How Can a Teenager Lose Weight Fast & Easy?

If you're an overweight teenager, you may want to make some changes to your lifestyle to lose weight and keep it off for life. You should be wary of fad diets that promise quick weight loss. If you eat less than 1200 calories per day, it can slow down your metabolism, which can cause weight problems for your whole life. Instead, try to make healthy choices in your life to promote a healthy body. Expect to lose about one to two pounds per week, a rate which doctors say is healthiest.

Healthy Food Choices

• The food choices that you make play a very important role in your weight. Whenever possible, you should make a healthy choice--fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean proteins. Start your day by eating a healthy breakfast. If you need something on-the-go, try a smoothie or an egg sandwich on a whole wheat English muffin.

  Think about bringing your lunch to school. When the lunches cooked at school, you cannot control what goes into them. This means that they may have added fat and sugar that you don't need. However, with your own lunch, you make all of the choices as to what is in it. You can use a light mayonnaise on your sandwich and choose healthy fruits as a dessert. Lunch doesn't have to consist of a sandwich, though. You can purchase a lunch container that keeps meals hot and bring along something warm and filling, like chili or last night's leftovers.

  Ask your parents if you can go along to the grocery store. This gives you more control over what foods your parents buy. If your parents are the type who buy a lot of junk food, perhaps you could be the one who encourages them to become healthier.

Exercise Routines

• Your activity level plays another crucial part in your weight. The more you exercise, the more quickly you will lose weight. Start by simply going for a walk after school or in the evening. Be sure to walk along at a quick pace to bring your heart rate up to burn more calories.

  You should also consider some form of strength training, as more muscle will help you look slimmer and burn more calories. Try exercise videos that include a strength training section. These will often use small dumbbells or resistance bands, which you will need to purchase. If you don't have the money for that, you can do body weight exercises, which use your body's weight to build muscles. These exercises include squats, lunges and push ups.