In this article I will go over the types of weight loss programs that are available to do as well as list some pros and cons of each. Hopefully, that information will help steer you in the right direction so you can determine which is the best option for you and your unique personality and needs.

Before you start any type of weight loss programs, though, make sure you talk to your doctor. For one thing your doctor can probably offer you some recommendations but if not, she can at least guide you in regards to any limitations you may have so your weight loss is done safely.

Now that that is out of the way, here are some ideas of some programs you may want to consider:

1. The pre- packaged food program. This is pretty straight forward; you sign up and you get fully prepared meals delivered right to your door. The companies claim that the meals will allow you to lose weight because they are nutritious and have the perfect combination of lean protein, fats and carbs as well as just the right amount of calories.

There are several such plans like this available, two of the most well known are Nutri-System and Seattle Sutton (which I have personally used and found very good).

When you are trying to decide between one or the other, make sure you carefully check out all the types of food plans, what is included (how many meals), the price including any shipping or handling costs, what their cancellation policy is in case you aren’t satisfied and the actual calories and nutritional benefits of the meals themselves.

2. Meeting type programs. These have been around for a long time and most people will immediately think of Weight Watchers. This is a type of diet plan where you not only get ideas of what types of foods to eat and in what quantities, you also get help from others who are trying to accomplish the same thing.

This approach allows you to interact with each other and keep each other focused and moving forward. Since you are all trying to lose weight, there are no feelings of embarrassment or awkwardness.

And, there is no public weight in! If you go to an actual meeting (though now you can get access to the materials online if you prefer) you will be weighed but it is 100% private and no one will see or know what your weight is.

How many times have you considered joining a gym, for example, only to feel out of place and get intimidated by all the hot bodies they have on the commercial? I know I have.

When you are trying to lose weight you don’t want to be reminded of what you aren’t (yet) you want to be surrounded by others who look about the same way you do, right?

There are many weight loss programs available today but before you sign on the dotted line you need to read the fine print. You need to know what it is, what it isn’t and what to do if you aren’t satisfied. Making an informed decision will allow your weight loss to be a dream come true instead of a nightmare.

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Exercise is the best way to burn calories to lose weight and if you choose running weight loss can be even more successful. Running is one of the most efficient, non-extreme sport ways to lose weight and accept for the cost of a good pair of running shoes, it is free to do.

Depending on your weight, running weight loss will burn about five calories for every liter of oxygen you breathe. Men will generally burn more calories than women because they generally weigh more. Say you weighed 265 pounds, you would burn about 166 calories per mile. They say on average 100 calories get burned every mile. Yeah, if you weighed 150 pounds, maybe. Someone who is heavier than that will naturally burn more calories over the same time period because they have to work harder than someone who only weighs 150 pounds.

Running also burns more calories than walking. There is information out there that states that running and walking burn the same amount of calories. I never thought this thinking was correct because you do work harder when you are running than when you are walking. Unless you are power walking, that is.

Power walking will actually burn more calories than running because you use your body completely differently while power walking and your body actually works harder because you are making it move in a way that it is not accustomed to moving.

I don’t know if you know this or not but there is a difference between your total calorie burn, or TCB, and something called your net calorie burn, or NCB. Your NCB is calculated by subtracting your resting metabolic calories. These are the calories that you would have burned anyway during the same amount of time even if you had not been exercising.

So, let’s do the math. If you weighed 265 pounds and then ran one mile you would have burned a total calorie burn of 166 calories. But now, to get your net calorie burn you have to subtract your resting calories from that number. Your resting calorie burn is about 20 calories for the same amount of time as your workout. So, subtract 20 from 166 and you get 146 net calories burned. Still not a bad number and that is only for one mile. If you build up to five miles a day then just imagine how fast the weight would come off.

Ok, here’s some more math for you. You need a calorie deficit of 3500 calories a week to lose one pound of fat. So, at 146 net calories burned per mile you would have to run about 24 miles per week to lose that pound. Sounds a little intimidating but when you think about it that is less than five miles a day. Actually it is only about 3.5 miles per day. I think if you paired your running weight loss with a nice low-fat, low-carb meal plan you might just be able to eke out a couple more pounds per week. too.

