Light & Easy Weight Loss Program

At the base of every good weight loss program is the simple principle that if you expend more calories than you take in over time, you will lose weight. Unfortunately, many people have trouble finding a program that they can stick to for a long enough time to see results. A light and easy, personalized program that can be maintained will help you shed pounds and you will be more likely to keep the weight off.

The Numbers

• One pound is equivalent to about 3,500 calories, meaning that if you have gained a pound, it is because you ate 3,500 calories that you failed to expend through physical activity such as exercise. In order to lose weight, you must reverse this effect, and expend 3,500 more calories than you take in. This will cause your body to use calories stored in fat cells as energy. A safe goal is to expend just 500 to 1,000 more calories each day than you take in, allowing you to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week.

Diet

• Changing your diet is the only way to reduce your caloric intake if you have been eating more calories than you can burn. This does not necessarily mean "going on a diet," but rather, watching what you eat. Keep in mind that the average person burns 2,000 calories a day doing normal activities. If you don't plan on exercising, this means you need to adjust how much or what you are eating so that you only take in 1,500 calories or less each day.

Diet Options

• Food journals can help you keep track of what you eat, and online food journals that add up your calories for you are available at sites like those found in the Resources. You can still eat high-calorie foods, but eating smaller portions of them will lower your total caloric intake. Substituting high-calorie snacks and foods with low-calorie (or no-calorie) versions (such as fat-free yogurt, cheese, mayonnaise, and diet sodas) helps you lower your caloric intake without feeling like you are "on a diet."

Exercise

• Your program will not only be more effective if you exercise, but you will also have the added health benefits that physical activity offers as well as be able to eat more than 1,500 calories each day, if you exercise enough. Thirty minutes of exercise each day is ideal, with increasing intensity as you get used to physical activity to keep your body challenged and burning the most calories it can. Remember, you want to burn at least 500 more calories than you take in each day.

Exercise Motivation

• Often, this is the point where people lose the feeling that their weight loss program is "light and easy." It is difficult to stay motivated to exercise in our increasingly busy world, especially when you are told to increase intensity as you get comfortable with your routine. To stay motivated, recruit a friend to join you and set days and times you will exercise. Keep an activity journal and write about your progress, and use online calorie burn estimate calculators to count how many calories you burn each day in addition to your base of 2,000.