How to lose weight successfully - it's about enjoying it because it's the sensible way

How to lose weight successfully. Is this a statement or a question?

It's bit of both actually. We are at the end of June and those outings to the swimming pool and trips to the beach starting to beckon – at least for the northern hemisphere. With that, you may either have realized all of a sudden that you want to be able to don your bathing suit, or been reminded again that you’ve often wanted to improve your physical condition, but have just not quite got down to it seriously enough. Oops!

It may just be this mindset plus some fresh motivation, hopefully from my Website, that puts you on the road to change for the better – and hopefully for good.

And knowing that time is in short supply, may be just the prompt you finally need. The timing is therefore good to put this topic into perspective.

So, whether it’s the former description or the latter which describes your situation, do yourself a favor and take a look at the tips and advice covered in this page. You'll be a lot wiser on how to lose weight successfully.

NOT A QUICK-FIX, BUT AN EFFECTIVE START TO SOMETHING SPECIAL

What follows is a two-week shape-up guide which incorporates some sensible yet effective activities which will stimulate healthy change in your condition – and which will hopefully spur you on to choose the healthy way for the rest of your life. As you will note from other pages on this Site, ‘sensible’ and 'healthy’ do not mean you have to give up living. All-in-all, this is how to lose weight successfully.

Please don’t feel that you have to put your initiative aside yet again because it’s “too late anyway” or “there’s not much which can be done in a couple of weeks.” Don’t be so sure. You will be amazed at how quickly your body can begin responding. Of course, no one person has the same potential for change, or will have the same results as the next individual – but you can begin to create useful change in your fitness and physical condition in hardly any time at all.

No, this is not another miracle diet and I will make no empty promises. I can show you the way to a healthier and better life, but what you achieve is going to depend on you.

AN IMPORTANT CLARIFICATION ABOUT ‘DIETING’

You will see throughout my Site that I only ever mention the word ‘diet’ on rare occasions. This is usually when I am distinguishing between a healthy and enjoyably sustainable lifestyle on the one hand, and short-term crash-dieting (normally resulting in what is commonly known as ‘yo-yo dieting’) on the other (more on this topic here).

HOW MUCH WEIGHT CAN I LOSE IN SUCH A SHORT TIME?

So how much will you lose in these 2 weeks? Good question. The answer depends on a number of things. The most influential aspects will be your gender, current condition, and how closely you follow the plan. But you could probably lose around 2 to 3 kg (4 ½ to 6 ½ lbs). Now wouldn’t that be useful? Just think how far along you could have been if you started at the beginning of summer. Don’t despair, you can make progress rapidly.

Now this may not sound like a lot of weight but consider this one important point – losing a substantial amount of weight in a short period usually entails sacrificing muscle mass along with some fat and water, and you will land squarely in the famine-response trap - meaning you will begin gaining weight again more rapidly than before when you recommence your ‘normal’ eating. Do I risk posing 'how to lose weight successfully' again?

I thought not. It is why the sensible way is the only way. But for starters, this mini plan should give you a taste of what you can steadily achieve by adopting a long-term lifestyle adjustment. Keep in mind that gradual but steady weight loss = successful long-term weight loss.

Basically, this 14-day period will be a useful yardstick for you to see how doable it actually is. Just imagine how well you could be doing in a month or two?

HERE’S THE PLAN

I can already hear you saying, “oh no, I can’t see myself doing this.” Come on guys, give it a try. What do you have to lose – except a few pounds? If you’re really a first-timer or a novice, contact me for advice on your meal preparation – try the workouts in the comfort of your own home or in the neighbourhood. Other than a decent pair of running shoes, the only things you’ll need to buy are a rubber training mat and a set of adjustable dumbbells. If you prefer a ‘lighter’ option, you can acquire a set of elastic training bands.

Follow this mini-sensible physical fitness plan to the tee and you will be surprised at the results you achieve. Hopefully you will enjoy your two-week journey as much as you should, and make it part of your everyday-life. You may just find that you ‘want more’, but for now, let’s focus on the task in hand.

THE EXERCISE PART

• You’ll do 4 simple workout sessions on days 2, 5, 9 and 12.

The Resistance Workouts

Presuming you decide on using 2 ‘calendar’ weeks, it would mean that you will alternate between the upper and lower body resistance workouts on the Tuesday and the Friday in both weeks. These workouts should last between 20 to 30 minutes.

You’re going to perform 3 sets of each of the exercises below, completing 12, 10 and 8 repetitions respectively. Select a poundage (where applicable) which makes it challenging enough for you to execute the repetitions, but not so heavy that you are forced to sacrifice proper form or worse, risk injury. Note that you should precede the 3 working sets by doing a light set as a warm-up.

You will find the useful diagrams and explanations of these exercises (among several others) on this excellent Site. For useful tips on using proper techniques, see the page detailing my Sensible Physical Fitness Program.

Upper body

• Push up
• Bent-over row
• Bicep curl
• Shoulder press

Lower body

• Crunch
• Dumbbell squat
• Calf-raise
• Straight-leg deadlift

The Cardiovascular Workouts

Since you may be a first-timer, it would be unreasonable to expect you to become a cardio pro by the end of this mini program. However, you will make good progress by completing 4 cardio workouts during this period. Although 20 to 30 minutes of cardio activity tagged on immediately after your resistance workouts would be ideal, if you prefer, you could do your 4 cardio sessions on an alternate days.

What forms of cardio can one do? Well, there's a lot to choose from. Brisk or power-walking, running, cycling, swimming, 'aerobics' classes and skipping are the most common types. You can find out a little more about cardiovascular or ‘aerobic exercise’ by taking a look at the page on cardiovascular workouts Challenge yourself, but above all – be sensible about it.

Take your particular condition into account when commencing. Although cardiovascular exercise should be challenging, do not overdo it at the outset.

The eating part

• 6 meals per day (yes, 6 meals).

This plan, and for that matter the entire Sensible Health-Related Fitness Site, departs from the point-of-view of eating regularly throughout the day. Eating this way will enable you to shed pounds successfully, even though you may think you should be starving yourself to lose weight.

How does this work? The principle is elaborated on this page.

Simply put, you want to eat reasonably-sized portions of food regularly throughout the day in order to do 2 things – keep your metabolic activity up (which enables better fat-burning potential) and maintain stable blood sugar levels which will keep you more energized throughout your waking hours. In short, it means eating every 2 ½ to 3 hours.

Needless to say, you should try to consume a variety of ‘quality’ meals which contain good sources of carbohydrate and protein, and which are also rich in fiber and low in saturated fats. Don’t forget your fruit and vegetables. The meals needn’t be boring. You’d be surprised to see that you can actually eat enjoyable food (some examples are set out on this page).

Contrary to common opinion, eating healthily DOES NOT mean having to eat boring and tasteless food.

Well there you have it, 14 days of sensible and healthy living to begin getting you into better shape and on your way to lose weight successfully. Not only will you be able to wear your bathing suit with more confidence, but you will have made the most important step towards and healthier and stronger future.

IN CLOSING

By the way, as pointed out elsewhere on this Site, be sure to have a medical check-up prior to taking on any form of physical exercise, especially if you have not previously engaged in any.

If you are a first-timer, be very cautious during the initial stages of a fitness program. Proceed with care and increase your energy output gradually.

Remember, any questions, comments or feedback – I am just an email away. Connect with me via the contact me page.

Best of luck as you find out how to lose weight successfully!

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