A Simple Plan To Lose Weight and Burn Fat

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The math is pretty simple. One pound of fat equals 3500 calories. Want to lose a pound a week? Then you need to consume 3500 calories less per week than you use. That is roughly 500 calories a day. By cutting out 500 calories a day from your normal daily diet, while keeping your activity level the same, you can lose approximately one pound a week.

I know that doesn’t sound like much, especially if you are over 25 pounds overweight. Study after study has shown, though, that those people who lose weight gradually - at a rate of 1-2 pounds per week -are far more likely to keep the weight off and maintain a normal weight for a lifetime.

So how much is 500 calories exactly? If you are going to reduce your intake of calories but 500 a day, you need to know what to cut out? Here’s how easy it is to lose 500 calories a day:

*You can use milk in your coffee instead of creamer. Savings? 50 calories per cup.

* You really don’t need butter on the baked potato. Savings? 100 calories

*Drink fruit flavored water rather than soda. Savings? 200 calories

* Skip the Big Mac and have a salad instead. The Big Mac equals 460 calories. Have a fresh salad along with a light dressing? Less than 100! Savings? 360 calories

* Pass by the bag of potato chips. An average snack size bag of chips has over 300 calories. Savings? 300 calories

*Eat corn on the ear. There is 165 calories for every 1 cup serving of canned corn. Every ear of corn has 85 calories in them. Savings? 80 calories.

* Switch to low-fat cream cheese on your bagel. Savings? 90 calories per ounce.

*Love french fries and have a hard time giving them up? Switch to the thicker steak cut fries rather than the thinner ones. Thin French fries absorb more oil than the thicker, meatier ones. Savings? 50 calories per 4 ounce serving

If you’d rather look at losing weight from an exercise perspective, you can also lose one pound a week by upping your activity level by 500 calories a day. How easy is that to do? Take a look:

*Go for a half hour walk around the park. Aim for a pace that’s a little faster than a stroll, but not fast enough to be breathless. Burn:160 calories.

*Go for a bicycle ride. Aim for about five miles total and if you feel like it you can take on a few moderate hills. Burn: 250 calories

* Go dancing - and really DANCE. The longer you are out dancing on the dance floor, you wont be at the table drinking those high calorie fruit drinks and the more calories you will burn. Dancing that makes you breathless and warms up your body will net you a nice calorie savings. Burn: 400 calories per hour

* Swimming is great for you, and a lot of fun, too. The water resistance means you burn more calories, and you avoid the stress impact on joints from aerobics, dancing or walking. Do a few laps at a slow crawl - if you can get up to an hour you’ll be doing great! Burn: 510 calories

* Get out into your garden. An hour of working in your garden (i.e. bending over, and stretching) can burn up to as many calories as a brisk walk. Burn: 250 calories.

* Play a game of tennis. Hook up with a friend for a weekly tennis game and you’ll be amazed at the difference. One hour of vigorous tennis is one of the best calorie burners around. Burn: 800 calories

It’s important to keep in mind that all exercise/calorie numbers are based on a woman weighing 130 pounds. If you weigh more then you will definately burn more fat. Would you like an additional bonus to burning calories through exercise? You turn fat into muscle whenever you exercise. Three guesses which kind of body tissue burns more calories - even when you’re not exercising. You got it - your body uses more energy to maintain and feed muscle than it does fat.

For the best results you can combine food savings and exercise techniques that will effeciently burn the calories. Do keep in mind that eating less than 1000 calories a day for more than a few days will convince your body that it’s starving and slow your metabolism. You need to keep your calorie ranges simpmle, and if you seek a more drastic weight loss measure consult your doctor.

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