Cutting carbs, eating more protein, lifting weights, and getting more sleep are all actions that can promote sustainable weight loss. Focusing on long-term health and habits that you can stick with over time will help improve your health and are more likely to result in lasting weight loss.

Aim to include a variety of foods at each meal. To balance your plate, your meals should include protein, fat, vegetables, and complex carbohydrates.

The following are the recommended amounts you should eat by age according to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans Eating a recommended amount of protein is essential to help preserve muscle mass while losing weight.

Diets with adequate protein may also reduce cravings and snacks by helping you feel full and satisfied. The following are examples of foods that contain protein with amounts and servings from the U.

All vegetables can be nutrient-rich additions to your diet. Aim to eat about 2. Be mindful of your portion sizes when adding these vegetables to your plate. Healthy fats like olive oil , avocado , nuts, and seeds are great choices for your eating plan.

Although some, like olive oil, are considered healthy, they also provide 9 calories per gram, compared to protein and carbs, which provide only 4 calories per gram. Butter and coconut oil should be enjoyed only in moderation due to their high saturated fat content.

Try to assemble each meal with a protein source, healthy fat source, complex carb, and vegetables. The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommend combining cardio workouts with weight training for optimal health.

Cardio workouts include things such as walking, jogging, running, cycling, or swimming. Learn more about types of weight training exercises. A combination of aerobic and weight training are good for your health. While each type of exercise is good on its own, together they are better at helping you lose weight.

Fiber moves slowly through the digestive tract and can help you feel fuller for longer to support weight loss.

It might also stabilize blood sugar levels , promote regularity, and protect against certain chronic conditions. Food groups like grains and fruit that contain a lot of fiber include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, breads, and legumes.

Aim to eat 2 cups of fruit and 6 oz of grains daily. Many vegetables and legumes also contain fiber. The following are examples of foods that contain fiber with their recommended daily servings:. This is known as mindful eating. It can involve the following:. This can result in you eating less.

Try minimizing distractions while you eat and follow these strategies for mindful eating to slow down during your meals. Learn more about mindful eating and weight loss.

Drinking plenty of water can help promote weight loss by reducing your food intake, especially if you drink water before a meal. It might also work by increasing fat burning , which can help enhance long-term weight loss. Be sure to choose water or other low-calorie drinks rather than sugar-sweetened beverages like soda, which are high in sugar and calories and could contribute to weight gain.

Other benefits from drinking water related to weight loss include helping you stay hydrated while you exercise and helping remove waste from the body. In general, drinking water helps your body run more efficiently.

In addition to changing your diet and exercise routine, getting enough sleep each night may be beneficial for weight loss. One study found that people who regularly sleep less than 7 hours per night are more likely to have a higher body mass index and develop obesity than those who sleep more.

Plus, sleep deprivation might also alter levels of hormones that control hunger and appetite. Getting Started Losing weight takes a well-thought-out plan.

Step 1: Make a commitment Whether you have a family history of heart disease, want to see your kids get married, or want to feel better in your clothes, write down why you want to lose weight.

Step 2: Take stock of where you are Write down everything you eat and drink for a few days in a food and beverage diary.

On This Page. Step 1: Make a commitment Step 2: Take stock of where you are Step 3: Set realistic goals Step 4: Identify resources for information and support Step 5: Continually monitor your progress.

Step 3: Set realistic goals. Focus on two or three goals at a time. Even Modest Weight Loss Helps. Step 4: Identify resources for information and support. For More Information. Connect with Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity.

Last Reviewed: June 15, Source: Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity , National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate.

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For more information on CDC's web notification policies, see Website Disclaimers. Cancel Continue. These include various energy intake-reducing behaviors — limiting calorie-dense foods and sugar-sweetened beverages, portion control and a consistent eating pattern across days, increased fruit and vegetable consumption — as well as being physically active for at least an hour per day.

This makes sense and is consistent across the scientific literature. Any successful weight loss necessitates tipping and keeping the scale toward greater energy expenditure and less energy intake a net negative energy balance.

The most important determinants of weight loss maintenance are those that cement changes in behavior. As more recent evidence confirms, the proper psychology for weight loss is critical for regulating the physiology that supports weight loss.

Only recently have we started to evaluate the psychological and cognitive determinants of weight loss maintenance. We all have anecdotal evidence from family, friends, and colleagues. But systematically collecting, processing, and analyzing the qualitative experiences, strategies, and challenges from successful weight loss maintainers is difficult.

The data to date confirm the importance of self-regulation, and in particular self-monitoring of the day-to-day behaviors that drive energy intake and energy expenditure, especially eating behaviors.

Consider following these six strategies for weight-loss success. Long-term weight loss takes time and effort — and a long-term commitment.

While you don't want to put off weight loss indefinitely, you should make sure you're ready to make permanent changes to eating and activity habits. Ask yourself the following questions to help you determine your readiness:. Talk to your doctor if you need help addressing stressors or emotions that seem like obstacles to your readiness.

