Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 3: Eat less carbohydrates and sugar
• Method 2 of 3: Get more active
• Method 3 of 3: Make sure your body retains less water
• Tips
• Necessities

To lose half a kilo you need to burn about 3,750 calories more or eat less than your body needs. To lose seven kilos in three weeks, you will have to eat about 2000 calories per day less or burn more. You burn more than five of the seven kilos by exercising and eating healthier. The remaining two kilos are probably water.

To step

Method 1 of 3: Eat less carbohydrates and sugar

1. Get the whole family involved. If your family is still sticking to the wrong eating habits, it will be difficult to cut back on your own calories. Encourage your family to eat a healthy diet and to be active together.
2. Try to get less carbohydrates and more lean proteins. Make sure your meals never contain more than 40 percent protein. You can do this by ensuring that the carbohydrates you eat consist of root vegetables and whole grains. Eat as little or preferably no refined carbohydrates at all.
3. Download an app that will help you keep track of your calories. With apps like My Fitness Pal Free Calorie Counter you can keep track of exactly how much you eat of food products. Because the app is on your phone, you can see how much you have already eaten and how many calories you can still eat that day. Research shows that keeping a food diary is a good way to encourage weight loss.
   • The reason a food diary can help is that people who write down what they eat are more aware of their own eating behavior. Keeping track of what you eat will likely help you make smarter choices.
   • Use the app to see how many calories you can safely eat less. Your goal may be 1000 calories per day, but in the app you will see that it is not wise to give your body so little nutrients. Women should eat no less than 1,500 calories and men need a minimum of 1,800 calories a day. If you're already taking in about that many calories, you probably won't need to adjust your diet, but your amount of exercise.
   • Keep in mind that more exercise will likely make you hungry.Eat healthy snacks regularly and consider splitting up your meals so that you eat more often and stay full throughout the day.
4. Never skip meals. People who skip meals teach their bodies to store fat. Breakfast is especially important. Make sure you eat enough in the morning and that you have a healthy snack two hours before you exercise. It is best to eat a full meal after exercise, as your metabolism is still running at full speed and you will burn calories faster.
5. Drink only water, green tea and coffee for three weeks. Avoid adding high-calorie sweeteners or whole milk to your coffee or tea. Alcohol, soda, and high-sugar coffee can contain up to 200 calories per glass.
   • Research shows that coffee speeds up your metabolism.
6. Follow the 40/40/20 rule. This means that 40 percent of your daily diet consists of healthy carbohydrates, 40 percent lean protein and 20 percent fat. Follow the following guidelines to compose meals:
   • Make sure that at least 20 percent of your healthy carbohydrates come from fresh products. For example, eat spinach, red potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, celery, carrots, bell peppers and other nutritious vegetables.
   • Try replacing some of the whole wheat pasta and bread you eat with legumes such as chickpeas, black beans, or plover beans. Grains like quinoa and wild rice are better for you than whole grain bread.
   • Eat lean proteins such as egg whites, cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, salmon, tuna, chicken fillet, turkey fillet and other lean meats.
   • Go for unsaturated fats such as olive oil and avocado, peanut butter, nuts and seeds instead of butter and animal fats.
7. Take 1 day off from your diet every week. Make sure this is not the same day as the one you do not exercise. Try not to overeat, but allow yourself on this day to eat the products you miss.

Method 2 of 3: Get more active

1. Cycle or walk to work. If this would take too long, you can still provide extra exercise by parking your car further away or, for example, getting off a bus stop earlier. Try to add 15 to 30 minutes of activity to both the outward and return journeys to work.
2. Try to exercise for 1 to an hour and a half every day. Take 1 day off every week for optimal results.
3. Do not try to sit still for more than 3 hours at a time. Research shows that people who spend more than 3 consecutive hours sitting daily have a lower life expectancy. Also try to stay active on the weekend by gardening, exercising, walking, shopping or playing with your children.
4. The minimum of 45 minutes of high-intensity cardio training 6 days a week. Make sure to do both a warm up and a 5 minute cooldown. During your training, alternate 4 minutes of medium intensity training with 1 minute of high intensity.
   • Repeat this until you get to the last 5 minutes.
   • Increase the number of high intensity minutes as your strength builds up.
   • Research shows that overweight people should do a few weeks of cardio training before starting strength training.
   • Aerobics is an ideal sport to burn fat.
   • If you like to keep moving by walking, try climbing some hills during your walk. By alternating hills with flat stretches, you achieve the same as with high-intensity interval training, as long as you don't take regular breaks.
5. Exercise with weights for 30 to 45 minutes every other day. Hire a personal trainer to figure out the right exercises for you. You can get your own weights at home, but you can also use the gym.
6. If you get bored in the gym quickly, sign up for an intensive fitness training. For example, go for boot camp, yoga, aerobics or body pump. These classes usually last 45 minutes to an hour. In addition, both strength training and cardio are often part of the training.

Method 3 of 3: Make sure your body retains less water

1. Drink plenty of water. Drinking more during and after exercise will help flush out excess water and salt in your body.
2. Do not eat too much salt for 3 weeks. By eating a lot of salt, you will retain water. Instead, use other spices such as chili, cumin, and garlic to flavor your meals.
3. Go to the sauna. Try to sweat away some excess water 20 minutes before weighing. Remember, you will need to replenish this water after your weigh-in to stay healthy and hydrated.

Tips

• Keep in mind that losing weight has its ups and downs. No matter how well you keep track of your calories, no matter how much you exercise, you'll likely lose more weight one week than the next. Many people lose a lot of weight during the first 2 weeks of a diet and then stay at the same weight. Lifting weights and high-intensity interval training can help boost your metabolism and help you lose weight.

Necessities

• Weights
• Coffee
• Water
• Sauna