5 Weight-Loss Strategies You Should Absolutely Avoid

These no-good strategies will backfire on you.

This article was written by Jenny Sugar and repurposed with permission from Fitness Moving.

When you're trying to shed pounds, it's important to steer clear of the quick fixes and focus instead on healthy weight-loss strategies. It's not always easy to decide which diet tips you should follow, though, so we've rounded up five common weight-loss techniques you should avoid.

Cutting Entire Food Groups
Giving up entire food groups can lead to a nutritional deficiency—not to mention trigger major cravings for whatever food has been cut. Rather than, say, eliminating all carbohydrates, focus on whole grains and remember to watch out for portion control. Usually it's the extra servings that add to your waistline, not the pasta itself. Keep your pasta calories in check with these tricks, or make these low-carb veggie noodles.

Doing Cardio Workouts All the Time
If you live on the treadmill but never lift a dumbbell, you're missing out on one of the most important pieces of the fitness puzzle. Not only does weight training prevent injury by strengthening the joints, it also builds muscle mass and increases metabolic rate. Bonus: Thanks to a revved-up metabolism, you'll keep burning calories long after you've slipped off your sneakers. New to lifting weights? These tips for starting strength training will help you out.

Exercising on an Empty Stomach
If you regularly exercise without eating first, you should reconsider. When you work out on hungry, research shows that the calories burned come from muscle, not fat. It's important to fuel your body before exercising because you’ll avoid losing muscle and have more energy to push yourself through your workout. Here are some suggestions for easily digestible snacks to eat right before your sweat session.

Missing Out on Sleep
Making time for your workouts can mean less time for sleep, but it's important to get enough snooze time if you're trying to lose weight. You need extra energy to keep up with your exercise routine. Plus, skimping on sleep can affect your body's ability to control appetite. Too little sleep increases ghrelin—an appetite-stimulating hormone—so if you don't get enough shuteye, you may be tempted to overindulge. If shuteye tends to elude you, try these tips for falling asleep faster.

Skipping Meals
Cutting calories is key to weight loss, but missing out on entire meals can wreak havoc on your metabolism. When you wait too long to eat, your body reacts by slowing down your metabolism, which delays your weight-loss efforts. If your schedule is the issue and you're simply too busy to sit down and eat a full meal, store small snacks in your purse to eat throughout the day so that you can keep your metabolism moving. Check out our suggestions for healthy store-bought snacks for when you're on the go.

The Healthy Food That's Giving You Belly Fat

What you need to know about the Wheat Belly diet

Last month, searches for "wheat belly diet" spiked 580 percent, according to information released by Yahoo Search. Wondering what the diet's all about? It's built around the fact that modern wheat—even the stuff found in whole-wheat bread—causes your blood sugar to spike since it has a high glycemic index. In fact, two slices of whole-wheat bread can increase blood sugar more than two tablespoons of pure table sugar.

If you're young and you don't have diabetes, you may not care very much about your blood sugar. But if you're trying to lose weight, it's time to start paying attention: High blood sugar provokes high blood insulin, which leads to belly fat accumulation.

In his bestselling book Wheat Belly (published by WH parent company Rodale), cardiologist William Davis, M.D., explains that eating wheat can not only provoke a fat-storing insulin response, it also stimulates your appetite so you eat more, too. Davis is continually amazed to see "flop-over-the-belt belly fat vanish" after he puts patients on wheat-free diets.

But the health benefits of eliminating wheat don't stop at the scale. Belly or visceral fat triggers inflammation and abnormal inflammatory signals that underlie diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease, says Davis. Other health conditions linked to visceral fat include dementia, rheumatoid arthritis, and colon cancer. Cutting out wheat can also improve the symptoms of acid reflux and irritable bowel syndrome(IBS).

Davis, who has put thousands of patients on a wheat-free diet, admits that "it may seem absurd, even unpatriotic, to demote an iconic dietary staple to the status of public health hazard." The problem is that, after hundreds of years of hybridization—that is, crossing different varieties of the grain together—and more recently, 50 years of genetic modifications, altered plants weren't subjected to safety testing until 2003. Modern wheat has made its way into our food supply without the FDA determining if it's safe for human consumption. And that's a lot to stomach.

Tell us: Would you cut wheat out of your diet if it meant better health?

Buy Wheat Belly to learn more on how wheat affects our bodies and get advice on how to undergo a wheat-ectomy, plus wheat-free recipes and eating plans.

