text: is it true that all you have to to lose weight is.....??? i recently saw a commercial made by gatorade that stated that the nascar drivers lose up to 10 pounds every race because their car is so hot, and they start to sweat a lot.  i was wondering that if i started to sweat a lot without doing any type of exercise, will i also lose weight? only water weight, the only way to actually lose fat weight is by doing cardovascular exercise, so running, biking, swimming, rollerblading.  be your own trainer and nutritionist, the basic rules to losing weight are no soda, no fast food, lots of chicken, fish, fruits, vegies, whole wheat stuff, yogurt. not so many cakes and donuts and cookies. basic common sense for eating, you just need to enforce it. get all the bad stuff out of the house right away, just toss it or give it away while your still motivated. no alcohol if that applies. some juice but make sure its all natural, because the ones that aren't are loaded with sugar and a leading cause in diabetes in children and adults. lots of water, 3-4 liters a day, not all at once, but spread out. its really easy to down a liter or two while your watching tv or on the computer. also drink some after you eat the bigger meals of the day, it helps your body pick out the nutrients in food when your food is more spread apart.  these rules may be hard to adapt to at first so start with cutting out the things you know you can live without.  then work to there.  remember these are  perfect eating habits, it can take you a while to work into it.  if you know you can’t live without your one treat a day, don’t fight it by trying to eat something else, just eat it and make sure that’s the only one you cheat on a day.  otherwise you’ll get depressed and quit. as for exercise, lots of cardio. find something you like. if you have never exercised much before, start with walking 30 minutes a day at a brisk pace. move on to different terrains that include hills and increase the time spent. after a week or two, try jogging the route. no matter what find an activity you enjoy. walking to jogging is just an example, try hiking, rollerblading, biking. once you get into a regular routine, if your not happy with the level of difficulty, try signing up with a gym. spinning, pilates or kickboxing classes are great. it will also introduce you to working with weights. talk to a trainer for instruction before using any weights. a cheap investment is a balance ball, it works you stomach while your just sitting on it, like at your computer and its great for posture. there are hundreds of exercises you can use it for for your entire body. i can give you some ideas if you want, just email me. also for more info on the benefits of water go to www.watercure.com good luck!