When you're ready, you'll find it easier to set goals, stay committed and change habits. No one else can make you lose weight. You must undertake diet and exercise changes to please yourself.

What's going to give you the burning drive to stick to your weight-loss plan? Make a list of what's important to you to help you stay motivated and focused, whether it's an upcoming vacation or better overall health.

Then find a way to make sure that you can call on your motivational factors during moments of temptation. You might want to post an encouraging note to yourself on the pantry door or refrigerator, for instance. While you have to take responsibility for your own behavior for successful weight loss, it helps to have support — of the right kind.

Pick people to support you who will encourage you in positive ways, without shame, embarrassment or sabotage. Ideally, find people who will listen to your concerns and feelings, spend time exercising with you or creating healthy menus, and share the priority you've placed on developing a healthier lifestyle.

Your support group can also offer accountability, which can be a strong motivation for sticking to your weight-loss goals. If you prefer to keep your weight-loss plans private, be accountable to yourself by having regular weigh-ins, recording your diet and exercise progress in a journal, or tracking your progress using digital tools.

It may seem obvious to set realistic weight-loss goals. But do you really know what's realistic? Over the long term, it's smart to aim for losing 1 to 2 pounds 0. Generally to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, you need to burn to 1, calories more than you consume each day, through a lower calorie diet and regular physical activity.

If you weigh pounds 82 kilograms , that's 9 pounds 4 kilograms. Even this level of weight loss can help lower your risk of chronic health problems, such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

When you're setting goals, think about both process and outcome goals. It isn't essential that you have an outcome goal, but you should set process goals because changing your habits is a key to weight loss.

Adopting a new eating style that promotes weight loss must include lowering your total calorie intake. But decreasing calories need not mean giving up taste, satisfaction or even ease of meal preparation. One way you can lower your calorie intake is by eating more plant-based foods — fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

Strive for variety to help you achieve your goals without giving up taste or nutrition. While you can lose weight without exercise, regular physical activity plus calorie restriction can help give you the weight-loss edge.

Exercise can help burn off the excess calories you can't cut through diet alone. Exercise also offers numerous health benefits, including boosting your mood, strengthening your cardiovascular system and reducing your blood pressure.

Exercise can also help in maintaining weight loss. Studies show that people who maintain their weight loss over the long term get regular physical activity. How many calories you burn depends on the frequency, duration and intensity of your activities. One of the best ways to lose body fat is through steady aerobic exercise — such as brisk walking — for at least 30 minutes most days of the week.

Some people may require more physical activity than this to lose weight and maintain that weight loss. Any extra movement helps burn calories. Think about ways you can increase your physical activity throughout the day if you can't fit in formal exercise on a given day.

For example, make several trips up and down stairs instead of using the elevator, or park at the far end of the lot when shopping. It's not enough to eat healthy foods and exercise for only a few weeks or even months if you want long-term, successful weight management.

These habits must become a way of life. Lifestyle changes start with taking an honest look at your eating patterns and daily routine.

After assessing your personal challenges to weight loss, try working out a strategy to gradually change habits and attitudes that have sabotaged your past efforts.

Then move beyond simply recognizing your challenges — plan for how you'll deal with them if you're going to succeed in losing weight once and for all.

You likely will have an occasional setback. But instead of giving up entirely after a setback, simply start fresh the next day. Remember that you're planning to change your life. It won't happen all at once. Stick to your healthy lifestyle and the results will be worth it.

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This content does not have an English version. This content does not have an Arabic version. Even most medical interventions to help treat obesity produce the typical trajectory of rapid weight loss followed by weight plateau and then progressive weight regain.

This means that based on our best estimates, only one in five individuals who is overweight is successful in long-term weight loss. These include various energy intake-reducing behaviors — limiting calorie-dense foods and sugar-sweetened beverages, portion control and a consistent eating pattern across days, increased fruit and vegetable consumption — as well as being physically active for at least an hour per day.

This makes sense and is consistent across the scientific literature. Any successful weight loss necessitates tipping and keeping the scale toward greater energy expenditure and less energy intake a net negative energy balance. The most important determinants of weight loss maintenance are those that cement changes in behavior.

As more recent evidence confirms, the proper psychology for weight loss is critical for regulating the physiology that supports weight loss.

Only recently have we started to evaluate the psychological and cognitive determinants of weight loss maintenance. We all have anecdotal evidence from family, friends, and colleagues. But systematically collecting, processing, and analyzing the qualitative experiences, strategies, and challenges from successful weight loss maintainers is difficult.

The data to date confirm the importance of self-regulation, and in particular self-monitoring of the day-to-day behaviors that drive energy intake and energy expenditure, especially eating behaviors.

Those who have high self-efficacy belief in your capacity to execute certain behaviors for exercise in particular are more successful at sustaining weight loss. And more recently, researchers have been decoding elements of the proper mindset that instills high self-efficacy for the larger constellation of important weight management behaviors.