While some people see weight loss as an impossible feat, shedding fat is much simpler than most people imagine.
Whether you want to shed a few pounds after the holiday season or set yourself on a long weight loss journey, there are plenty of tactics you can use.
With that in mind, let’s go over seven ways to lose fat now.
1. Start Drinking Water Before And During Meals
Research suggests that drinking some water before meals can reduce caloric intake by inducing satiety (1). For example, you can have a glass of water 20 minutes before the meal begins and another glass as you eat.
2. Eat a High-Protein Breakfast
Protein is essential for our health, well-being, and fitness progress (2). According to research, protein is also crucial for satiety, as it fills us up more than carbs and fats (3).
Having some protein at breakfast is beneficial because it can fill us up, allowing us to last until noon more easily. In one paper, folks who had eggs for breakfast consumed fewer calories throughout the day and lost more weight than those eating a bagel (4).
3. Eat More Slowly
According to experts, satiety takes up to twenty minutes to set in. Meaning, the brain and gut communicate rather slowly, and we need to give time for the connection to occur.
Eating more slowly is a fantastic way to control your calorie intake, feel fuller from each meal, and start losing fat (5).
4. Drink Coffee or Green Tea
Coffee and green tea are two healthy beverages that can suppress our appetite and reduce our overall calorie intake (6, 7). Plus, both offer caffeine, which boosts our metabolic rate slightly and can improve our athletic performance, allowing us to burn extra calories (8, 9).
5. Bump Your Step Count
Walking might not seem like a significant activity, but taking more steps each day is an excellent way to increase your caloric expenditure and more easily put yourself in a calorie deficit for weight loss (10).
Plus, you can easily integrate walking into your days without dedicating extra time to it. For example:
- Take the stairs instead of an elevator
- Walk to the local bank, post office, or grocery store instead of driving
- Get off the bus one stop earlier and walk the remaining distance
- Park your car farther from your destination and walk
6. Get An Hour Of Extra Sleep
A 2010 study had some profound findings (11). In it, ten overweight but otherwise healthy subjects had to go through two conditions:
- Doing a two-week diet and sleeping for up to 5.5 hours per night
- Doing the same diet but spending 8.5 hours in bed each night
Subjects lost 6.6 pounds in both conditions, but sleep duration significantly impacted body composition. When subjects got to sleep for up to 8.5 hours, they lost fat and muscle at a 50/50 ratio, which isn’t terrible. But, when they slept for only 5.5 hours, 80 percent of the weight loss came from lean tissue, and only 20 percent was fat.
With everything else being the same, sleeping more allowed subjects to lose significantly more fat and retain more muscle tissue.
7. Eat More Fruits and Veggies
Fruits and vegetables are fantastic for fat loss because they:
- Curb your sweet tooth
- Fill you up
- Offer few calories and plenty of healthy fiber
Replacing some processed junk with fruits and veggies is an easy way to lower your calorie intake, feel fuller, and reduce the risk of nutrient deficiencies.
