Is it possible to lose 75 pounds in 6 months

And only then did I recognize fullness when it hit. Let's get realistic here. No one with 80 pounds to lose is going to feel excited about exercising — I've been there. But all I'm asking for is 20 minutes a day. That's the length of time you spend on hold with the DMV, staring out the window wishing for Madonna's body, or picking up the same plastic toys that your child is going to deposit right back on the floor an hour from now.

If two tens sound more doable, that's okay by me. A brisk minute post-breakfast walk and another just before dinner add up, so grab the mail and keep going. Don't have the right equipment?

Lost your shoes again? C'mon, I find it hard to believe you're reading this barefoot. Put on the most comfortable kicks you have and start moving. You're not going that far today — but the point is, you are going somewhere. Prove to yourself you can get going. Worry about the details later. When I was in college in California, I used to zip around town on a moped. Stopped at a red light one day, I turned to check out a car full of college boys next to me.

Just as I was getting the nerve to smile, one of them looked me dead in the eye and called out, "Fat chick on moped! How I wish I'd been smart enough to turn off or tune out my negative internal dialogue and steady my self-esteem. Burying hurtful comments — whether from people in your life or from inside your own head — under mounds of food only makes you feel worse two hours later. It takes courage to believe you can succeed, but without it, you will surely fail.

There are people who wake up one morning and declare, "Today I'm going to throw out all the junk food, hire a personal trainer, and get thin in six weeks. Yippee for them. I can't relate to those people.

I need constant reinforcement. Halfway through my workout, I need motivation to stick it out until the end. I found that encouragement from the Spinning-class instructor at my local gym. Some of his expressions I've adopted as my own:. You can talk yourself into this or you can talk yourself out of it — your choice. It should come as no surprise that your family may not be thrilled with your commitment to healthy eating. No kid I know is going to be jumping up and down over having kale for dinner, or even broccoli.

And your nondieting spouse may find your new habits confusing. Your job is to not let this deter your efforts. Think of it as leading by example. Don't buy separate groceries. If something's too tempting, don't have it around.

If the troops complain, let them fend for themselves. Hey, any kid who really takes exception to a healthy sandwich can always use her allowance to buy lunch at school. But also remember, just because you have decided to change doesn't mean everyone has to change with you. After all, weight loss is believed to involve implementing an effective exercise program and maintaining a calorie deficit.

However, healthcare providers and dietitians do not advocate such weight loss goals. Instead of that, they suggest healthy and steady weight loss. According to the CDC, healthy weight loss is a slow and steady process that targets shedding one to two pounds in a week 4. Suppose you shed one pound every week.

This will mean shedding four pounds in a month 1 pound x 4 weeks. By six months, you will have shed 24 pounds 4 pounds x 6. If you manage to shed 2 pounds weekly, you will lose 8 pounds in one month 2 pounds x 4 weeks. Within six months, you will have lost 48 pounds 8 pounds x 6. Following this recommended healthy weight loss principle, you will lose 24 to 48 pounds within six months. Not only is it possible, but it is also safe and healthy.

Unfortunately, most people do not want to hear this because they want to transform their bodies overnight. Healthy weight loss within a six-month window will mean shedding 24 to 48 pounds, as we have determined. Any weight loss target above 48 pounds is deemed rapid weight loss. So, losing 70 pounds can be considered quick or rapid weight loss. Dietitians, nutritionists, fitness gurus, and healthcare providers do not advocate rapid loss.

It is associated with several health risks, some of which include 5 :. For you to lose one pound, roughly half a kilogram in one week, you must burn at least 3, calories 3.

You would have to burn , 00 calories to lose 70 pounds 3, calories x 70 pounds by the numbers. It sounds pretty simple, but in reality it is not. It is challenging because you have to remove water, burn fat , and build lean tissue. Sadly, most people only lose water weight. This means the scale will budge in your favor over the first few months but end up not shifting at all over some time. This is to say that for you to lose 70 pounds in six months, you must burn more than 10, extra calories each week.

Despite the effectiveness of various exercise programs in burning calories, you will still not get to burn so many calories fast and safely. The best weight loss strategy, in this case is to consider a safer weight loss program that allows you to burn calories at a sustainable rate. It might mean adjusting this weight loss goal , perhaps by increasing the timeline or reducing the weight loss target. If you are still adamant about losing 70 pounds in 6 months, you can always consider aggressive weight loss methods.

Most of them include eating plans that are very calorie-restrictive. Do not start any of these diet plans with such a goal in mind without consulting your healthcare provider first. They are not always nutritionally complete and may require medical supervision. Here are the aggressive eating plans you can consider:. The military diet recommends focusing on a low-calorie diet for three days and returning to normal eating for the other four days 7.

Your calorie intake is restricted between 1, to 1, calories during these three days 7. There is no standard and weight experts acknowledge that there is no guarantee that you will lose any amount using this diet as we all have different body shapes and metabolisms 7.

When you follow the very low-calorie diet , your calorie intake is restricted to between and 1, calories. Some people may limit their daily calorie intake to calories, posing numerous health risks 6. If I do consume those things, my body will punish me with excess bloating, dehydration, lack of focus and grogginess there goes my productivity at work or performance while exercising.

These are things that I unconsciously accepted before, but which I do not consciously accept now. Mohanta goes on to explain how she erects barriers to mitigate bad habits. Eating the bone marrow inside is a special treat for me something my dad and older brothers and I would fight over years ago when my mom made Ossobuco. When Dr. But what role did exercise play in my journey? It helped me burn more calories than I consumed so that I could lose the weight and eventually control it. There are so many other benefits to exercising, including de-stressing, reducing risk of disease, strengthening muscles and bones, increasing energy levels, regulating various internal systems insulin, growth hormones, sleep, etc.

Walks or runs? Cardio or weights? Yoga or sports? High interval intensity training? What I learned from Dr. Yau and Dr. Mohanta is to simply stay active and change it up regularly. It helps prevent boredom and injury, and shocks the body so it never gets used to the same routine. Finally, I make sure to track my caloric burn and heart rate on my polar heart rate monitor.

Yau my roommate was wearing a funny-looking ring to bed. Unlike any other smart phone or smart device, the Oura Ring uses a combination of Infrared LEDs, NTC body temperature sensors and a 3D accelerometer and gyroscope to give you amazingly accurate insights into:.

Each morning when I wake up, my Oura Ring app gives me a final score after analyzing all of my sleep data. I can repeat the process to get another amazing score to have optimal performance throughout the day. So, I measure everything. My weight in the morning. My calories in and out throughout the day. My pant waist size. My visual appearance in the mirror. And then I record it all in My Fitness Pal app weight, photos.

Am I obsessed? Measuring everything has quickly become part of my daily routine. Once again, I hacked my habits to automate the good ones. When I look back and see that I was carrying around extra weight, it makes me realize how lucky I am. The rewards I now receive on a daily basis encourage me to keep going. Rewards like being fully energized and sufficiently full, receiving compliments on my physical transformation, reflecting on before and after pictures, burning or 1, calories a day while exercising and tracking, and getting a great sleep score.

This is instant gratification. Conclusion Eight simple ideas and a willingness to try. When I look back, I get angry. Why did it take me this long to figure out? The answer? Too many distractions along the way and bad information. Too many disingenuous people and companies that just wanted to sell me unhealthy ideas and products.

But that is not the case anymore. I have finally figured out how to hack my body and unlock its secrets. My body has no choice now but to comply.

To lose the weight.