If you can cut 500 calories each day for seven days, at the end of the week you'll have lost one pound. With a little bit of patience, you could lose as much as 52 pounds in a year using this healthy method. Concentrating on a weight loss goal of 20 or more pounds may be overwhelming and discouraging. Any weight loss is a victory, as long as it is sustained. Set realistic expectations for your weight loss program.
Exercise is crucial to successful weight loss.
To lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. You can increase the calories you burn by increasing the amount that you exercise. In addition to burning calories, daily exercise will condition your heart and lungs, boost your metabolism, and could reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer. This mantra sums up the most effective known strategy to lose weight wisely and keep it off. Elaine Gavalas is an exercise physiologist, nutritionist, and weight management specialist currently earning her Ph.D. from Columbia University, where she also received her master's degree.