How to Find Easy Ways to Lose Weight

Some of the best ways to lose weight involve making simple changes to your eating habits. Learn why losing weight doesn't have to be hard.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A supply of nuts, preferably without salt added
• Snack meats such as low-fat turkey or lean roast beef slices
• Green tea, either loose leaf or in teabags
• Lots of distilled or otherwise purified water

1. If you want to lose weight the easy way, you need to raise your metabolism. The first way to do this is to work more physical movement into your daily routine. If you're out of shape or you hate going to the gym, try doing more household chores throughout the week. This is an easy way to tell your body to start burning fat and send it a message that it's time to lose weight. Remember that spring cleaning you meant to do? Maybe you have some closets or an attic to organize. Doing small, simple household chores is a good way to start getting more active if you're overweight and out of condition. Then you can gradually work yourself up to larger workouts and maybe even joining a gym.

2. Another key way to lose weight is to eat more throughout the day. Many people never eat breakfast, and most folks don't eat much in the late afternoon if they're busy at work or rushing through an end of day commute. But you need to keep your metabolism at an even rate throughout the day if you want to lose weight in an easy, natural way. This means eating small, nutritious snacks throughout the day, beginning with when you first get up in the morning. The trick is to eat small amounts every four to six hours. Some metabolism boosting snacks include nuts (unsalted,) seeds, and meats like low fat beef slices or turkey. Keep a supply of these on hand and nibble on them in small amounts throughout your day. The protein will keep your energy levels up without the "crash" that carbohydrates like muffins, bagels, or candy bars can create.

3. The health benefits of green tea are well known. Green tea can help boost the immune system and regulate insulin levels, which in turn make it easier for you to lose weight while also having lots of energy. Sipping green tea throughout your day can help stave off food cravings and also increase your metabolism. You can always prepare some green tea and carry it with you in a thermos if you want to have it with you while you're traveling. Just remember that green tea has a small amount of caffeine in it, so avoid it at bedtime. Drinking purified or distilled water is also helpful for losing weight. It gives you a full feeling while also hydrating the body and helping those busy fat burning organs to function better.

Tips & Warnings

• If you're out of shape or you haven't exercised in a while, start boosting your metabolism by doing more household chores. Cleaning some windows, organizing closets, or clearing out the attic are good ways to keep your body moving without overly straining yourself. This will give you time to start building up your stamina, and later on you can tackle going for walks or heading to the gym for heavier workouts.
• Remember that while reducing your overall calories per day, you should never starve yourself. Starving yourself will make your body hold onto fat and make it harder to lose weight in the long run. Eating small amounts or "micro meals" throughout the day will keep your metabolic rate up and create a "slow burn," helping you to lose fat naturally.
• Drink plenty of water to lose weight easily and try drinking green tea to keep your metabolism stoked. The health benefits of both are a nice bonus.

[djackman]

on 7/21/2009 good article on losing weight 5* and a recommendation