But losing weight is not instant, as if you wished on a magic lamp. While we live in a culture where we expect quick results, like fast food that's ready in five minutes, losing 10 pounds doesn't fit in this category.
Before you start a weight loss plan, you have to prepare yourself mentally for the challenge. Remember that losing 10 pounds won't happen overnight. And give yourself time to adjust to the new you, especially if you've tried to lose weight in the past and failed.
First off, carefully inspect your eating habits. For instance, do you seem to eat more when dining with company than when you're alone? Perhaps you and your spouse have a routine where you relieve stress by drinking hot cocoa every morning. Or, do you end up eating those delectable cupcakes you baked for the school sale.
Next, based on your current eating habits, decide on specific changes you can make. Maybe you can forget about baking for the school sale and find non-food ways to participate in fundraising. And you can switch to drinking green tea every morning instead of hot cocoa. Plus, if being a dinner guest puts pressure on you to overeat, you can politely leave before dessert or try small amounts of each course to avoid offending the host.
Once you have ideas for new eating habits, make up a day-to-day meal plan. For dining at restaurants and at friends' homes, continue to stick to your routine as much as possible. Do your best to stay within limits and soon, you will thrive on controlled eating habits.
You should also look at your exercise routine to help you lose 10 pounds. Maybe you used to be extremely active, but now spend most of your time sitting, whether at home or at work.
Decide on exercise goals, beginning with the length of time you can devote. "I will exercise 1 hour a day," sounds great, if you don't have too many other commitments. However, if you're busy, you may need to adjust to a realistic goal: "I will exercise 30 minutes a day," may be better.
You can also vary the length of time you exercise to lose 10 pounds. For instance, you have bigger chunks of time during the weekend. Your goals could be to exercise 30 minutes during the weekdays and 1 hour on weekends.
When you exercise also matters. Maybe you're an early riser and you have free time before you take the kids to school and head to your job. Then you could try to add exercise to your morning routine. On the other hand, you might barely get out of bed and arrive almost late for work. Yet you have time to spare after work, so you would try an evening exercise routine.
Next, we come to how you will exercise. Since most of us dread this word, you have to set your mind to view exercise as playing or having fun, not as a burden. And finding activities you enjoy turns exercise into fun. Whether you give rollerblading a try, or you join a bicycling club, search out and find "exercises" that you like.
After you know what exercises you will use, get a daily planner and write down specific exercises, the time you will start, and how long you will exercise. For instance, on May 30, 9 a.m., you write, "Ride bicycle, for 30 minutes." As you can see, a detailed exercise routine keeps you from saying, "I don't have time to exercise."
You've probably made an observation- sticking to a routine with your exercise and eating habits makes losing 10 pounds easier. But, the routine can only help you if you commit yourself...so use determination to succeed and then you really will be successful in losing 10 pounds.
As reported in the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations recently published Calories Count - Report of the Working Group on Obesity, people who are overweight is a serious public health problem in the United States. Since the late 1980s, adult obesity has steadily and substantially increased in the United States. Today, 64 percent of all Americans weigh too much and over 30 percent are obese; in 1988 through 1992, fewer than 56 percent were overweight and fewer than 23 percent of American adults were obese.
The trends for children are even more worrisome. Recent research by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that 15 percent of children and adolescents aged 6 to 19 are overweight - double the rate of two decades ago. As Americans get heavier, their health suffers. Overweight and obesity increase the risk for coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers. According to some estimates, at least 400,000 deaths each year may be attributed to obesity.
What people must know is that you can improve your health quickly with just a small amount of weight loss. We know that physical activity along with reduced calorie consumption can lead to the 5 to 10 percent weight loss necessary to achieve remission of the obesity-associated complications, says William Dietz, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Most doctors agree, losing one to two pounds a week is safe and recommended by most doctors for most people. This breaks down to 250 to 1,000 calories per day. You can achieve this easily if you follow some or all of the following guidelines :
1. Use skim milk instead of whole milk or cream in your coffee. 2. Eat low fat yogurt instead of ice cream. 3. Eat more bright colored (green, yellow, orange, red) fruits and vegetables. 4. Eat more lean fish, chicken, or turkey and cut down on red meats. 5. Eat whole wheat or multigrain bread, instead of white bread. 6. Use a sugar replacement instead of sugar (avoid Aspartame). 7. Drink water instead of soft drinks. 8. When you eat out, avoid fried foods. 9. Walk or do similar exercises (e.g. Golf, Tennis) at least 20 minutes a day.
If you do even just a couple of these every day for the next month, you will feel much better and you will lose weight.
And if you are concerned about getting hungry all the time, or losing your energy, try taking a safe appetite suppressant, like Hoodia Balance. This supplement is South African Hoodia from the Kalahari Desert, which makes it more effective. This type is a non-prescription medication and has been tested for years to be safe for most people. It can control your appetite, yet increase your metabolism and energy.
However, do not take any herbal supplement without checking with your Doctor first, if you are on any prescription medications, due to possible interactions between the two, or if you have a special medical condition.
If you follow these simple steps, you will surely reach your weight loss goals and become a much happier, healthier, and oh yes, lighter person.
Both Ryan Cote & Ken Black are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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