When it comes to weight loss, we generally want it as quickly as possible. And that’s a good thing because research does suggest that initial weight loss helps to predict long term weight loss success. So, when we see significant changes on the scales it motivates us, and helps to keep focus on weight loss goals.
So, how do you drop weight quickly, but also safely, you ask? Fret not, read on for 5 simple ways to lose weight quickly and safely.
1. Eat in sync with your circadian rhythm
The first thing you need to remember is that fluid is your friend. All you need to do is have a glass of water before a meal. It is an old trick, but it works by helping the stomachs receptors to trigger a feeling of ‘fullness sooner’.
Next, focus on plate size. It has been shown that eating off smaller plates encourages you to eat much more slowly, savour your food and eat less overall.
And finally, time your meals and eat in sync with your circadian rhythm. As our metabolism has adapted to daytime food and night time sleep, by simply avoiding snacking and eating at night with behavioural strategies such as ‘closing the kitchen’ after dinner and brushing your teeth after eating you significantly reduce calorie intake, which in turn can support weight losses of 1 to 3 pounds a week.
2. Try intermittent fasting
Intermittent fasting has a strong and growing research base to support its use in weight control. Women do extremely well when they skip breakfast or dinner and prolong their overnight fast, which means they eat over a shorter time of the day – usually about eight hours, which naturally reduces calorie intake.
The added benefit is that when you do eat, you can eat your normal diet, so no calorie-counting or cutting out food groups like many fad diets. It becomes an easy diet approach to adhere to long term.
3. Shift the focus to veggies
There are two key areas to focus on when the goal is fast weight loss.
It may sound simple, but if you shift the focus of each meal to have a vegetable base (such as a breakfast bowl with lots of veggies and eggs, a salad or soup for lunch and ½ a plate of veggies or salad with dinner), instantly you reduce calorie intake by as much as 300 calories a day.
That simple change in which you are eating more but focusing on lower calorie foods will result in at least 2 pounds a week weight loss.
The other important area we do not often think about is reducing salt intake. With diets that contain a lot of processed foods, so too do they contain a lot of salt. When you actively limit your overall salt intake to 2000mg a day or even less, again you will drop at least a pound pretty quickly.
4. Swapping heavier for lighter
The ‘low residue diet’ can help when the goal is getting a flat belly, fast. All you need to do is cut right back on your dietary fibre intake for two to three days and swap heavier foods such as bread, pasta and legumes for lighter options such as tinned fruit, yoghurt, egg whites, lean meat, white rice, peeled and cooked vegetables.
This swap helps to reduce the bulk of food you have consumed and result in a 3 to 7 pounds weight loss, as there is less food digesting in the large intestine. And while this is not ideal for health long-term, it is an effective strategy.
Also, limiting salt is extremely important to shed water weight. Most processed foods contain added salts. So sticking to light whole foods that are also rich in potassium and water – like celery, and all salad veggies, will help to strip any extra fluid pounds quickly.
5. Adjust the quantities
Incorporating small daily serves of a person’s ‘soul food’, such as chocolate will result in better weight loss as they are more likely to be satisfied with the foods they are eating – making it less likely they will ‘break their diet’ and binge eat.
Small frequent meals help to ensure that my clients do not get overly hungry and binge eat; loading up on vegetables in turn helps to keep the calories controlled, supporting weight loss. It is about eating more of the low-calorie foods overall, and complimenting the diet with controlled amounts of what they love to eat.