5 Ways to Quickly Lose 10 Pounds
With warm temperatures and trips to the pool, summer can be one of the best times to replenish your motivation to lose weight. Here are the experts’ top five tips to quickly lose 10 pounds.
1. Eat Healthy
Healthy eating is one of the best ways to aid weight loss. This means staying away from packaged and processed foods, and instead focusingon eating fresh foods. “I recommend pairing lean proteins with fiber rich foods,” says Kristen DeAngelis, a Registered Dietician; at the TriHealth Fitness & Health Pavilion and TriHealth Women's Center. She suggests pairing lean proteins such as chicken, fish, eggs, nuts, and beans with fiber-rich vegetables, fruits, and whole grains for all meals and snacks.
For example, a breakfast might look like a veggie-eggscramble with one piece of fresh fruit, followed by an afternoon snack of appleslices with one to two tablespoons of peanut butter. This combination utilizesfresh, whole foods to help promote satiety, blood sugar regulation, and weightloss.
It is important to eat breakfast each morning and havesmall meals every three to four hours to help boost your metabolism and aid inweight loss goals.
2. Control Your Portion Size
Paying attention to the portion ofyour meals is a great way to start your weight loss journey. “Initially, youwant to measure out your portions for the first 7-14 days. When you start to measuretypical foods for a consistent period of time in the initial phase of yourweight loss journey, you will get used to what it looks like and be morecomfortable with what an adequate portion looks like on your plate,” Kristenmentions.
Additionally, it is helpful to planone to two hours out of your week formeal preparation. “I recommend prepping lean proteins, whole grains, andvegetables,” says Kristen. She suggests trying roasted vegetables, cooked brownrice, and quinoa because they are easy to create healthy meals with throughoutthe busy week.
Find recipes for meals that you love, and make a lot of it; prepare fiveto six servings for maximum convenience.
Try some of our healthy recipes:3. Track your Meals
One of the most successful methodsfor losing weight is to be consistent in tracking the foods you eat. Not onlydoes this remind you of what you’re eating, but it helps you realize how muchyou’re eating. “Tracking what you eat is one of the best ways to be accountable for what you’re putting into your body, ” Kristen adds.
4. Stay Hydrated
One important thing that peopleoften forget about is that water helps fill you up. At times you may seemhungry, when you are actually just thirsty. “Water is a component we need inorder to absorb the nutrients in our food; it helps flush out what we don’tneed, and helps absorb what we do need in order for our metabolism to work mostefficiently,” Kristen says.
A good rule of thumb for determining the amount ofwater to drink on a daily basis is to drink half of your body weight inounces. For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, you need to drink 100 ounces of water.
5. Be Active
Increasing your physical activityis one of the easiest ways to generate results on your weight lossjourney. Try to schedule a time each daydedicated to getting your heart rate up. Kristen states, “I recommend using the‘Talk test’ to gauge intensity. For example, if you’re walking with a friendand you can have a regular conversation, you’ll know that you need to pick upthe pace.”
Group fitness is another great way to stay active. “Find a partner and pick a class to attend before or after work. Having a partner that will hold you accountable for going is one of the best ways to lose weight,” Kristen mentions.
For those that may suffer from joint issues, there are plenty of non-weight bearing exercise classes that are great for staying active. “Riding a bicycle and water aerobics are great,” she adds.
If you don’t have much time throughout your day, there are still small things you can do that will make a difference in the results you see, including:
- Park far away from work, your apartment, or the grocery store
- Take the stairs, instead of the elevator
- Get off the bus one stop earlier and walk the rest of the way
- Make it a point to get in any extra movement throughout the day that you can
- Walk over to your co-worker instead of sending them an e-mail
- Take a few laps around the office