5 Best Weight Loss Tips to Follow in 2023

Considering weight loss can promote a lot of health benefits. Lower blood sugar, healthier joints and bones, lower cholesterol, and reduced stress on the heart, to name a few. Get to know the best weight loss tips of 2023.

People who aim for weight loss often want quick results. But weight is not a program, it is also not completely about diet. It is a lifestyle that is a blend of regular exercising and eating habits paired with other healthy tips. Losing weight steadily will offer better results in the long term.

If you want to know how to lose weight fast, it is important to understand that this requires a lot of commitment and patience. If you are ready to get started, below is everything you need to know on the best weight loss tips for 2023.

Did you know? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, obesity and weight gain have increased to more than 35% in 2021.

Regular physical exercise, diet modification, fasting, detoxing, and sleep are 5 different ways of losing weight. Before taking on a weight loss regime, it is very important to get a complete health check-up done. This will come in very handy to understand which options suit you best.

Best weight loss tips to lose weight fast

Many people opt for different options like using supplements, going for diet plans, or making a replacement to their everyday diet, to lose weight. Though there is no scientific evidence for all these, there are still some strategies that show great results and impact your weight management.

Let us know what effective techniques you can use towards better weight management.

Understand calories

Calories refer to the energy we take in through consuming food or drinks. If we take more calories than required, our body stores them as fats.

If this continues for long, we put on excess weight. For a healthy body weight an average male requires 2500 calories per day and a female requires 2000 calories. These values greatly depend on factors like body size, age and physical activity.

Remember one important thing. Reducing calorie intake is vital, but that does not mean that you abruptly cut on food intake. This might lead to further health complications and will sometimes prove fatal.

How much to reduce calories for weight loss?

If you are considering cutting on calorie intake, it is always wise to consult a dietician or a nutritionist. Based on different factors like your current body weight, sex, age and overall health condition, they can suggest you an optimized plan.

Restricting the amount of fats and carbs is one of the best ways to start. This does not mean that you completely avoid them.

A diet that is rich in proteins is the fastest way of losing weight because it reduces appetite, burns more calories, decreases food cravings, and promotes digestion.

Healthy foods to lose weight

If your focus is on losing weight in a healthy and sustained way, there are certain foods that can help you reach your goal faster. These foods are scientifically backed and help you burn body fat faster, if you consume them in a controlled manner.

Plant-based diet

“Vegetarianism is becoming very popular as it aids in weight loss and reduces the risk of many chronic diseases”, finds a research ^[1]National Library of Medicine: Nutritional Update for Physicians: Plant-Based Diets . Although, if you are eating highly processed foods and refined carbs, losing weight can become difficult even with a vegetarian diet.

What is a vegetarian diet?

A vegetarian diet in true sense means that you eliminate poultry, fish and meat from your food.

This diet consists of Vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, seeds, and nuts. These foods are rich in fiber and packed with micronutrients; they are also comparatively less in fats than animal foods.

Studies ^[2]PubMed: Low-Calorie Vegetarian Versus Mediterranean Diets for Reducing Body Weight and Improving Cardiovascular Risk Profile: CARDIVEG Study (Cardiovascular Prevention With Vegetarian Diet) show that a vegetarian diet is one of the best weight loss tips for losing weight.

Tips to follow when you are on a vegetarian diet

• When eating, 50 to 60 percent of your plate should be filled with non-starchy veggies like leafy greens, broccoli, mushrooms, cauliflower, and zucchini. These vegetables make you full while decreasing your intake of calories.
• Consider including high protein food like eggs, tofu, beans, lentils, seeds and nuts in every meal and snack.
• Instead of going for high sugary beverages, go for unprocessed foods like whole fruits and veggies as they do not carry unnecessary calories.
• It is good to avoid food with simple starch, high processed foods and frozen meals as they carry added sugar, unhealthy additives and extra salt.

Foods to avoid

Freezer meals, burgers, frozen desserts, white pasta, crackers, white bread, bagels, candies, pastries, sodas, cookies, sweet tea and table sugar.

Get physically active

A study ^[3]National Library of Medicine: Exercise Training and Energy Expenditure following Weight Loss reveals that exercising is very effective in promoting weight loss. Many people think they can lose weight without exercise, but this is not always the case. There are a variety of workouts that promote weight loss. Cardio workouts and lifting weights offer very good benefits. Both exercises burn a lot of calories and boost your metabolism rates.

If you want to go to the gym for weight training exercises, seek your trainer’s advice. Hit the gym every other day for optimum output. If you choose cardio, workouts like running, jogging, cycling, brisk walking and swimming are beneficial for both weight loss and overall health.

Weight loss exercises

Exercise is one of the best ways to promote weight loss. If your daily routine incorporates exercises and a healthy diet plan, it will be a lot more effective in losing weight. Regular exercising increases metabolism which in turn burns more calories. It also increases lean body mass.

In addition, exercise lowers the risk of high cholesterol and high blood pressure thus preventing heart attack.

It also reduces the risk of cancers like breast and colon cancer. It contributes to a sense of well being and self-confidence, thus reducing depression and anxiety.

Walking

Walking is one of the best exercises you can do everyday to lose weight. A study ^[4]PubMed: Effect of walking exercise on abdominal fat, insulin resistance and serum cytokines in obese women says that walking every day for a minimum of 30 minutes reduces body weight and waist size. Walking for half an hour burns more than 150 calories.

