As mentioned in the article The science behind weight loss, 39% of the world’s population is overweight and 13% is obese. So it’s not uncommon for people to come to us with the goal of losing weight. Most of the time, we would like to see this excess fat disappear overnight. Unfortunately, it won’t be possible to lose all the extra fat you’ve built up over months, or even years, in just a few weeks. However, it is possible to put in place strategies that can help you lose weight quickly.
Before we begin, we’d like to warn you that rapid weight loss is very often a double-edged sword. To achieve it, you have to introduce a whole host of new habits into your life overnight. These drastic changes have the effect of causing rapid adaptations, such as major weight loss, but they are less sustainable in the long term. If you’re currently overweight, you probably have lifestyle habits that need improving (eat better, move more, etc.). If from one day to the next you decide to change everything, the chances are pretty slim that you’ll be able to maintain them for months or even years. At OBJECTIV, we advocate a gradual change in behaviour that will lead to more modest weight loss, but with a much higher rate of maintenance. However, if you’re looking for rapid weight loss at any cost, here’s what you need to do to get there.
The science behind fat loss
The first step to successful weight loss is to understand the science behind the process. Fat is excess energy that your body has stored. Over the course of human evolution, this process could be very useful to compensate for periods when food was less abundant. So if the fat is excess energy stored in your body, all you need to do to get rid of it is to go through the reverse process. You need to be in a state where you’re expending more energy than you’re taking in. When we talk about energy in the context of food, we’re referring to the calories in the food. A 1 lb (~0.5 kg) of fat corresponds to about 3500 calories (kcal). If you’re quick on the maths, you’ll understand that to lose 1 lb (~0.5 kg) in a week, you’ll need to be in a calorie deficit of around 500 kcal a day. To lose 2 lbs (~1 kg) a week, the deficit is 1000 kcal a day, increasing by 500 kcal for each additional lb you want to lose.
Set a realistic target
Even if you want to lose weight quickly, your body has its limits. For most people, healthy weight loss is generally around 1-2 lbs (~0.5-1 kg) per week. You could even aim for 5 lbs (~2.25 kg) for people with a lot of weight to lose. However, this scenario is rather rare. Setting an objective is essential to achieving your goal (see article: SMART objectives, the key to your success). It keeps you motivated throughout the process. You need to keep it constantly in mind to guide your actions. To set yourself a realistic goal, you need to be aware of what it involves. As mentioned earlier, a loss of 2 lbs (~1 kg) per week is equivalent to a deficit of 1000 calories per day. Consider a week where you haven’t gained or lost any weight, your calorie deficit over the week is ~0 kcal. Now you need to get to 7000 kcal… So you need to reduce your calorie intake and increase your expenditure in order to create this famous deficit. Which brings us to the next step.
Keep track of your calorie intake
This step is essential if you want to achieve your goal of rapid weight loss. I strongly suggest using the MyFitnessPal application, which is a free calorie counter. Any other calorie counter could do the job. It will ask you to estimate your level of daily physical activity. Then, depending on your chosen goal, it will suggest a number of calories to eat per day. Your calorie counter will take into account everything that has been said about the calorie deficit. So all you have to do is enter all the foods and liquids you eat, and you’ll have a rough idea of your calorie intake. This kind of software isn’t perfect, and neither is the data entry. But it’s a good place to start. You’re bound to notice how quickly calories add up… so you’ll need to reduce your calorie intake.
Reduce your calorie intake
To stay within your calorie limit without feeling hungry all the time, you need to make intelligent choices. Here are a few solutions to consider in order to create the deficit that will lead you to rapid weight loss.
Avoid sugary drinks and alcohol
It’s generally a fairly easy thing to do and pays off handsomely. A 355 ml can of Coca-Cola contains 140 calories, while an Oasis orange juice and a beer of the same size contain 140 and 180 calories respectively. If you’re used to consuming two of these products a day, just by removing them from your diet, you could reduce your calorie intake by 2,000 kcal a week. We encourage you to drink water and low-calorie beverages.
Avoid calorie-dense foods
Calorie-dense foods will greatly hinder your rapid weight loss. They contain a lot of calories and do very little to increase your feeling of satiety. So you’ll still feel hungry, despite consuming a lot of calories. Examples include ice cream, oil, butter, chips, cheese and most commercial sauces. To find out if a specific food is high in calories, simply look at the nutrition label, take the number of grams the food contains and divide by the number of calories. The higher the number, the more calories the food contains.
Prioritise vegetables, fruit and low-calorie-density foods
This point is a continuation of the last one, but it’s worth mentioning. Vegetables are at the top of the low calorie density charts. Whether it’s broccoli, celery, carrots or asparagus, you’ll benefit greatly from adding or increasing their presence in your diet. Fruit is also an important part of your diet, especially those with a high fibre content. These include blackberries, raspberries, pears and kiwis. Fruit and vegetables also contain a host of minerals and vitamins that are good for your health. Starchy foods (rice, brown bread, potatoes) and lean meats (chicken, turkey) also fall into this category.
