So, maybe you think (or somebody else does) that you’re fat. Now, perhaps you’re desperate to lose weight quickly—or even faster. And yes, you can find some practical weight-loss tips here. But before you look at those, please remind yourself (and believe!) that your worth as a person Does Not rise or fall according to what the bathroom scales claim at a given moment.
Next, please also stand firm against weight-loss
formulas that do not and cannot serve your best interests. Prime
example? The “crash and burn” scenario.
If you’re really desperate, you might be tempted by crash diets, which can wreak havoc on your body and often provide no lasting benefit. Perhaps you've been there and done that already...and maybe even ditched the veggies? (Say it isn't so!).
Or maybe you start taking the kind of pills that pump so much epinephrine into your body that you're bouncing off the walls during the day and lying awake (buzzing) most of the night. Maybe you even combine such pills with crash diets, just to move things along faster.
And you might lose some weight that way in the short term, which gets you so pumped that you perhaps overlook the fact that you're neither eating nor sleeping very much...and your feet aren't touching the ground all that often, either. Plus, when you eventually resume your normal routine, those pounds creep right back and bring their buddies. Final score? Lasting weight loss: minimal; Frustration: peak level.
Here's a pretty good way to lose weight quickly, though: cut down on the
carbohydrates. Cheap and uncomplicated, it's more effective than you
might think. And how do you do
this cutting back? Start with sugar and also products made from grains.
You know, ease up on the bread and pasta that so many of us love to put
in our mouths.
No need to stop cold-turkey
(unless you know you’re gluten intolerant). Just back off gradually but
steadily, because that great-tasting stuff may be part of what’s packing
on the pounds. If so, it's not such a great pal for anyone who's desperate
to lose weight quickly.
And, yes, to many of us
deleting the carbs feels almost like chopping off an emotional limb.
Because I’ve had to cut back a bit myself for health reasons, I know the
feeling all too well. But it’s do-able if you approach it one step at a
time. And, as you do, add in some more veggies! Yup, it really works—IF you do it. Unfortunately, nobody can do that one for you.
Now here comes a ploy that may strike you as totally off the wall, but hear me out. When they move to areas of higher elevation (maybe 4,000 feet or above, if they’ve been living below 1,500 feet or so), some people actually lose weight.
Imagine their surprise at that, as such an outcome probably didn't motivate the move. In my own case, for example, I gradually dropped about 25 pounds—the last 10 of which I'd have preferred to keep. And I've heard about this sort of thing from others.
When it works, the higher-altitude "method" is a more-gradual process than the crash-and-burn route. As such, it may not impress you if you want to lose the weight fast. And relocation isn’t convenient for everyone, to say the least! But if it is, this tactic might work for you. Absolutely no guarantees with this, but you might find it an interesting possibility to check into if you're a bit of a rolling stone anyway.
Bottom line on all this? Many weight-loss methods for people who want to lose weight quickly seem impractical at best and counter-productive at worst. The sad truth of the matter is that if your weight loss takes place really fast, it very often doesn't last. Not my rule, but it does seem to hold fairly true.
If you’re willing to move a bit more slowly, though, you've got some possibilities: notably cutting carbs, some old-fashioned calorie counting, and maybe a 30-minute walk every day. And you can move things along even faster by eating Lots of the right kind of veggies: a vegetable diet to lose weight.
So, here's a thought. Instead of going for "fast," why not try the way of the tortoise: slower but steady. Although it takes longer, the results generally hang around longer, too—in your own case, maybe even forever.
Please understand that the material at this site is NOT medical advice, as I am neither doctor nor nutritionist. What I am is merely someone who's lived successfully on a vegetarian diet for many decades...and I transitioned from omnivore to vegetarian gradually. Do check with your doctor, though, if you're considering big changes to your own diet. Also, be sure to find a dependable source of Vitamin B12.
Living Vegetarian the Easy Way
Copyright 2010-2024. Lynda Edwards. All rights reserved.