11 Tips to Lose Weight Fast, Even If You’re a True Lazybones

How often do we start by saying we’ll go on a diet “next Monday” or right before an important event? And we always quit the idea, since we’re not ready to put in a lot of effort. But our steps aren’t so big that they seem impossible: we believe that you can achieve your goal with tiny, yet effective steps. So how can we lose weight by following some simple rules and changing our lives little by little? Let’s find out!

Bright Side has collected some tricks that help people get rid of excess weight without applying an incredible amount of effort.

11. Unnoticeable activity

The main weight loss rule is simple: you have to burn more calories than you consume. Physical exercises can help us a lot, but we often decide to stay home because we’re pretty lazy. Be active during the day and between everyday tasks. Are you watching a TV series? Do some push-ups or squats! Are you brushing your teeth? Do some lunges.

Scientists recommend us to be active after each meal: it improves the digestive process and burns excess calories. Don’t take a seat right after lunch and don’t go to bed after dinner. Take a 10-minute walk and after 20-30 minutes, you can do some exercises.

10. Use umami.

Cooks distinguish between 5 tastes: sweetness, sourness, bitterness, saltiness, and umami.

Umami is the mild taste found in soy sauce, broccoli, mushrooms, and walnuts. It’s said that it has a certain influence on our brain’s receptors and helps us feel full faster. Add some soy sauce to your dishes, but don’t forget there’s a huge amount of salt in it, so don’t go too far.

9. Add spices.

Some spices have a positive impact on our metabolism. Cinnamon, turmeric, red pepper, and ginger are the most popular ones.

If you reduce the amount of salt you consume and add some spice to your diet, you can boost your metabolism. What’s more, spices have other useful features:

• Cinnamon lowers blood sugar.
• Ginger improves the skin and has a great influence on our digestion.
• Red pepper improves the work of the blood vessels and reduces water retention.
• Turmeric reduces inflammation and improves the work of the gallbladder.

8. Drink cold water.

It’s said that the taste of water depends on its temperature. It’s true: the majority of people don’t like to drink warm water but they’d love to drink it with ice. If there are not any contraindications, drink cold water. It’ll make your body burn more calories to warm it up for better absorption. Unfortunately, this activity isn’t that hard for your body (you’ll lose around 8-15 calories if you drink one glass of water), but it adds up and the total amount of calories lost during the day will be pretty significant.

There’s even a so-called “ice diet” that suggests you eat cold food so that your body has to warm it up and spend more calories.

7. Short walks

It’s not that difficult to make yourself walk more.

Park your car a few blocks away from your work or take a walk after lunch on a sunny day. These actions burn calories and improve the work of your blood vessels. Turn this activity into an everyday ritual and you’ll see that you start feeling better.

We think that freelancers should pay even more attention to this advice since it’s so difficult for them to make themselves go outside for no particular reason.

6. Fool your eyes.

One of the most effective ways to lose weight is to reduce the size of your servings. You can easily fool your eyes and stomach.

Cut big pieces into small ones and serve your food on smaller plates so that your servings look bigger than they are.

5. Reduce the amount of calories with the help of apples.

Apples, especially sour ones, stimulate gastric acid production and increase the appetite. But they have an incredible effect: if you eat an apple 15 minutes before meals, the total amount of calories per day reduces by 150-200 calories.

Some nutritionists say that we eat less because our stomach is already partially full, others say that it’s all about the high amount of the fiber which speeds up the metabolism.

4. Remove those foods that you can easily forget about.

Most people start adhering to a diet and then quit it really soon. That’s why it’s important to approach a healthy diet with baby steps. Remove those foods you can live without, but still end up eating trying to overcome boredom or stress.

If you can’t imagine your life without chocolate, don’t stop eating it. Reduce its amount slowly. Remember that small achievements help us to move forward.

3. Use color features.

It turns out that color has an impact on our appetite and the most unpleasant color is dark blue. It’s said that food looks less tasty on blue plates and therefore makes us eat less.

Other colors also have their own features. Pink is considered to be the most fragrant and it can enhance a dessert’s smell. White plates are considered to be neutral, and orange and yellow ones can increase the appetite.

2. Eat vitamins that boost your metabolism.

Why do you think it’s easier to lose weight in the summer? It happens because in the summer, our body is enriched with vitamin D that speeds up our metabolism. If it’s rainy, include vitamin D in your diet by eating more fish, butter, cod liver, and eggs.

By the way, don’t forget about chromium: it lowers insulin levels and reduces appetite. Fish, leeks, seafood, lentils, and beans are great sources of chromium.

1. Odors that help us lose weight

Some odors have an impact on our appetite. There are even several studies proving that this theory works. These studies have proven that people who used to sniff peppermint, apple, banana, and grapefruit odors wanted to eat less.

What’s more, some floral scents also influence our appetite. They include lavender, rose, and jasmine odors. It’s said that they can control our appetite and make us feel happy and calm.

Bonus: Useful weight loss menus

Our whole body (especially, our digestive system) experiences constant stress, so it’s crucial to give it rest from time to time. Nutritionists recommend eating around 500 calories per day once every 1-2 weeks to give your body some rest. Here are some suggested menus — choose the one you like and enjoy your one-day diet:

• Rice. Rinse 5 oz of brown rice and cook it in water. Add a small amount of salt if needed. Eat around 1.5 oz of rice for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You can also have a snack: a carrot, an apple, or a bell pepper.
• Cheese and eggs. If you choose this menu, your breakfast should consist of 1 cup of coffee and 3.5 oz of hard cheese. Your lunch should consist of 2 eggs and a cup of tea. In the evening, eat 7 oz of cheese and a cup of tea.
• Fruits. During a day, you’re allowed to eat around 3 lbs of fruit (except bananas). We recommend buying some apples and eating them together with cinnamon or a few drops of honey.

What tips help you get fit? Share your experience with us in the comments!