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Before you start losing weight it is a good idea to prepare yourself on several fronts. Making sure that the motivation factor is present is one of the first things but most importantly you should learn to use a weight loss calculator to make sure you are burning more calories than you take in each day.

The process is simple. First calculate the amount of calories you need every day. For most people, to lose weight, you should consume 1200 to 1500 calories per day. The calculation is easy. All you do is input your height and weight and level of activity then do the math.

This weight loss calculator will tell you the amount of calories you need to be able to maintain your current weight. Since you do not want to maintain your current weight, you want to shed some of those pounds then you need to take in about 500 calories less than what that calculation gives you.

Next, calculate how many calories are in each serving of food you eat. You may have to practice at measuring out just exactly what a serving size is to get good at it. Make sure you are accurate and aren’t sneaking in just a little more here or there. Those little sneak-ins will add up and all of a sudden you will wonder why you are not losing the weight you want anymore.

Go buy yourself a book that lists calories for servings of food that do not come with labels like fresh fruits and vegetables, or do a search online. You might be able to find a list for free online. Do the same for eating out and when you do eat out make better choices based on what you learn online.

Know how many calories are in each gram of fat, carbohydrates and protein. This will help you when you figure out the percentages of each one that you need each day. So, keep this in mind: Carbohydrates and proteins have an equal amount of calories in each gram at 4 and fats have 9 calories per gram. Fats should make up no more than 30% of your daily calorie count. Carbs and protein should make up 50% and 20% respectively of your daily calorie intake.

Make sure they are good carbs though. The carbs you get from breads and cereals and sugar are overly processed and you should avoid them completely. Basically anything that is made with “white” products. White flour, white sugar, white rice should simply be avoided. These are all considered bad carbs and do nothing for you accept keep you gaining weight and fat around the middle.

The best way to use your weight loss calculator is to do it all yourself. Keep careful records in a small notebook in your purse or in your car so it is handy when you need to write something down. Maybe you could even get an app for that for your phone so you can keep all the information you need right at your fingertips.

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Most of the talk these days is about losing weight but what if you find yourself in the position of needing rapid weight gain? If this is your case, say, needing to gain weight for a sport you play then you need to do the opposite of burning more calories than you take in each day. You need to take in more than you burn.

How do you make this rapid weight gain work and still stay in good shape to continue playing your chosen sport as effectively as you did before? You will need to be very careful while overloading your body with the calories it needs and maintaining the workouts you need to stay in shape so you build lean muscle and not pack on the fat.

Start by creating a plan or two. One for eating the right kinds of foods to help you gain muscle and one for working out. You will need to balance these two plans correctly to get the results you want. If you don’t know where to start then ask for help from your coach or your parents. Maybe even make an appointment with a nutritionist recommended by your doctor.

Start by figuring out the total amount of calories you need in a day. There are formulas for this kind of thing and then add good calories to each meal until you have a meal plan that will work for you.

If you watched the last summer Olympics seven gold medal winner Michael Phelps, at one point they interviewed him and asked him how many calories he needed to maintain his workout schedule. I believe it was in the range of 10,000 calories per day or something like that. An enormous amount, at any rate.

You may not need that many calories to achieve your weight gain but do not be surprised if you are close to that amount. Keep your meals balanced though, with protein and the right kinds of carbs and good fats. Good fats are the mono and polyunsaturated types found in olive oil and fish.

Keep the proteins lean, protein is needed for building muscle mass. Before you prepare them make sure that you cut off all the fat. It is no good for you. If you like fish then that is a great way to get lots of lean protein in your diet. Shrimp is especially good for you as it has the best source of protein packed into those little bite sized morsels.

The carbs you take in should be good ones also, like whole grain. Change up the cereal you eat in the morning to oatmeal or a whole grain cereal. Stay away from the sugary cereals and the flavored oatmeal instant packets. Too many bad carbs. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables, too.

Use these tips and the advice you get from your coach, doctor, or nutritionist to safely get your rapid weight gain so you can start your next season as healthy as you can with the same competitiveness you had the last season.

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