How to Lose a Pound a Day With Diet

Long term weight loss requires you to alter your lifestyle by changing your diet and increasing your exercise. If you want to lose weight and keep it off, you should expect to lose about one to two pounds per week. If you are trying to lose weight for an imminent special occasion such as a wedding or reunion, however, it is possible to lose weight much faster. These types of goals can be great motivators, but you need to make sure that you are not starving yourself.

Instructions

1

Eat at least 1,050 and 1,200 calories per day. According to Dr. Michael Dansinger, this is the minimum you can eat without forcing your body to go into starvation mode. If you try to eat less than this, you will actually trick your body into storing more fat because your body is reacting to famine and preserving calories in order to keep you alive.

2

Perform one hour of cardiovascular exercise per day. Cardiovascular exercise burns calories quickly and will also help to tighten and firm your muscles. Under normal circumstances, you need to give your body days off to recover from your exercise routine. If you have a specific event you are trying to lose weight for, however, you can increase your exercise without doing your body harm.

3

Reduce your intake of sodium and starches. This will reduce your fluids and fluid retention or bloating. Eliminating sodium from your diet can cause you to lose up to five pounds when you first start your diet. This water loss is perfect for dieters trying to meet a close goal.

4

Eat fresh fruits, vegetables, egg whites, soy products, skinless chicken breasts, fish, shellfish, nonfat dairy and 95 percent lean meat. Eliminating sugars, starches and animal fats from your diet but keeping the protein will allow you to burn fat while not burning muscle, according to Dr. Dawn Jackson Blatner.

5

Drink eight glasses of water per day. You need to stay hydrated and drinking plenty of water will prevent you from confusing thirst for hunger.

6

Throw out all of your unhealthy foods. This will prevent you from being tempted to break your diet. You can also write down everything you eat, which could make you feel more accountable for your diet.

7

Nibble on fennel seeds, ginger, parsley, peppermint, pineapple and yogurt with honey. According to Dr. Blatner, these foods will make you feel less bloated and will make your stomach look smaller, even if you didn't actually lose as much weight as you were hoping.