Lean in four weeks meal plan

Shed the fat with this exercise-friendly four-week fat-loss meal plan

Although following a structured exercise plan is vital to achieving your fitness goals, it’s just as important to get your nutrition right. You’ll find it a lot harder to get lean if you’re eating the wrong things – even if you think your diet is healthy because it doesn’t revolve around beer and burgers. That's where this lean in four weeks meal plan comes in. We can guarantee that you will lose weight and become more lean if you follow this plan to the letter, but we realise that's easier said than done. Even if you just use the plan as a guide to get an idea of the types of foods you should be eating, it's still a great weight-loss resource.

Processed foods and refined sugars are relatively recent additions to the human diet, so our bodies tend to store them as fat. Replacing processed carbs and sugars with fresh vegetables, healthy fats and animal proteins will help you to shed fat while maintaining muscle. When you're trying to lose weight, it's also essential that you choose foods that are rich in fibre, to keep you feeling full, and high in antioxidants and nutrients to regulate your blood sugar levels.

As well as following those simple principles, this weekly meal plan – devised by trainer Sion Colenso – cuts your daily calorie intake to around 1,800 calories, helping you to remove all the excess flab from your frame. It’s designed to get you lean in just four weeks, while giving you all the nutrition and energy you need to train hard, too.

Monday

Breakfast: 45g oats with 300ml skimmed milk and 1tsp honey; 200ml apple juice.
Snack: 120g low-fat yoghurt with blueberries and honey.
Lunch: Grilled chicken (1 chicken breast) salad sandwich on wholemeal bread.
Snack: Smoothie – blend 25g whey protein, 80g raspberries, 80g blueberries, 50g blackberries and water.
Dinner: 120g tuna steak with stir-fried broccoli, mushrooms, green beans, sesame seeds and oil; 70g brown rice.
Snack: 250ml skimmed milk.
Daily total: 1,835 calories, 136g protein, 229g carbs, 33g fat

Tuesday

Breakfast: Smoothie – blend 25g whey protein, 300ml skimmed milk, 100g strawberries and a banana.
Snack: 120g low-fat yoghurt, blueberries and honey.
Lunch: Tuna sandwich on wholemeal bread; 200ml skimmed milk.
Snack: Mixed nuts, raisins and cranberries.
Dinner: 100g chicken, bacon and avocado salad.
Snack: 1 apple with 2tbsp natural peanut butter.
Daily total: 1,802 calories, 131g protein, 219g carbs, 37g fat

Wednesday

Breakfast: Smoothie – blend 25g whey protein, 300ml skimmed milk, 100g strawberries and a banana.
Snack: 90g mackerel on 1 slice of wholemeal toast.
Lunch: 1 apple; chicken salad sandwich on wholemeal bread.
Snack: 1 banana.
Dinner: 120g fillet steak with spinach and 2 grilled tomatoes.
Snack: 100g low-fat cottage cheese and pineapple.
Daily total: 1,821 calories, 138g protein, 222g carbs, 35g fat

Thursday

Breakfast: 4 scrambled egg whites on 2 slices of wholemeal toast.
Snack: 1 low-fat yoghurt with blueberries and a handful of oats and honey.
Lunch: Smoothie – blend 25g whey protein, 80g raspberries, 80g blueberries, 50g blackberries and water; 30g brazil nuts.
Snack: 100g low-fat cottage cheese and pineapple.
Dinner: Tuna niçoise salad (100g tuna, mixed salad leaves, plum tomatoes, a red pepper and 4 new potatoes).
Snack: 250ml skimmed milk.
Daily total: 1,835 calories, 136g protein, 229g carbs, 33g fat

Friday

Breakfast: 45g oats with 300ml skimmed milk and 1tsp honey.
Snack: 10 radishes with balsamic vinaigrette.
Lunch: 1 can of tuna with beetroot; 1 low-fat yoghurt.
Snack: Smoothie – blend 25g whey protein, 80g raspberries, 80g blueberries and 50g blackberries with water.
Dinner: 120g barbecue chicken kebab with peppers and 70g brown rice.
Snack: 100g cottage cheese; grapes.
Daily total: 1,808 calories, 133g protein, 219g carbs, 34g fat

Saturday

Breakfast: 2-egg omelette with cheese.
Snack: Smoothie: blend 25g protein, 1 apple, 50g blueberries, 50g blackberries and a banana with water.
Lunch: 90g sardines on 1 slice of wholemeal toast.
Snack: 150g raw carrots and hummus.
Dinner: 100g grilled salmon with green beans, asparagus and 70g brown rice.
Snack: 200ml skimmed milk.
Daily total: 1,822 calories, 135g protein, 221g carbs, 36g fat

