How to lose weight: 6 easy ways to lose weight in 7 days

If you want to know how to lose weight fast and effectively, you have to follow a strict fitness regime. This plan will work wonders especially for people who are looking to lose a lot of weight in a short span of time. Although it's not a long-term sustainable fix, this can help kick-start 2018 on a positive note and provide some motivation to lose (more) weight. You will be able to see results after following these easy tips for just a week.

But before you set out to follow this weight-loss regime, you should know that you are not going to lose pure body fat. Due to the calorie deficit required to burn each kilo of fat, it is not possible to lose 4.5 kg of pure body fat in just one week. Although a lot of the weight you lose will certainly comprise body fat, you will tend to shed kilos by dropping excess water weight from your body. This is because the plan involves lowering your insulin levels and ridding your body of stored carbs that hold water.

Your body can store about 300-500 grams of carbs in the form of glycogen, which is known to hold about thrice the amount of water weight. A reduction in the level of insulin in your body will also result in your kidneys shedding out excess sodium which will ultimately lead to reduced water retention. Apart from reducing body fat and water weight, your body may also shed some kilos due to undigested food and fiber as well as less intestinal wastage in your digestive system. Here are 7 simple steps to follow to lose weight in 7 days:


1. Reduce carbs, increase proteins
A low carb diet could play a major role in reducing the kilos from your body quickly. There are various studies that support the fact that a low-carb diet is extremely effective in helping you lose weight and improve your overall health. You could also reduce water weight and bloating through a short-term decrease in carb intake. If you opt for a low-carb diet, you could begin seeing results on the weighing scale as early as the next morning from beginning your diet.

Protein helps boost your metabolism while also reducing your appetite. Hence, your diet should comprise protein heavy meals to help you lose weight. Reduce starchy carbs and sugars for the entire week and instead, replace them with low-carb veggies. Increase your protein intake in the form of eggs, lean meats and fish.

2. Avoid processed junk food, eat whole foods
Another key to losing weight quickly is to consume simple whole foods. These foods tend to be filling and make it easier to consume lesser calories without making you feel too hungry. So, during the entire week, stick to single ingredient whole foods to help you lose weight quickly. And stay away from foods that are processed or packaged. Remember, lean proteins and low-carb veggies are your go-to foods during the diet.


3. Reduce calorie intake
If you're aiming at weight-loss, one of the most important factors to keep in mind is to reduce calorie intake. The key to losing fat is to eat fewer calories than you expend. So, in order to reduce calorie intake, follow these simple tips:

a. Count your calories: You could use a calorie counting app to know exactly what is in the food you're eating while you're trying to plan how to lose weight. This way, you can keep an exact track of the calories and nutrients you're consuming. b. Reduce the number of your meals: Make it a habit to eat dinner early and avoid eating anything post dinner to help in digestion of your food. c. Cut down on condiments: Certain sauces and condiments are dense in calories. Avoid including those in your routine diet. d. Load up on veggies: Limit starchy carbs and added fats in your plate but load up on fresh and healthy veggies instead. e. Opt for lean proteins: Even while consuming protein dense foods, choose proteins that are lower in fat such as chicken and fish. f. Don't drink calories: Avoid sugary drinks, aerated drinks and sodas during the diet. Instead opt for water and zero-calorie drinks. Protein shakes are good too, but count them as a meal since they are quite filling.

4. Incorporate HIIT in your fitness regime and lift weights
As important as it is to remember that your diet also plays an integral part in your plan of how to lose weight, one of the easiest ways to drop a few kilos is through exercise. You need to be able to achieve a balance between the two to get effective results. The exercises that you could perform during the week are resistance training exercises - such as weight lifting - which lead to a similar amount of weight loss as aerobic training. These will also help you add and maintain muscle mass and strength.

Other workouts such as full body resistance training workouts are a great way to reduce the carb storage and water weight in your body. This will help your efforts of how to lose weight quicker. Weight lifting also has certain advantages such as protecting your metabolism and hormone levels which often tend to decline while you're on a diet. High Intensity Interval Training has also proved to be a very effective method to help lose weight fast.

According to research, just 5-10 minutes of HIIT can be beneficial for your health and weight-loss amounting to five times that of regular exercise. Similar to weight lifting, HIIT exercises can quickly decrease muscle carb stores, and boost metabolism and fat-burning hormones, which are other important aspects of weight-loss.


HIIT exercises can be performed three to four times a week either as part of your regular fitness regime or post-workout. Ensure you're performing these exercises with 100 percent intensity for maximum effect and most sprints shouldn't last more than 30 seconds each.

A few of the HIIT exercises that you could perform are as follows:

Session one could consist of 10 reps of 20 second sprints with 40 seconds rest in between.

Session two could be 15 reps of 15 second sprints with 30 seconds rest in between.

Session three could have 7 reps of 30 second sprints with 60 seconds rest in between.

Lastly, session four could be 20 reps of 10 second sprints with 20 seconds rest in between.

These exercises could be done by running either indoors or outdoors. They could also be applied to a cardio machine at the gym such as a bike, rower or treadmill.

5. Stay active even outside the gym
Increasing your daily physical activity could help you lose weight faster and burn extra calories. Your overall daily activities impact your fitness level to a great extent and also helps combat obesity and weight-loss. If you're doing a desk job as compared to a manual job, your sedentary work life could mean that you're unable to burn up to 1,000 calories per day. This amounts to the same as 90-120 minutes of high-intensity exercise at the gym. You could incorporate simple lifestyle changes such as walking or cycling to nearby destinations, taking stairs instead of elevators, standing more often or even helping out in household chores. You'd be surprised at the calories you could burn by following these simple changes.


6. Try Intermittent Fasting
Another great way how to lose weight is by following intermittent fasting. It helps you reduce calorie intake since it involves reducing your food consumption to a short span of time. Intermittent fasting could include a 16-hour fast with an 8-hour window to consume food or a 20-hour fast with a 4-hour window to consume food. Try fasting at a different time from your work out if you plan on combining fasting and exercise for effective weight-loss.