How to Get Skinnier
To kickstart healthy weight loss, begin to incorporate more activity in your daily life, such as carrying heavy items, walking more, or taking the stairs. Then, introduce an exercise routine that includes 30 minutes of vigorous activity every day, like running, biking, swimming, or weight training. After you've started exercising, focus on changing your diet to include more vegetables, fruits, grains, and lean proteins. Finally, try to pick foods that are nutrient rich, such as kale, broccoli, spinach, salmon, oatmeal, or chicken.
Find small ways to introduce activity into your day. You can start getting in shape and build your endurance for more serious exercise by just being a little more active in your day. You know how people are always talking about how French women stay so skinny? This is a good portion of what they do. Just burning those extra few calories can make a huge difference, helping you to reach the number of extra calories you have to burn each day to help slim down. For example, start taking the stairs instead of taking the elevator or escalator. Walk to the store if it's nearby and carry your groceries home, instead of taking your car. There are lots of ways that you can use your body every day. Walk as much as you can. Walking is a great form of exercise that will start preparing your body for major weight loss. It can really help build up your lung capacity and get your muscles loose and ready for activity. Even once you start proper exercises, you might want to consider continuing to walk every day. For example, you can introduce even small amounts of walking to your daily routine by parking further away from where you need to go and skipping the car entirely for any location within a mile. You can also make walking a regular part of your day, like going for a jog. Take a walk break eat your lunch, munching on a sandwich while you walk around the block. Avoid sitting for long periods. Sitting is not terribly good for your body and many studies have shown that it can have dangerous long-term effects on your body. However, standing to do the same tasks you normally sit for not only prevents those health problems, it can also burn a couple of extra calories. For example, use a standing desk instead of a normal desk or stand up and lightly exercise while you watch TV. When you stand for long periods, however, it's important to take breaks. Move your knees around, stretch, and walk around for a bit. This will keep your joints and muscles from feeling too much pressure. Introduce an exercise routine. While you can probably shed a few pounds by matching your diet to your activity level, several studies have found that adding exercise in to your regimen is 20% more effective than dieting alone. The common recommendation for how much exercise an adult should get is 30 minutes of vigorous activity a day. Shoot for an hour if you want to increase your chances of burning extra fat. You don't even have to do all of this exercise at once; as long as you maintain a high level of activity for at least 10 minutes at a time, you'll get the benefits. For example, you can take a 15 minute jog around your block before you get in the shower in the morning. Go up and down the stairs at school or work for 15 minutes during lunch. While you're cooking dinner, do 15 minutes of squats. Round out the day with 15 minutes of plank exercises before you get in bed. Another example would be to do burpees for 15 minutes when you wake up, bike for half an hour to get to work or school, bike another half an hour to get back, and finish up the day with 20 minutes of vigorous walking. Stay motivated. Staying motivated is one of the biggest hurdles to getting in shape and burning fat but it's also the thing that makes the biggest difference in helping you slim down. Find ways to keep yourself motivated, such as by doing exercises that you really enjoy doing, so that you'll stick with your plan to lose weight. Working out with a partner can be a great way to stay motivated. This not only makes exercise a great social activity and excuse to see a beloved friend or family member, it also gives you someone to be accountable to (which means no more excuses and procrastination). If you don't have a friend or family member that will exercise with you, join a local jogging group or other fitness club. Listening to music, podcasts, or books can also help you stay motivated because it becomes your time to enjoy those things which you might normally not have time for. Make a lifestyle change and avoid temporary fixes. You'll want to avoid fad diets like Atkins and South Beach and especially anything with "cleanse" in the title. These diets can be nutritionally dangerous and there is significant evidence to show that people who do these diets, while they do lose weight, gain most of the weight back within a few years. The better bet is to make a real lifestyle change. Find a sport that can become a hobby for you. Bike to work. Switch to a vegetarian diet. Whatever works for you, just do that instead of relying in a diet of 100% potatoes to make you magically drop 50 lbs. Change how much and how often you eat. You definitely don't want to starve yourself. You should eat when you're hungry and learn to listen to your body. However, many people do overeat so take a careful look at how often you eat and how much of that food you eat. Avoid a bunch of snacks in between meals and if you do snack, snack on veggies. You'll also want to try eating a smaller plate when you do have a meal. Start off with just enough food to fill a salad or side plate. If you're still hungry 15 minutes after finishing your plate, you can go back for a smaller second portion. Balance your diet. You'll want