10 Easy Tips to Help You Lose Weight This Week

With so much nutrition and diet information roaming through the media, it can be difficult to differentiate what is real and what is glitzy media hype. As a personal trainer, nutrition consultant and fitness competitor, I have had to sift through my fare share of fitness magazines, nutritional seminars and college courses. I have condensed and refined the mountain of information into a manageable top ten list. The following is a list of the 10 most successful methods of losing 5 pounds in one week without a dramatic lifestyle change:

Tip 1: Stop counting calories
This may make anyone who has ever dieted laugh in disbelief. Remember when reduced fat and no fat foods were the focus in the diet industry? Do you also remember that reduced fat foods sold like crazy while the obesity epidemic spread like wildfire? New research shows that calorie counting, like reduced fat foods, is not the end-all solution to losing weight. Scientists suggest that what you eat may be just as important as how much. Foods that are rich in nutrients and low in carbohydrates and sugar are key for effective weight loss. Try replacing tortillas with lettuce leafs and potatoes with a green vegetable for starters.

Tip 2: Drink more water
Yes, you've heard that drinking 8-10 glasses of water per day is crucial for your health. Drinking water can also help you lose weight. Drinking water before a meal takes up space in your stomach, making you feel full sooner. Simply drinking one glass of water before your meal could help you cut up to 100 calories or more per meal.

Tip 3: Eat more meals
That's right, another suggestion against what has become industry standard. I'm not suggesting eating more food, I'm suggesting more meals. Breakfast, lunch and dinner with a snack between breakfast and lunch and again between lunch and dinner. Planning your meals and snacks can help you reduce those impulse high-carb snacks that can slow any diet progress. The key is to accelerate your metabolism and replace sugary and high-carb foods with nutrient rich meals and snacks to stave off hunger cravings.

Tip 4: Include protein
Jeff Hample, Ph.D., R.D., a spokesman for the American Dietetic Association says that, "Protein is made up mainly of amino acids, which are harder for your body to breakdown, so you burn more calories getting rid of them." In addition to burning more calories, amino acids help aid in recovery from cuts to muscle damage. Protein contains the building blocks for our body and is typically low in fat and calories.

Tip 5: Get some rest
Research shows that people who get adequate sleep lose weight easier and quicker. Lack of sleep can cause hormonal imbalances causing weight gain. People with inadequate sleep tend to snack more and have irregular eating and exercise habits. Recommended sleep for adults is between 6-8 hours.
Tip 6: Track your progress
Monitoring your weight loss can help you stay motivated and keep to your diet. Track where the weight is coming off with a fat caliper or weigh yourself regularly. Even blogging or posting your progress on your Facebook will help you stay committed because you know people will be counting you. This way family and friends can provide supportive comments when you do well.

Tip 7: Cook your food
Cooking what you eat makes you mindful of what you are putting in your body. The act of cooking itself burns calories. Cooking your food and healthy eating begins with learning about nutrition, which will make future diet choices easier.

Tip 8: No more soda
Did you know that just one 12oz can of coke has 39 grams of sugar! That can alone is enough to stall any diet. Sodas and many of the most common drinks available at a gas station or grocery store are loaded with hard to digest, diet-killing sugar. Try to incorporate green tea (excellent for added weight loss benefits) or calorie-free flavored water drinks into your diet if you need to satiate your sweet tooth.

Tip 9: Eat healthy fats
Now you're probably wondering, who is this guy? First don't count calories, then eat more food and now I want you to eat fats? Before you grab the bacon, I am referring to the healthy fats. That's not a typo, there are such a thing as healthy fats. Denying your body of healthy fats can disrupt your hormone levels and increase your hunger cravings. Healthy fats are found in foods like nuts, eggs, seeds or avocados. Try eating these foods for the between meal snacks mentioned in tip 3.

