How to Lose Weight Without Sacrificing Your Energy Levels

There are thousands of advertisements that claim to teach you how to lose weight.  However, the secret has been known all along: calorie counting and hard work.  But if you don’t follow proper nutrition while trying to lose weight, you may find yourself lacking a lot of energy.

Here’s how to lose weight, not energy.

Tip #1: Lose Weight by Avoiding Supplements

The best way to lose weight and maintain energy levels is by eating natural foods.  Be careful watching commercials or reading in magazines about the next wonder weight loss pill or drink.  Even if an artificial supplement can help lose weight in the short term, our bodies can not sustain the loss.

For example, everyone would lose weight by taking laxatives.  I could even make a commercial about how effective your weight loss would be.  Eat whatever you desire and shed pounds!  However, it’s common knowledge that if you take laxatives for a long period of time you will become dehydrated, malnourished, and eventually die. 

Although most supplements don’t have such extreme consequences, most of the time you will not feel up to par, and could really do damage to your body.  So, in order to lose weight and maintain energy, get proper nutrition from natural foods – not artificial ones.

Tip #2: Lose Weight by Resting

Our body gets out of whack if we lack sleep.  From high cortisol levels to weak immune systems, sleep deprivation has some serious consequences.  It may seem common sense to get proper sleep in order to maintain high energy levels, but most people don’t realize how much rest our body actually needs.

As a lifelong bodybuilder, I didn’t see proper muscle gains and body fat loss until I started sleeping at least 8 hours a day.  If your life commands more of your time then that, then you need to focus on your lifestyle rather than energy levels at this point.  Try to get at least 8 hours of sleep per night, 10 if possible.

Another common thing people ignore when trying to lose weight is leisure time.  Rest is not just sleeping, it also means not overworking the rest of your body from muscles to your mind.

People who want to stay fit tend to hit the gym more than necessary, or do cardio for hours on end.  Here is a good example of why you shouldn’t do this – you should work your biceps out once a week, no more, or you will probably over train them.  If you are doing back and shoulder exercises, then you most likely don’t have to work your biceps at all.  For cardio, a daily 20 minute session is enough.  More than that and you may actually experience negative gains!

So, get some rest and leisure to stay energized!

Tip #3: Lose Weight by HIIT

Cardio is a great way to shed pounds.  However, if you are trying to lose weight fast, be careful not to overdo it.  Running an hour a day may seem like a great idea, but your body won’t be able to recover fast enough and you could be doing more harm than good.

The best way to stay energized, lose weight, and still perform at maximum levels is to train by using High Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT.  With HIIT, you usually work about 20 minutes switching from a mild workout to heavy intensity and back.  Do this and you will lose weight faster than before while maintaining energy levels by allowing you time to rest.

Tip #4: Lose Weight by Lifting Weights

One of the most productive ways to lose weight is by weight training and gaining muscle mass.  Muscle is amazing because the more you have, the more calories you will burn by doing nothing!  Muscle burns calories all day long unlike fat.  Also, with weight training, you are in the gym much less than with cardio, so you have plenty of time to rest!

Tip #5: Lose Weight by Eating Right

Proper nutrition is essential for maintaining energy levels.  You want a diet high in protein and complex carbs but low in fat and simple carbs.  Avoid typical grocery store cheapo foods that contain sugar, refined white flours, or other refined grains, as well at saturated fats like pork, beef, and fried foods. 

Instead, eat fruits and vegetables of all colors, lean meats like fish, chicken and lamb, and complex carbs like whole wheat and wild rice.  You’ll notice a difference in your energy levels in no time.

-KW