to be sure that you eat foods from the major healthy food groups, each in proper balance. Yes, fruit contains lots of nutrients, but you shouldn't make most of your diet come from fruit. Instead, eat lots of different foods from the different food groups and avoid diets which restrict your food groups. Your body needs many nutrients and unusual sources are often not enough to sustain your body long-term. A well balanced diet should consist of about 40% vegetables, 10% fruits (heavy in fiber and vitamin C, low in sugar when possible), 30% whole grains and 20% lean proteins. Sugar you should pass on as a category altogether. If you do choose to eat dairy, be very careful: most dairy products contain a lot of unhealthy fat and calories in relation to the nutritional benefits. Mainly, you'll want to get the calcium that you would normally get from dairy from other products instead, like leafy greens and dietary supplements. Eat nutrient-rich foods. You'll want to focus on foods with lots of nutrients and a naturally lower number of calories. These foods will allow you to stay healthy and feel more full, while actually eating less food. This can seriously help you lose weight. Look for some great examples like: Citrus fruit, kiwi, and pears Kale, broccoli, spinach, and brussels sprouts brown rice, quinoa, oatmeal, and barley Salmon, anchovies, sardines, turkey and skinless chicken Peas, white beans, lentils, and soy nuts Avoid food with empty calories. You'll want to avoid foods which contain a lot of calories and relatively few nutrients. These can lead you to easily go over the number of calories you need in a day. Focus on those nutrient rich foods and pass on items like: Fried foods, like chips, french fries, and fried chicken Sugary items like candy, ice cream, soda, and juice (yes, juice) Heavily processed grains like white bread donuts, cakes, cookies, and pizza Expect setbacks and don't get discouraged. Diet and exercise are both habits. You might have bad habits right now but you can have good ones. However, as with any habit, it can take awhile to break your existing habits. When working to lose weight, you'll probably have a few false starts and you'll make a couple of mistakes. If you expect this off the bat, then you won't be disappointed in yourself when it happens. When you feel disappointed, you'll be inclined to think that it's hopeless and quit. However, you can keep moving forward even after a setback. Just keep trying and you'll get there. Be consistent and persist in your efforts. There is mounting scientific evidence that bodies have a natural state that they want to be in: you might be naturally skinny or you might be naturally on the larger side. If you're naturally larger, you're simply going to have to work really hard to maintain a low weight. It will take time and effort to reach it and it will take effort to maintain it. The best thing you can do to stay skinny long term is to make real lifestyle changes and be consistent with those changes over a long period of time. Talk to your doctor. If you've tried consistent diet and exercise changes and haven't had much luck, talk to your doctor. You may have other health problems that are keeping you from losing the weight. Get evaluated for any conditions you may have and get their expert advice tailored to your specific situation. You should also see your doctor before you start any diet or major weight loss regimen. Health conditions can make some diet and exercise changes dangerous for your health, so it's a good idea to check with a doctor and be sure that your plan is safe for you body. Get a second opinion when you don't agree with or don't understand what the doctor has told you. Medicine is more art than science and some doctors are not very positive on non-traditional body types or the current body of research. Find someone who understands your body and is willing to help you work towards your goal in a safe and positive manner. Balance your hormones. Especially if you're a woman, your hormones can have huge effect on your weight. Everything from basic monthly menstrual cycle swings to thyroid problems can cause your body to put on more and more weight. If you've noticed that your weight gain peaks around your period or any other time of month, you should talk to your doctor. Unfortunately your hormone levels aren't something you can check at home. You'll have to get evaluated by your doctor. Don't trust an internet list of symptoms and instead just get properly evaluated. Focus on health, not weight. Don't try to hit a particular number on the scale or fit into what you think is the ideal pants size. This is not healthy or realistic. It's fine to want to slim down but your focus should be on your health, not on your appearance. Try to shoot for a weight and fitness level where, for example, you feel good going up a few flights of stairs. Reach a weight where you feel energetic and happy. Don't worry about anything past that. Realize that a healthy weight level is dependent on you. Every body is different. Some people can be perfectly healthy and in shape and still have a lot of padding. As long as your joints aren't stressed, your blood work looks good, and your lungs and heart are happily pumping, you're probably okay. 
Find small ways to introduce activity into your day. Walk as much as you can. Avoid sitting for long periods. Introduce an exercise routine. Stay motivated. Make a lifestyle change and avoid temporary fixes. Change how much and how often you eat. Balance your diet. Eat nutrient-rich foods. Avoid food with empty calories. Expect setbacks and don't get discouraged. Be consistent and persist in your efforts. Talk to your doctor. Balance your hormones. Focus on health, not weight. 