One of the most asked question of our times is how to lose weight. The biggest problem is in the question itself. People are actually looking for more shaplier bodies and many think that they can get it by losing weight. What they need to lose is not weight but fat.

What is Your Goal

It is really important that you understand what you really want to achieve. Unless this is crystal clear, you would pursue quick fix solutions and gimmicks. You will be unsuccessfully battling your weight for the rest of your life.

When you try to lose weight, it could come at the cost of fat, muscle and water. There is no benefit in losing muscle and water. For healthy and sustainable weight loss that leads to a shaplier body, you need to focus on losing fat. We refer to this as correct weight loss. Correct weight loss is when you lose fat while maintaining or building your muscles.

How to Lose Weight Correctly

So your next question should be, “how to lose weight correctly”?

In order to achieve correct weight loss, you need to adhere to the 7 principles of correct weight loss. When these 7 keys are followed, the weight comes off effortlessly and you can be sure that you will end up with a well sculpted body.

The 7 keys of correct weight loss are;

1.    Correct nutrition

Correct nutrition is really a healthy diet plan. You should eat main meals and 2 snacks in a day. Breakfast is essential. During your main meals, your plate should contain 50% fruits and vegetables, 25% protein and 25% complex carbohydrates. Avoid refined carbohydrates and trans fats.

2.    Correct exercise

Your exercise regimen should consist of strength training and cardio. You should do at least 3 full-body strength training sessions in a week. Spend another 1 to 2 days doing cardio. High intensity interval training is the best unless you are not fit enough to do it. In that case, do low intensity cardio.

3.    Correct supplementation

You need to at least consume a multi-vitamin/multi-mineral. This is your nutritional insurance. It assures that you do not have key nutritional deficiencies that may sabotage your weight loss efforts. In addition to this, also consider consuming Omega-3 fish capsules daily.

4.    Adequate sleep and stress relief

Insufficient sleep or even too much sleep has been correlated with weight gain. Depending on your lifestyle, you may need 6 to 8 hours of sleep. You also got to manage chronic stress. Stress releases cortisol which is a potent fat storage hormone

5.    Correct measurements to track progress

Measurements to track progress are essential. You also got to make sure that you are measuring the correct parameters. Women should be measuring the waist to hip ratio. The waist should be measured at the abdominal area near the belly button. Women should aim for a ratio of 0.7 and a waist size less than 32 inches. Men should aim for a shoulder to waist ratio of 0.8 and a waist size less than 36 inches.

You could also measure body fat levels. For this, you need a pair of calipers. Measuring body fat levels is the best measurement to track progress.

6.    Basic weight loss education and motivation

It is essential that you have some basic weight loss information. With a deeper understanding, you will know why you are doing some of the things that you do. This will also motivate you to keep to your weight loss efforts. Being informed will be an internal source of weight loss motivation.

With adequate weight loss knowledge, you can also be sure that you never fall for gimmicks and quick fix solutions. Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime. With a strong foundation, you can be sure that you will always be in control of your weight.

7.   Adequate social support

Social support is essential for your success. The best thing is to lose weight with a partner. The chances of success are much higher. If you cannot find a partner, latch on to an online social support group.

When you follow these 7 principles of correct weight loss you can be assured of healthy and sustainable weight loss. You don’t have to be on a diet if you can incorporate these 7 principles of correct weight loss in your lifestyle. A diet is temporary and the weight will come back on when you get off the diet. What you need is a holistic lifestyle that helps you manage your weight.

When these 7 keys are followed in totality, you will have a holistic approach to losing weight.

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Transcript of How to Lose Weight

[starts at 0:04:26.5]

Hello this is Suresh V and Dr Jasvin and we are from the Correct Weight Loss Team.

[Suresh] Today we are going to talk about how to lose weight. Now what we need to address first is that when someone says that they want to lose weight, they are basically saying that they want to look good. They want to have a nice toned or slim body. Therefore they want to look good in a nice outfit or they just want to feel healthy and strong.

Weight loss does not offer a toned and shaplier body

[starts at 0:01:06.1]

[Suresh] The challenge is that this does not just come from losing weight. This comes from losing fat while maintaining your muscles and this creates a nice shapely body, right Dr Jasvin.

[starts at 0:01:19.6]

[Dr Jasvin] People get very hung up with their weight. They tend to weigh themselves everyday and wonder why they are not losing weight. It is important to realize that if you go on a proper weight loss program with weight resistance training, aerobic exercise and nutrition, sometimes the weight does not actually come down. This is because you are gaining muscles while losing fat. Muscle actually weighs a little bit more than fat does.

Muscle weighs more but it is more compact

[starts at 0:01:53.5]

[Suresh] Although muscle may weigh more, it is more compact.

[Dr Jasvin]Your body may change as composition changes. You may look better and slimmer but the weight itself may not change.

[starts at 0:02:05.3]
[Suresh] This depends on your ratio of fat to muscles. A change in this ratio shows a change  in bodyshape. The fat should reduce and the muscle should either maintain or increase. When the fat reduces and your muscles increase your weight may not go down very much but you will shrink, slim down and become more compact. That is what people need to understand.

[starts at 0:02:30.1]

[Suresh] Measuring weight alone may be misleading at times. Sometimes you may find that the weight may actually go up slightly but you are shrinking because you have lost fat and put on muscles. Muscles are more compact and heavier, and they make you look slimmer.

Muscle gives the body shape

[starts at 0:02:46.4]

Muscle is what keeps the body in shape. Whether it is V shape for a men or an hourglass shape for women. It is always the muscles that form the shape.

[starts at 0:02:57.4]
That is why when most people go on a plain diet, their body shrinks but they will very seldom get shapely. They lose muscle, fat and water. When they start losing muscle because of dieting without any exercise, they end up with a shrunken body. The body shape does not change.

[starts at 0:03:17.9]
Unfortunately most people think that just because the number on the weighing scale has gone down, they will get a nice shapely body. But that does not happen. You have to do the fundamentals of correct weight loss to get a shapely body.

Losing weight could actually be trying to reduce body dimensions

[starts at 0:03:45.7]

[Dr Jasvin] Sometimes people fail to understand that when they say they want to lose weight, they actually want to reduce their body dimensions. This is what they want to do. Losing weight is probably not the best term to use. You may want to get a shapelier body or to be able to fit into that dress that you like.

[starts at 0:04:11.8]

[Suresh] Actually if you go on a diet, you can lose weight and shrink but you may not look great in an outfit. You can have unsightly bulges which are not supposed to be there. If you follow a proper program or the correct way of losing weight, you will get rid of the unsightly bulges too. Even though you may weigh the same as compared to being on a diet, you will have better curves. That is what people are actually looking for. That is why we keep emphasizing for the need to lose weight correctly.

[starts at 0:04:47.4]

That’s it from the correct weight loss team this time around. This time do it right.

Further Useful Resources

1. How to Lose Weight – Harvard Health Blog
2. How to Lose Weight – Northwestern University
3. How to Lose Weight – Northwestern University