Why do people keep saying that losing fat is easy? They claim that you just need to burn more calories than you consume. If that were the case, why are there so many programs to help people lose weight, and why aren't more people successful with dieting?
There's no shortage of tools available for people wanting to drop a few pounds. Whether it's pills, eating programs, exercise programs, or psychotherapy; they all promise achievement in your personal battle. While each of these approaches can be effective, the biggest problem is staying consistent.
How Weight Loss Really Happens
It is true that you must burn more calories than you take in to lose weight. In fact, for every 3,500 calories that you burn beyond what you eat, you'll lose one pound. However, your own personal metabolism determines how quickly you burn calories. Your activity level, the amount of muscle you have, and genetic factors all play a role in your metabolic rate. Since your metabolic rate is unique to you, diets based on caloric restriction need to be flexible to be fruitful.
The Challenge with Food
To lose weight, you can change either side of the equation. You can eat fewer calories, boost your calorie consumption through increased activity, or a combination of both. Notice that the ticket is to consume fewer calories and not necessarily to eat less. It could be that you are eating calorie dense foods such as most fast food and junk food. If this is the case, you may truly be able to eat more if you change what you're eating. For example, vegetables have fewer calories for the same size portion as a hamburger. They also contain fiber, which slows the digestive process making you feel fuller. Another thing to remember is that your body adapts fast to changes, so, restricting your calorie intake too fast will undoubtedly cause you body to start conserving in the form of weight any chance it gets. So, too much caloric restriction is truly counterproductive.
The Challenge with Exercise
To lose the fat in the most efficient way, exercise must be part of your fat loss goal. How much you need and the type that is most fruitful for you is also somewhat unique. Generally, it's best to have a mixture of resistance exercise such as lifting weights and aerobic exercise such as running or cycling. The reason that the type of exercise you need and how much is unique to you is that your body adapts to exercise. Your body is an amazing machine that continuously works to bring your life into balance. When you start exercising, it will change to handle the increased activity more efficiently. Unfortunately, this sometimes causes exerices that worked at one time for you to become less advantageous at burning calories.
What's the Ticket?
Now, that you've seen the challenges with both diet and exercise, you may be wondering exactly how to lose weight. You must do a few things to sustain weight loss. First, you must change your thinking. You have an image of yourself in your brain that you may not even know exists. This is who your conception believes you are, and your intellect will constantly work to maintain this picture. Second, you must change your eating habits over time. You will need to gradually change what you eat to more healthful foods and ultimately fewer calories. Finally, you will need to enhance your activity level. Find exercises that you enjoy and do a little every day or at least every few days and do it consistently.
The formula is simple, but the execution can be hard. Start today and before you know it, you won't even remember the old you.
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