When California resident Raul Robles topped 344 pounds, taking time to find the best weight loss program around wasn’t really on his priority list.[1]
He knew he was obese. But after years of packing on pounds he was used to it.
Order fast food a couple times a day. Burgers, fries, a little extra from the dessert menu. And then there was his standard 2-liters of soda a day.
He wasn’t exactly looking for the best weight loss program available to tip the scale in the right direction.
And then something happened.
When you’re overweight or obese, it’s the kind of thing people try and pretend won’t happen to them.
But it happened to Raul.
He was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
He needed to do something about it. But what?
If only there was a shortcut or some simple way to drop 100-plus pounds and reduce his risk for an early death.
If you’ve ever stepped on the scale, looked in the mirror, or completed a health assessment with your doctor, only to realize you’re fat, overweight or obese, and out of shape, it’s a tough pill to swallow.
But there’s always hope. There’s one simple task the best weight loss programs all share.
Want to know what it is? Read on.
Weight and risk for diabetes
Did you know an estimated 422 million people worldwide have diabetes?[2]
It’s a global problem. And being overweight or obese is a primary cause.
Left unchecked, diabetes can lead to vision loss, kidney damage, heart disease, stroke, poor circulation, amputations, or worse.
But it’s largely preventable with the right food choices, regular exercise, and lifestyle choices.
The diagnoses finally made Raul realize his weight was a serious problem.
He thought about bariatric surgery as a quick fix, instead of following the best weight loss program he could find.
But his doctor basically said, weight loss surgery would be a failure if he didn’t develop better habits.
Now what?
If you’ve been stuck at a crossroads like this, you might not be entirely sure where to find the best weight loss program to get results.
Maybe you’ve already tried and failed at a long list of fad diets, gimmicky exercise programs, and sketchy diet pills to lose weight. And you don’t want to keep making the same mistakes.
So what should you do?
Track your food
That’s it. That’s where you should start.
Forget about all the other advice you’ve ever read or heard about dieting and weight loss.
The best weight loss programs all start with this one simple task.
Keep track of everything you eat. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and everything in between (desserts, drinks, appetizers, etc.)
I recommend using the mobile app My Fitness Pal to track daily calories and macronutrients (protein, fats, and carbs). But there are many others.
When Raul finally came around to the idea that he needed to do something about his weight, he started tracking his diet with the help of SparkPeople.com.
And you know what? It worked. By tracking his eating habits, he quickly learned that he:
- Consumed 5,000 to 7,000 calories a day
- Ate little to no fruits and vegetables
- Drank a lot more sugary soda than water
- Bought most of his meals from fast food restaurants
This simple task changed the way Raul thought about food. It made him stop and think about what he was going buy and eat when he was feeling hungry.
And it set him up for success to lose weight by learning and adopting other healthy habits like:[3]
- Eat a healthy diet (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, low-fat dairy products, fish, and legumes).
- Get at least 30 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise a day. Strength train at least twice a week.
- Lose weight or maintain a healthy body weight.
- Avoid smoking, or quit if you do.
- Manage stress in healthy ways.
- Drink plenty of water.
- Get 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night.
Beginning with food tracking, and learning to adopt other healthy lifestyle behaviors, Raul has lost over 140 pounds and kep it off.
Food tracking works. It’s one reason it’s part of all of my plans to help people lose fat, build muscle, or complete a transformation.
Here’s more proof:
Food tracking doubles weight loss results
In a recent study, researchers followed 1,685 overweight people for six months.[4].
People were invited to track their daily food habits, participate in exercise classes, and attend group meetings. Some did. Some didn’t.
Researchers found that people who kept the most detailed records about their food choices lost twice as much weight as the people who didn’t.
“It seems that the simple act of writing down what you eat encourages people to consume fewer calories,” says lead researcher Dr. Jack Hollis
The best weight loss program begins with food tracking
If you’re on a mission to lose weight, start with tracking your daily calories and food choices. It’s a proven strategy that helps you think about your food choices differently.
Need help figuring out what to eat to lose weight? All of my training plans include meal guidelines, calorie and macronutrient recommendations, workouts, and more to help you achieve your goal.
References
- National Weight Control Registry. (2017). Success stories: Raul Robles. From: nwcr.ws/stories.htm.
- World Health Organization. (2016). Diabetes fact sheet. From: www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs312/en.
- Harvard University. (2017). 7 habits to help you lose weight and keep it off. Harvard Health Publications. From: www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/7-habits-to-help-you-lose-weight-and-keep-it-off
- Hollis, J., et al. (2008). American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Weight loss during the intesive intervention phase of the weight-loss maintenance trial, 35(2):118-126. From: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2515566/.