Diet to Get Lean for Women - You May Not Be Eating Enough to Lose Weight

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Fastest Way To Lose Belly Fat - Are You S-M-A-R-T Enough?

Losing weight is very hard for many people. In fact it's so hard that most people fail over and over just to try something else the next time. A new diet or a new work-out that currently has everyone's attention.

There's a chance that you have some or even all the knowledge you need to lose weight and get in shape. Most men want to lose weight around their mid-section and even though it is hard to target one specific area you know you need to eat healthy and exercise to succeed.

So why don't you succeed?

Let me ask you a question. How have you specified your goal? Probably somewhere along the lines of "I want to lose weight." I can tell you right away that this is not a good goal at all.

Why? Because it lacks all the ingredients of a good goal. First of all it is vague. How much weight would you like to lose, is 1 pound considered a success? I didn't think so!

Second, there's no real deadline or pressure for you to do it. A goal such as that is something you say on new years eve, never to be accomplished.

A well-defined goal should be

SpecificMeasurableAchievableRealisticTimely

What this means is that you have to strive for being as specific as you possibly can. Losing weight is not good enough.

"I want to lose 10 pounds" is better. It is very specific and in addition it's measurable. You can actually get up on the scale and see for yourself when you have succeeded. The goal can be even more specific. "I want to lose 10 pounds around my belly", this is a more specific goal.

Is there room for improvement? Of course! When you set this goal, to lose 10 pounds, you have to consider if it's realistic and achievable. This depends on a number of things such as your current body weight and how much fat you have put on. For a guy with 6% body fat maybe this goal is not realistic, or even healthy. But if you have a bit of a beer belly you probably have 10 pounds (or more) to lose.

This brings us to the final aspect of setting a good goal, the deadline. You have to make the goal by a certain date otherwise you will push it into the future. I bet you have done this before?!

"I'm going to lose 10 pounds by the end of May 31", is telling you that it will happen and that it will happen by a certain date. It also tells you what should have happened by this date.

Therefore the final version of our goal is a S.M.A.R.T goal. Now you're an excellent goal setter. Get ready to be a goal getter!

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Only available at GetDadFit - Fitness and weight-loss for fathers and busy men.

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Losing Weight Is Not Enough Unless Its Healthy Weight Loss

Losing weight is not enough unless it is a healthy loss. There are people who do all they can in an attempt to lose weight fast and in the process, they end up losing their hair, their glowing skin, and the energy to perform daily tasks. Losing weight in this manner is not advisable as it does more harm than good. When on a diet, remember these unconventional yet very effective tips and they'll take you a long way.

Refrain from sodas of all kinds:

Some people stop drinking normal sodas and move to low fat or zero calorie ones. Zero calorie drinks are ones that are more harmful because no one knows about the preservatives which are put inside in order to substitute for the sweet taste. If you want to lose weight, it is advised that you cut down on all kinds of sodas and have water instead.

Do not skip meals:

Most people start skipping breakfast just to reduce their calorie intake. Skipping meals does not help. According to a study by the Harvard School of Public Health published in 2007, those participants who skipped more meals had a greater chance of gaining weight than those who ate all their meals.

Do not starve yourself:

Starving should not an option because rather than burning calories, it slows down the body's metabolism. Also, starvation can put the body in a holding mode in which the body holds on to whatever calories the individual intakes to preserve energy.

Diet smartly:

Try to avoid extreme diet plans such as carb-free or Atkins diets that eliminate entire groups of food from meals. The body needs all kinds of food groups and a balanced approach is a healthier and long lasting one. Even if the individual seeking weight loss eliminates an entire food group and loses weight as a result, there will be some harm undergone by the body.

The importance of exercise:

There is no debate over the importance of exercise. It is absolutely necessary to exercise for all the good reasons. However, two main reasons pertaining to dieting are as follows. Firstly, controlled intake of calories throughout the day means that whatever is consumed is digested but exercise is needed to lose that stored fat already present in the body. Secondly, with exercise, your muscles get activated. Active muscles burn more calories and accelerate the weight loss process, this is one of the best tricks that most weight loss specialists will tell you, never let your food digest with no exercise.

Try the Dukan diet and see what you can lose.

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Are You Motivated Enough to Lose Weight?

Successful long-term weight loss depends on making permanent life style changes to both your diet and exercise routine. Are you motivated enough to make sure that you will not pile back on the pounds?

Here are a few tips to ensure that you have the right mind-set to achieve your permanent weight loss goals.

1.) What are your triggers? Do you know what triggers you to eat fattening or junk foods? Is it a form of comfort when you are stressed out? Are there certain emotional triggers that can make you eat that second tub of ice cream? Identify these triggers, maybe you don't like your job, or you are going through a divorce or some other emotionally draining experience. Maybe eating healthily at these times is the last thing on your mind... The key to ensure that you don't turn to the cheeseburgers is to identify these triggers and rethink how you let them affect you. It is important to re-train your mind to not associate fast or junk food with comfort... So the next time you have had a bad day at the office - stop off at the local supermarket and pick up some vegetable dip (carrot dip, or low-fat hummus for example) with some whole wheat pita bread. It makes a filling nutritious meal, but most importantly it will take even less time to prepare than your favourite microwave meal could possibly be packed with salt and fat.

2.) Be Realistic with how much and how quickly you will lose the weight - One of the main reasons why people fail to stick to healthier eating and exercise is because they try it for a short while, see little to minimal results and then give up before they have given it a fair go. It is important to have realistic expectations. If you have been eating unhealthy for 25 years, you are not going to look like a super model because you been eating healthier for the last two weeks.

Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is a life-long process and should be seen as such. On average you should be looking to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week approximately. According to a weight loss article written by the Mayo Clinic, for this weekly target to be achieved, you need to burn 500 to 1000 calories more than you consume every day.

The best way to do this is by eating a low-calorie healthy diet and regular physical activity. It is quite common for people to initially lose weight quite quickly, then for their progress to be much slower after the initial stages. This is mainly due to them making significant changes at the start, while slowly slipping back into their more unhealthier habits. If this happens, you should quickly identify those less healthy habits and stop them immediately. Don't be discouraged if your rate of fat loss slows a bit after the initial bigger losses.

Remember, the trick to losing weight in the long term is not about how quickly you lose the weight but that you make steady progress to your overall target weight and maintain it.

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Nadine 'Diet Coach' Douglas lost over 25 pounds after being overweight most of her adult life. She now runs a successful weight loss website which gives information about great resources which can help you lose weight and be healthy for long term success.

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