Tip 10: Don't eat foods from a can or box
Most of the foods that are processed and preserved tend be high is sugar, sodium and carbohydrates. By eating whole, fresh foods from the grocery store you can cut away huge amounts of excess calories and sugars. You may even find that fresh food really does taste better.
Eating healthy shouldn't feel like a chore. You don't need to make a dramatic lifestyle change to see results. Simply following these 10 tips for losing weight this week can help put you on the track for long-term success. For more information on weight loss and living healthy, visit http://www.platinumbodyperformance.com. Good luck with your weight loss journey.

Ryan L.W. is a Certified Personal Trainer and fitness competitor. Author of various articles on weight loss, sports supplements, fitness and general health. Ryan currently advises on health and nutrition for various companies and people on the west coast U.S.A.

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Tips to Lose Weight With Your Partner

Every romantic relationship goes through phases of impressing each other. And when everything falls into place, both partners settle down and just be themselves. There is no pressure to look good 24/7, maintain that waistline or do the tummy-tuck. Soon you become accustomed to each other's habits - eating included - and perhaps you don't really notice if either of you is gaining flab in the process. But gaining unnecessary weight isn't a good sign now, is it? While one of you may be averse to the idea of racing off to the gym and beginning the whole weight-loss regime, but if the two of you join forces and decide to go at it in unison, then maybe the results will be even better. You could become weight-loss buddies that way. And there are a number of ways you and your partner can lose the extra kilos.

Talk the Talk

Before you commence your weight-loss mission together, you should have a sit-down with your partner and do the talk. Try and analyze what could be adding to you weight? Is it that you both eat too much of whatever comes on your platter? Is your lifestyle to blame? Or are you just never paying attention to how your body-size is evolving? Whatever be the reason, discussion is a must. Try and make points to see where both of you are thinking alike. Because after you begin your trips to the gym, differences may crop up leading to ugly spats. Nobody would want a trivial issue like weight-loss toss to play spoiler in your relationship.

Start at home

Next time the both of you go grocery-shopping, take vows not to invest in tempting foods for a while or even longer. Experts advise that weight-loss is influenced by the consumption of fruits and veggies and fresh juices. So go buy lots of all the three. Stack up your fridge with your favorite fruits, salads and fresh juices. Buy low-cal frozen dinners for your night-meals. And popcorn's a good option during your TV-watching hours. So whenever you feel like grabbing a bite, there's always your favorite fruit or veggie waiting for you in the fridge. Cut down your trips to your favorite pizza parlor or the high-end restaurant you visit every weekend. Temptation is the biggest enemy of improvement.
For Him it's Faster, for Her it will be Slower

Yes, that's the law of nature. Health experts have time and again specified and even elaborated up on the simple fact that weight loss for the male is faster than the female. The reason is simple. Males have higher metabolism rates and there is higher concentration of water in their body, which makes weight-loss happen quicker. And the science of the female body shows that women having pre (or post)-menopausal symptoms will show fluctuation in their weight - due to water gain or loss. So if you see your male partner losing kilos are lightening speed, don't get discouraged.

Move Away the Mood-Swings

It's a little difficult to deter a mood-swing from coming at you during this time. Its natural tendency to go on a binging spree when one is feeling sad depressed or irritated. In times like these, it's okay to let lose once in a while. However, both of you have to become food-police and keep an eye on what the other is eating and how much. Don't feel shy in reprimanding the other, in case you find the eating habits are going astray.

No Shortcut

Avoid fast-food and other shortcut foods that swear to kill hunger pangs right away. Make it habitual to go on walks together. A good walk gives you time to reflect, rejuvenate and guess what else, lose weight.

Go All in and Place Bets on Each Other
Don't allow either of you to separate from each other during the weight-loss process. Hit the gym together, have conversations about you and your partner's progress. If either is having any problems regarding exercise, eating or it's in the mind, communicate openly. Support each other. If you notice any positive changes, don't forget to pass on a good word. A little bit of pep talk and motivation can do wonders to not only your partner's dedication but to your relationship as well.

Kya Cassiuss Victoria is a nationally renowned fitness expert. If you'd like to register for a free trial at a Boot Camp Centennial Park, visit Sydney Bootcamp.

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