Americans spend more than $60 million dollars on weight loss products and supplements each year, according to U.S. News and World Report.

That’s a lot of people spending a lot of money on weight loss programs and supplements. Many don’t realize the productivity rule of weight loss is 80% behavior and 20% exercise. These simple tips will help you lose weight fast.

Drink water

Drinking water is simple and effective. Experts say we are to drink anywhere between eight 8-ounce glasses and a gallon of water each day. Depending on your body stature that may or may not be enough.

Start the day with water, right after you wake up. It’s a great way to flush toxins and fire up the metabolism, and it will help you eat less too. Drinking a glass of water before each meal will curb your appetite and helps you eat less.

Cut back on grains

This is an area where experts disagree. Grains have been around for thousands of years and people since the dawn of time have been eating grains and have lived to be hundreds of years old if we consult the Bible. Okay, I hear you. And, the grains we ear today are not the grains they ate. The grains of today are altered. Unless you grow your own, the grains purchased in the grocery store are anything but natural. Grains (and much of our food supply) is genetically engineered and modified so that the “thing” we consume is anything but natural.

Eat the right carbs

Carbs are essential. Eating the right carbs is also essential to weight loss. The whole grain carbs from white and enriched flour are the kind that will pack on the pounds. If you are trying to lose weight eat carbs from fruit and vegetable sources.

Carbohydrates break down into glucose. When the body senses glucose in the bloodstream it releases insulin to signal the body to store the glucose. If you’re inactive and a carb addict this can be a vicious cycle. This, is, of course, a simplified version of the scientific process that happens.

Carbs that are fruit and vegetable based as well as quinoa, lentils, and pumpkin are examples of “good” carbs.

Eat fat

Whoa! Hold the phone. We’re trying to lose weight here, not add it.

Won’t eating fat make me fatter? 

Isn’t this counterintuitive? 

Not if you eat the right fats.

Avocados, raw nuts, and olive oil are high in HDL and “good” fats.

A caution against “fat-free” and “low- fat” foods because they often use sugar as a replacement for fat.

Polyunsaturated fats like corn, cottonseed, canola, vegetable, soybean, peanut oil, etc. should be avoided. They are commonly labeled “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated”. Most of them go through processes to make them shelf-stable and unusable by the body.

Eat protein

Eat a little protein every meal. And, if you automatically think this means loading up on meat every chance you get, well…

A nice slab of red meat is okay once in a while, as long as you’re not eating a cowpie.

Consider these alternatives.

• Grass-fed red meat such as beef, bison, and buffalo
• Eggs
• Plain Greek yogurt
• Raw unsalted nuts and seeds
• Quinoa
• Chia
• Quality peanut butter, almond butter, or alternative

Chicken or turkey can also be good alternatives if the food source can be trusted.

Keep good snacks at the ready so you can quickly eat something good for you instead of referring to a bag of chips or empty carbs.

Don’t forget to get adequate sleep.

Is it okay to give in to cravings once in a while? You bet! And, when you have cravings it’s usually your body’s way of signaling for something it really needs.

When good productive habits are in place you are 80% covered for successful weight loss.  It’s really just 20% exercise, which can be easily achieved without expensive equipment or going to the gym.

Agree?

Let me know in the comments.