Prioritise protein-rich foods
Dietary proteins will play a dual role in achieving your rapid weight loss goal. Firstly, they will help you recover from your training sessions by repairing your muscle tissue. This will limit the loss of muscle mass during your fat loss process. Secondly, it has a significant bulking effect. Consuming a large amount of it will significantly reduce your feeling of hunger and help you to achieve your targeted calorie deficit.
Eat more slowly and reduce your portions
These two tips are fairly easy to implement and will have a beneficial effect on reducing your calorie intake. Ghrelin, the hormone responsible for hunger, is very high when your stomach is empty and then decreases after you’ve eaten. However, the signals your body sends out take around 20 minutes to reach their destination. By eating more slowly, you give your brain the time it needs to give you the right information about your hunger level. You’ll avoid eating more than you need to, and the result will be a reduction in the portions you eat, ultimately bringing you closer to your goal of rapid weight loss.
Introduce snacks into your routine
Snacks are an essential part of your weight-loss routine. The time between main meals can be relatively long. If you don’t eat any food in between, chances are you’ll be really hungry when the next meal arrives. The chances of you eating a large portion at that meal are quite high. The solution, of course, is to add snacks between your meals! Ideally, a snack with a good protein content will make you feel fuller.
Avoid restaurants and processed foods
This point will come as no surprise. Processed foods and food served in restaurants are often very high in calories and contain a huge amount of salt. What’s more, when you go into a restaurant, it’s very difficult to keep track of how many calories you’ve consumed (you generally don’t want to know). So, if you’re serious about your goal of losing weight quickly, avoid restaurants and processed foods. If you have no other alternative, choose the healthiest option and limit yourself to just the main course.
We’ve now looked at a number of tips and practical steps you can take to reduce your calorie intake while maintaining a high level of satiety. Now we’re going to find some solutions to tip the energy balance the other way.
Increase calories burned
As we saw in the article The science behind weight loss, our bodies use energy in three ways. Firstly, basic metabolism, i.e., maintaining the body’s vital functions. Secondly, the thermic effect of food, which is the use of energy to digest and assimilate food. Finally, we have physical activity, which includes any movement made by our body. It’s impossible or very difficult to have a concrete impact on the first two elements, so our warhorse will be physical activity. Here are some actions to introduce into your life to optimise your rapid weight loss.
Increase your number of steps per day
This may seem like a rather trivial action, but it will pay off in spades. The average person walks 3000–5000 steps a day. By increasing this number by 5000, you will increase your energy expenditure by 250 kcal per day, for a total of 1750 kcal per week. By simply increasing your number of steps per day, you can achieve a weight loss of 0.5 lb per week, for a total of 26 lb (~12 kg) per year. Want to lose weight fast? Start by making walking part of your lifestyle.
Cardio workouts
Unsurprisingly, if you want to achieve rapid weight loss, you need to increase your calorie burn by adding cardiovascular exercise. However you do it, what’s important is the number of calories you burn during the effort. Whether it’s low- or high-intensity running, long bike rides or HIIT training sessions, all these solutions will get you there. There’s no doubt that OBJECTIV training is ideal for your fat loss goal, but the important thing is to find an activity that will motivate you. We recommend using a heart rate monitor to get a better idea of the number of calories burned during a workout. Most smartwatches have such functions.
Resistance training sessions
There’s no doubt that cardiovascular training is the key to rapid weight loss. However, if you want to limit the loss of muscle mass as you lose weight, it’s essential to do some counter-resistance training. When you are in a calorie deficit, your body will use the energy contained in stored fat to make up the shortfall. However, it is very common for your body to use your muscle mass to make up the deficit. To avoid this, you need to do some counter-resistance training, as well as getting enough protein. OBJECTIV training, which combines muscle and cardiovascular training, could help you achieve your fat loss goals.
Recovery
If you succeed in putting in place all the elements we have discussed in this text, you will be putting a great deal of stress on your body. The drastic increase in physical activity combined with a drop in calorie intake will increase your level of mental and muscular fatigue. It is imperative that you are able to recover by getting a good night’s sleep. It’s also essential to pay attention to any joint pains that may occur while you’re achieving your rapid weight loss goal. Once again, a rapid increase in the level of physical activity, especially when poorly executed, could lead to injury. So it’s a good idea to manage the progression of intensity so that you can keep moving without restriction.
We hope that this article will help you achieve rapid weight loss if that’s what you want. However, if you manage to incorporate just a few of the points discussed above, your body will thank you in the long term. Whether you want to lose weight quickly or gradually, OBJECTIV is the solution to help you achieve your health goals. Schedule your free consultation today and talk to one of our trainers about your goals.