Moreover, it is very easy to include walking to your routine. You can try walking during lunch breaks at work. Instead of using the elevator, take the stairs.

Swimming

According to Harvard Health, swimming for 30 minutes burns more than 230 calories.

Another study also found that 60 minutes of swimming, every other day reduced body weight significantly. It also reduced the risk of heart disease, improved flexibility and decreased cholesterol levels.

Running and jogging

Both running and jogging are very good for losing weight. According to Harvard health, jogging for 30 minutes burns up to 300 calories. Studies ^[5]PubMed: Inactivity, exercise, and visceral fat. STRRIDE: a randomized, controlled study of exercise intensity and amount reveal that running and jogging are very effective in burning visceral fat (belly fat).

Visceral fat leads to chronic diseases like diabetes and heart diseases. You can always jog on a treadmill. If you find it difficult to jog or run indoors, go out in the fresh air during early mornings.

Intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting is another great way to lose weight quickly. When you fast, your body burns the accumulated fat very quickly. This helps in losing weight fast without any side effects. “A healthy diet plan tells you what to eat, but intermittent fasting is what tells you when to eat”, finds a study ^[6]JOHNS HOPKINS Medicine: Intermittent Fasting: What is it, and how does it work? .

Choose 2 days in a week when you can skip lunch or dinner. This will help you burn extra body fat. Do not skip your meals everyday as this may lead to digestive problems and other health issues.

A minimum of 16 hours and a maximum of 24 hours of fasting interval is recommended during intermittent fasting.

Of course, healthy eating with exercising regularly helps you lose weight fast. If you want to get rid of that extra weight faster, you can add fasting into your weight loss plan.

There are different kinds of intermittent fasting based on choosing time intervals to eat. For example, you can choose to eat only within an8 hour window, and by staying on a fast the rest of the time. You can also choose 2 days in a week on which you can have only 1 small meal for the complete day.

What to eat during intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting means close to zero-calorie intake during the fasting phase. You can substitute food with liquids like water, tea or black coffee.

When you break for eating, it is important that you eat normally. Do not include high-calorie food like fries, junk food, and other sugary beverages.

Benefits

• Intermittent fasting promotes normal blood pressure and a regular heartbeat.
• Apart from burning extra body fat, it helps to maintain lean muscle mass.
• It stops the worsening of obesity and helps excellently in losing weight faster.
• It is also said to improve memory in adults.

Foods to avoid

High sugar foods, trans fats, refined starches, and processed meat.

Note: Intermittent fasting is not for those who are under 18, breastfeeding and pregnant women, diabetic patients, and people with blood sugar issues.

Detox

Along with healthy eating, regular exercising, and fasting, getting rid of toxins is very vital for healthy weight loss.

Detox drinks for weight loss

An effective solution that can be added to your weight loss journey is Detox. Detoxing your system facilitates digestion, which is key for healthy weight loss. Detoxing is a method of flushing out toxins from your body to boost metabolism.

Below are 3 detox drinks that are very effective for weight loss:

Ginger and lemon

Add finely grated ginger and the juice of half a lemon to a glass of lukewarm water. Drink this every morning for 45 days on an empty stomach. Lemon reduces insulin resistance and ginger reduces hunger.

Cinnamon

Add a cup of warm water into a bowl. Add a spoonful of cinnamon powder to it. Infuse to leak all its nutrients into the water. Drink this just before going to bed. Cinnamon regulates blood glucose levels and burns fat.

Cucumber and mint

Cut some slices of cucumber and add them to a pitcher of water. Add good amounts of mint leaves to it. Let them soak in the water for some time. Keep drinking this water all day long.

Do this for about a month. This solution boosts metabolism. As it is a zero-calorie drink, it helps in burning fat and helps in weight loss.

Sleep for weight loss

According to the a study ^[7]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: How Much Sleep Do I Need? , people between the ages of 18 and 60 should aim to sleep for at least 7 hours.

Another report ^[8]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Data and Statistics suggests that 35% of people in the US do not sleep enough.

According to yet another report ^[9]Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine: Recommended Amount of Sleep for a Healthy Adult , fewer sleep hours is associated with health conditions like obesity, weight gain, depression, heart diseases and stroke.

Consuming fewer calories is the core of losing weight. But lack of sleep increases hunger leading to higher calorie intake. Additionally, lack of sleep leads to low energy levels and restricts your body movements. This leads to less exercising or physical activity.

Tips to get enough sleep

• Go to bed early. Before going to bed try taking a warm bath, listen to soothing music or read a book.
• Create a proper sleep environment in your bedroom by dimming the lights.
• Go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day.
• Turn off all electronic gadgets (Phone and computer) at least an hour before going to sleep.
• Avoid foods which have high fat content for dinner. Also, stay away from alcohol and caffeine in the evenings.
• Exercise for about half an hour every day.

Forming healthy sleep habits can go a long way towards weight loss.

Take away

Remember that the pace of losing weight and the tips, will not work the same for everyone. Some tips might show faster results to some while some show delayed results.

Speak to your healthcare professional when you are seriously thinking of imbibing the above into your weight loss journey. Healthy eating habits, regular workouts and lifestyle tweaks will surely bring you success.