When you make the decision to lose weight and get healthy, one of the most difficult parts can be finding information that helps you do it the right way. What is most important about losing weight the right way is finding easy ways to incorporate a healthier lifestyle into your busy life without overwhelming yourself.

{Too much fast food makes it difficult to control portion size and reduce calories.}

To help you make your weight loss healthy and easier, we have compiled 6 easy steps for you to follow. This list is by no means complete, however it will help you learn what you need to do for successful weight loss.

Keep reading to learn how to lose weight the right way!

Gradually Reduce Calorie Intake

Any weight loss authority you visit will inevitably tell you how important it is that you eat fewer calories. This is a well-known truism of successful weight loss. What they don’t tell you, however, is just how to reduce your calorie intake now without coming back for those calories later when hunger strikes.

If you want to lose weight the right way you’ll have to do it the same way you put on weight, a little at a time. If you currently eat 3,000 calories per day it is quite unrealistic for even the most determined dieter to simply cut that in half overnight. You can try, and a few of you will succeed, but most of us will simply eat that other 1,500 calories later in the day, maybe too late at night. This will lead to weight gain rather than weight loss, which will simply make you feel even less confident about your ability to lose weight.

Lose weight the right way by slowing reducing your calorie intake each week. Start with a realistic number like 200 calories, which could simply be replacing a donut or bag of chips with sweet baby carrots. This way you’ll not only get used to eating less food, but you’ll start to learn more about healthy snacks and healthy eating in general.

Keep A Diet Journal

So many dieters frown at the idea of keeping a diet journal, maybe because it feels like a new age diet. The truth is that by writing out what you eat and how much physical activity you get, you can identify the areas you need to change in order to lose weight the right way. When you simply recount what you’ve eaten in your head you’re more likely to conveniently forget things or decide what does and doesn’t count as “food”.

A diet journal isn’t meant to make you feel bad about yourself; its sole purpose is to help you see how much you eat and/or how little physical activity you get so you can see what changes you need to make to lose weight. This will also help you gradually reduce your calories because you can see where you can reduce calories.

The good news is that you don’t have to keep a diet journal forever. Once these easy steps to weight loss become second nature for you, you can tuck that journal away someplace and come back to it only if and when you feel it necessary to do so.

Eat Out Less

According to a 2011 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, 35% of calorie intake in the United States comes from restaurants foods. This statistic shouldn’t be that surprising considering the growing number of obese children and adults in the United States, which is why losing weight the right way requires that you eat out much less than you do now.

Surprisingly it isn’t just what you eat at restaurants that could be causing weight gain and preventing weight loss; it is also portion sizes and inaccurate calorie counts. If you’re eating out more than 2 or 3 times per month then it will be near impossible to get an accurate count of your calorie intake, because the same 2011 study found that some restaurant foods often over or underestimate the calorie count.

This was particularly true for foods that have low calorie counts because these calories were underestimated. By limiting your restaurant food intake, you can lower your calorie count, fat intake and lose weight the right way.

TIP: If you get a craving for your favorite restaurant dish, make a few food substitutions and cook it at home!

Forget “Exercise” & Get Active!

Rather than thinking of exercise as something that must be endured to lose weight the right way, think of it as getting more active. Getting active to burn additional calories doesn’t always mean lifting weights or wearing yoga pants; it just means being more active!

{Outdoor activities that require you to move around can help boost fat burning.}

You can start simple by taking the stairs more frequently or walking more rather than driving. Find ways to get more activity into your day so that you get used to a physically active lifestyle and this will make it much easier for you to begin a traditional exercise program.

The good news is that you can do sports, go hiking or take a long walk through a scenic part of town in order to burn calories. Forget what you think is the only way to lose weight, a more active lifestyle will help you burn more calories, especially when combined with eating fewer calories.

Hydrate

At the risk of sounding like a broken record (because broken CD’s don’t play!) losing weight the right way requires you to drink more water. Not only does water provide a wealth of health benefits, it also can help you eat less calories because it fills you up. A glass of water before a meal can help you eat as much as 150 calories less than normal.

Why else should you drink more water? Well because water is a zero calorie beverage unlike soda, artificially flavored juices and sugary coffee drinks, you get to hydrate your body without all the excess calories. Replace a few of your non-water beverages throughout the day with water if your goal is to lose weight the right way.

Eat In Peace

Distracted eating is as dangerous to your weight loss efforts as distracted driving is to your life. Drop your normal routine of eating dinner in front of the television and sit down at the table so you can focus on your food. Put on some background music but turn the TV off for the 30 minutes it takes you to finish your meal.

{Take your dinner to the backyard so you can eat in peace!}

When you eat in front of the television you’re not conscious of how much you’re eating. By focusing on your plate you can take time to chew and listen to your body when it tells you that your hunger has been satisfied. This is another easy step to reduce your calorie intake.

Besides cut out TV time with dinner, and catch up on your favorite shows while you exercise!

The hardest part of losing weight the right way is reducing you calories, but intermittent fasting may be just what you need to give your fat loss a boost. Learn more about intermittent fasting for weight loss by reading our review of Eat Stop Eat.