, the pressure in your midsection will remind you to slow down.
9- Drink More Water
It's not uncommon to think you're hungry when your body actually needs water, not food. Signs of thirst and hunger can easily get confused. The result is that you might eat more food and consume extra calories when your body is thirsty.
You can avoid this problem and lose weight faster if you stay hydrated. Fill a few bottles with water and keep them in the front of your well-stocked refrigerator. That way you'll see them right away when you open the door to graze for food. Then, before you eat a meal or grab a snack, drink a full 6-8 ounces. You may decide that you don't need to eat after all.