Sunday

Breakfast: 4 scrambled egg whites on 2 slices of wholemeal toast; 1 grapefruit.
Snack: Smoothie – blend 25g protein, 300ml skimmed milk, 50g blueberries, 50g blackberries and a banana.
Lunch: Tuna sandwich on wholemeal bread; 1 pear.
Snack: Mixed nuts and fruit bar.
Dinner: 120g fillet steak with 1 small jacket potato, spinach and 1 grilled tomato.
Snack: 1 apple with 2tbsp natural peanut butter.
Daily total: 1,840 calories, 140g protein, 228g carbs, 39g fat

5 nutritional tips to help burn fat 

Drink water and lots of it

Water is important in absolutely all aspects of fitness and nutrition and it’s surprising to a lot of people how key it is in burning fat. H20 is the medium in which most cellular activities occur, this includes the transport and burning of fat. In addition to this, consuming a lot of calorie-free water can actually make you feel full meaning that you’re less likely to start snacking. Try to drink between 2 and 3 litres of water per day, it sounds like a lot but it’s a genuine difference maker.

Reduce your intake of starchy carbs

Consuming a lot of starchy foods, like pasta, bread and rice (especially all at one) provides the body with more than it needs for glycogen stores and energy, anything that is left over will be stored up as fat. Researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (USA) revealed that when 69 overweight people were given a diet with a modest reduction in carbohydrates for eight weeks, they had 11 percent less deep abdominal fat than those given a lower-fat diet. Further, during a second eight-week period in which calories were reduced by 1,000 each day, those on the lower-carb diet lost 4 percent more total body fat.

Get your 5-a-day

It’s drilled into our head on a daily basis but it is an important part of staying healthy and burning fat. Vegetables are laced with nutrients, packing maximum nutritional value into minimal calories, leaving you more full on less calories. Try to consume five servings a day of vegetables (not including fruit). It might sound like a lot but if you start working them into sandwiches, snacks and even junk food like burgers and pizza you can hit your quote with ease. 

Don't become overly reliant on fat burners 

While fat burners do help to reduce body fat they will not counteract poor eating habits. If you are taking any fat burning supplements it doesn't mean that you can then hit the kebab shop three times a week, you still have to watch what you eat and exercise. Unfortunately fat burners are not magcal pills that shed the calories for you, they are to be used alongside a disciplined exercise and nutritional regime. 

Limit your consumption of sugar 

Indeed, taking in simple carbs (sugars) prior to training does replenish liver glycogen stores and muscle, but too much sugar consumed at other times of the day will be stored up as fat. Of course we all need to satisfy our sweet tooth occasionally, sometimes a doughnut just hits the spot, but moderation is key, so limiting your intake of sugar to fresh fruit is advised most of the time. Also, remember the amount of sugar that can be found in certain beverages like fruit juice, that's a sneaky one. Try to replace sugary drinks with water, coffee or tea (with no added sugar...obviously.) 

Is Fast Weight Loss a Good Idea?

Working on weight loss? Then you probably want results -- fast. 

Let me save you some time: skip the fad diets. Their results don't last. And you have healthier options you can start on -- today!

You can safely lose 3 or more pounds a week at home with a healthy diet and lots of exercise, says weight loss counselor Katherine Tallmadge, RD.

How to Lose Weight Fast

If you burn 500 more calories than you eat every day for a week, you should lose about 1-2 pounds.

If you want to lose weight faster, you'll need to eat less and exercise more.
 

For instance, if you take in 1,050 to 1,200 calories a day, and exercise for one hour per day, you could lose 3-5 pounds in the first week, or more if you weigh more than 250 pounds. It's very important not to cut calories any further -- that's dangerous.
 

Limiting salt and starches may also mean losing more weight at first -- but that's mostly fluids, not fat.

"When you reduce sodium and cut starches, you reduce fluids and fluid retention, which can result in up to 5 pounds of fluid loss when you get started," says Michael Dansinger, MD, of NBC's The Biggest Loser show.

Diets for Fast Weight Loss

Dansinger recommends eating a diet that minimizes starches, added sugars, and animal fat from meat and dairy foods. For rapid weight loss, he recommends focusing  on fruits, veggies, egg whites, soy products, skinless poultry breasts, fish, shellfish, nonfat dairy foods, and 95% lean meat.

Here are more tips from Dawn Jackson Blatner, RD, author of The Flexitarian Diet :

• Eat vegetables to help you feel full.
• Drink plenty of water.
• Get tempting foods out of your home.
• Stay busy -- you don't want to eat just because you're bored.
• Eat only from a plate, while seated at a table. No grazing in front of the 'fridge.
• Don't skip meals. 

