There are a lot of people out there looking to lose weight.
In this article, we’ll explain how much weight you can lose in a month, the difference between fast weight loss and sustainable weight loss, and some tips for losing weight the right way.
HOW MUCH WEIGHT CAN YOU LOSE IN A MONTH
You might be wondering how much weight you can lose in a month. The answer is, it depends. It depends on your genetics, your eating habits, how much weight you want to lose compared to your current body weight, and your activity level.
Each of these variables is going to play a role in weight loss and not all of them are going to be equally important to everyone. For example, an obese person looking to reach a healthier weight is going to have to focus much more on developing healthier eating habits than the college wrestler who needs to make weight.
For most people, there’s a more important question to ask.
Rather than asking, how much weight can you lose in a month, you should ask yourself how much weight you should lose in a month.
Chances are unless you’re a high-performing athlete who needs to make weight, you’re looking to permanently lose it. If that’s the case, you should be more concerned with sustainability than speed.
SPEED VS SUSTAINABILITY
You can lose weight in one of two ways. You can lose weight quickly or you can lose it sustainably.
Although it is possible to lose weight quickly and keep it off, most people find it hard to rapidly lose weight and maintain it. That’s because the changes you need to drop a lot of weight quickly are hard to maintain in the long-run.
If you need to lose a few, quick pounds to make weight or fit in a wedding dress, you can certainly get creative with your weight loss and make that happen. But if you’re looking to permanently lose weight, focus on developing healthy, consistent habits and try to lose the weight over a longer period of time. This will increase your chances of keeping the weight off.
HOW MUCH WEIGHT IS TOO MUCH WEIGHT
Again, this answer is going to change from person to person. Some people can more easily lose weight than others. On average, however, most people find that they can lose between 8 and 10 pounds a month if they adhere to their new, healthy habits.
If you decide to do what many do and severely limit calories and do hours of cardio, you will be able to lose a lot more weight. You could probably lose your 20 pounds in a months time, but it’s bad news if you do. You see you will burn away valuable metabolically active muscle and fat. This means you are basically shrinking yourself and will look the same or worse as you do now, just smaller. Here’s the kicker, when you come off that diet you will gain all that weight back, plus some.
You know why? Because you will have burned off all your valuable calorie-burning muscle in the process of dieting for this trip. Which means not only will you gain all the weight plus some back, you will have a hell of a lot harder time losing it next time. Hence, the term yo-yo dieting.
TIPS FOR LOSING WEIGHT
TheNational Weight Control Registry is a self-reported database of people who have lost at least 30 pounds and have kept it off for a year or more. They’ve highlighted some of the most common methods their participants used to lose weight and keep it off.
Here are some of their most important findings.
Eat breakfast every day – A majority of their participants eat breakfast every day. Not only is breakfast important, because it kick-starts your metabolism, but it can keep your body satiated for a long time. That means you’re less likely to binge on an unhealthy lunch or snack in the middle of the day to keep you going. Eating more calories in the morning may seem counterintuitive, but the eggs and oatmeal you eat still have fewer calories than the burger and fries you’ll have for lunch if you skip breakfast.
Weigh yourself once a week – A majority of survey participants weighed themselves once a week. Weighing yourself weekly is often enough to help you monitor your weight but infrequent enough so you don’t feel discouraged every day. Weight loss is rarely a straight line. There are days that you lose weight and days that you don’t. Weighing yourself once a week gives you an overall idea of the direction your heading rather than a daily play-by-play. If you weigh yourself weekly, then you’ll only make weight loss course corrections when they’re necessary.
Stop watching TV – A majority of participants reported that they watch less than 10 hours of TV a week. It’s not that TV makes you gain weight, but living a sedentary lifestyle does. If you’re looking to lose weight, try standing up and moving. Even if you’re not exercising, you can still enjoy other hobbies that don’t include sitting for long periods of time.
Exercise daily – 90% of participants said that they exercise at least an hour a day. But remember, exercise looks different to different people. For some people exercise includes working out and running, but for other people, it means nature walks or yoga. The point is, people are getting up and moving with intention every day.
DO WHAT WORKS FOR YOU
No matter what you decide to do to lose weight, it’s important that it works for you. If watching TV while walking on the treadmill is helpful, do that. If you prefer going outside to hike and camp, do that. If it’s cutting out bread and pasta, do that.
The most sustainable way to lose weight is a method you enjoy. If you love your cycling class, you are much less likely to stop and therefore more likely to keep the weight off.
Long-term weight loss is about long-term life changes. Experiment with different weight loss techniques until you’ve find something that you enjoy. Find something you can see yourself doing indefinitely.
1ST PHORM CAN HELP YOU REACH YOUR GOAL BODY WEIGHT
Whether you’re looking to lose weight for a short period of time or you’re looking for sustainable weight loss, 1st Phorm has a variety of nutritional supplements that can help you achieve your goals.
From our line offat burners to our pre and post-workouts, our 1st Phorm nutritional supplements will help you meet your weight loss goals.
Check out 1st Phorm’s various supplements today.
SOURCE: https://1stphorm.com/blog/much-weight-can-lose-month/
*This post was written by Will Grumke. He is a NASM Certified Personal Trainer, NASM Certified Fitness Nutrition Specialist, NASM Certified Weight Loss Specialist, NASM Certified Behavioral Change Specialist, and CrossFit Level 1 Trainer.
