| How to lose weight, by me, someone who has lost 30 pounds and kept it off: Step 1: Count every calorie you consume. If you don't know the exact amount of a dish, do your best. Apps like MyFitnessPal make this easier. Step 2: Limit that amount to 1500 calories per day. Step 3: Weigh yourself everyday first thing in the morning, and only look at rolling 7 day averages at least. Daily fluctuations don't matter. Step 4: After 2 weeks, see how much you've lost (if any). If you've lost more than 1% of your body weight per week, raise that 1500 number. If you've lost less than 1% per week, lower that 1500 number. Repeat until satisfied! How can you make this easier? 1. Eat things that are filling with fewer calories. Think vegetables and protein. Stay away from things that aren't filling and have a lot of calories. Think candy bars. Water helps too, as the article says. 2. Walk/run. This will burn calories efficiently and if you attach a fit bit to it, you can incorporate the calories burned into your 1500 number above. Weight lifting doesn't burn many calories, though it's nice for your overall health of course. This overall strategy lets you drink a beer if you want, or have that piece of cake. Just count every calorie and you're good to go. Even if you don't hit the number every day, log it anyway as a habit. |
The only think I'd change is that starting with only 1500 calories a day might not make sense, it really depends on your starting weight / calorie consumption. Someone regularly consuming 3500 calories will have a really hard time going down to 1500, plus they'd lose way more muscle mass than they otherwise could.
I'd advise tracking calories for a week, then just eating 500 calories lower for two weeks as a start.