Keeping a food journal -- writing down everything you eat -- can also help you stay on track.

"Even if you write it down on a napkin and end up throwing it away, the act of writing it down is about being accountable to yourself and is a very effective tool for weight loss," says Bonnie Taub Dix, MA, RD, author of Read It Before You Eat It .
 

Besides jotting down what you ate, and when, you might also want to note how you were feeling right before you ate it. Were you angry, sad, or bored? We often focus so much on foods and calories, but our emotions are a huge part of our eating habits.

If you see a persistent pattern in your emotional eating, please consider talking to a counselor about it. They can be a big help in finding other ways to handle your feelings.
 
 

Exercise to Lose Weight

Exercise to Lose Weight

What kind of exercise -- and how much -- is best when you're trying to lose weight?

By Barbara Russi Sarnataro

WebMD Weight Loss Clinic-Feature

Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

If someone told you right now what the absolute best exercise to lose weight was, would you do it? You might when you read this. Drum roll, please!

The best exercise to lose weight is: "the exercise you'll do," says Timothy Church, MD, MPH, PhD, a professor at Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, La.

Other experts interviewed by WebMD said much the same thing about weight loss workouts.

"The two things that stop people from losing weight with exercise are either boredom or injury," says physical therapist and strength and conditioning specialist Ben Quist, PhD, NSCA.

 The truth is that weight loss is about creating a calorie deficit -- in other words, burning more calories than you take in. So, they say, while running at an 8-minute-mile pace might be a great calorie burner, if you're not going to do it, it's not going to help you. Instead, start with something you can do, like walking or working out on an elliptical machine or exercise bike.

The Beef on Strength Training

In all cases, however, you'll burn more calories with cardio (aerobic) exercise than with strength or resistance training.

"Strength training itself will not lead to an appreciable amount of weight loss because it just doesn't burn enough calories," says Glenn Gaesser, PhD, FACSM, kinesiology professor and department head at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

But what about all that talk that more muscle mass equates to more calories burned, even when you're at rest?

"It's a myth. It's not going to happen," says Gaesser.

The only successful studies to show a significant calorie burn following a weight-lifting workout (afterburn) were done with serious lifters, working out for 60 to 90 minutes at a time and lifting as much as they could on every set.

In fact, Gaesser says, at best, gaining one pound of muscle will help you burn 5 to 10 extra calories a day. You could do that chewing gum.

That's not to say that strength training isn't important for the overall health of the body. But when it comes to burning the most calories, go for cardiovascular exercise. And vary the intensity, says Quist.

"Do aerobic base-building workouts," he says, where you alternate between moderate and higher intensity, either within the same workout or on alternate days.

Quist also recommends cross-training -- that is, doing a range of different activities during your workouts. Not only does this help you keep from getting bored, it's better for your body. Doing different activities recruits different muscle groups. You're also less likely to develop an injury, says Quist, since doing the same thing day after day creates wear patterns on your joints.

Get creative, says Gaesser, whose graduate students teach an entire class on novel ways to burn calories. For example, he says, if you're a golfer, ditch the cart and walk with your clubs. You'll do what you love -- and burn more calories.

how to exercise to lose weight

7. Walking

 Calories Burnt: 360 cals/hr

The easiest exercise, brisk walking is a great cardio workout and will also help to tone your legs, stomach and hips. Sprinting, walking across hills or walking uphill will add to the amount of calories burnt, and walking tends to be very easy to fit into daily life. Just walking to the train station has made me so much fitter, and it really wakes me up going for a brisk walk in the morning. Check out Hate Running? Get Fit Walking! for the detailed walking workout!

8. Dancing
Calories Burnt: 600/800 cal/hr
This targets your entire body, and is an excellent work out. In addition to being one of the top exercises to lose weight, it's also one of the most fun! I frequently put a music channel on and dance around. In addition to burning calories I find that it's a great stress reliever! Just make sure you stay active, and try and keep going for at least an hour! If you want to learn some new sexy moves while you are at it, you might want to check out Dancing DVDs reviewed in this post: Do Your Dance Moves Need A Makeover? You can also take a peek at 8 Kinds of Dance that Help You Lose Weight!
 

 9. Exercise DVDs

Calories Burnt: 300/500 cals/hr
While there are a lot of these, some exercise DVDs do actually help you to lose weight and tone up. Find a high energy one, and try and do it once a day. You'll burn calories, tone up and feel much fitter. My personal favourite is "Pump It Up", because the music keeps me motivated!