With the new year just around the corner, many of us have started working on our New Year’s resolutions.
While we are all in different stages of life, many things remain the same about the human experience—one of which is the desire to live a healthier lifestyle.
For many, weight loss is an essential indicator of healthy living, and we want to achieve that goal as quickly as possible.
The question, “How can I lose 10 lbs in 2 weeks?” is one of the many that arise from the desire for fast weight loss.
With so many lose-weight-quick weight loss hacks out there, one would wonder if reaching your body goals in a few days is possible and, above all, if this achievement is sustainable for the long term.
Before committing to such a goal, please review this article to learn more about the risks and possibilities associated with this approach.
Unfortunately, contrary to the promises of weight loss detox diets, it is not possible to lose 10 lbs of fat in just two weeks (14 days).
This promise of rapid weight loss is usually a fad to get you to buy into programs that involve eating too little and exercising too hard, leaving you:
Those who end up seeing some drastic results from such restrictive and excessive programs find themselves confused by what they did wrong when, just a few weeks later, all the weight comes back.
Many hope to lose 2-4 pounds of body fat in 14 days. However, rapid weight loss is bad for physical and mental health and is not sustainable in the long term (1).
According to the CDC, slow but steady weight loss of just 1-2 pounds a week is healthier and more sustainable.
With this slower rate, experts guarantee you will have a much better chance of keeping the weight off than those who could lose weight much faster (2).
Yes, a 10-lb weight loss is noticeable. The quickest way to tell if you’ve lost weight is usually to step on a scale and see the number go down from where it had initially been.
However, if you do not prefer to weigh yourself, you may notice the loss simply through the fit of your clothes.
Outfits that did not fit you before can start fitting, and those that fit you comfortably may begin to feel a little loose.
You may also notice a difference in your appearance in old pictures compared to new ones. In some areas, you look visibly smaller.
Facial weight loss can also indicate a 10 lb weight loss.
Study findings published in 2015 stated that it takes women and men, respectively, approximately 8-9 pounds of weight gain or loss for the change to be noticeable on the face (3, 4).
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There is no magic trick to losing 10 lbs or any other weight quickly.
You need to fix your diet, exercise, and be patient, giving yourself ample time to lose weight.
Here are the three main things that you must consider if you want to lose 10 lbs and keep it off:
A daily caloric deficit is a must.
If you do not count calories, start today—we recommend the BetterMe Health & Fitness App for this.
A reputable calorie counter app helps you see how many calories you consume and calculates how many calories you should consume to reach your desired goal in the desired timeframe.
Researchers recommend starting with a deficit of 500 to 750 calories less than your daily average (5).
Aside from how much food you eat, you also need to consider the food quality.
Fast foods are delicious, quick, and convenient but they are among the top reasons why many people – both adults and children, suffer from being overweight and obese (6, 7).
Empty calories and excessive sugar, trans fat, and salt lead to weight gain in all demographics.
Minimizing such foods in your diet and replacing them with whole plant-based foods within your recommended calorie deficit will aid with weight loss (8, 9).
Read more: Calorie Deficit Diet Plan: Why And How Eating Less Can Help You Lose Weight
Can you lose weight without exercise? Absolutely.
But does exercise help the weight come off faster? Yes, it does.
Health experts often recommend changing their diet and eating at a deficit because this change is optimal for weight loss.
Without it, the entire process becomes more challenging, if not impossible.
However, increased physical activity yields better and even faster results as it helps with calorie burning.
In a study published in the Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Disorders, researchers found that combining diet and exercise alone, or combined with exercise for weight loss, produced the best results.
They further stated that combining a hypocaloric diet with resistance training was more effective than all other weight loss options (10).
You can do resistance training exercises twice weekly, which include:
The CDC recommends a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise 5 days a week for better health and weight management (11).
If you do not sleep enough, you will not lose as much weight as you want in the desired (realistic) timeframe. Research shows that failure to sleep enough negatively impacts weight loss efforts.
Not only does lack of sleep lead to poor dietary choices, but it can also slow down metabolism, leading to weight gain/obesity and even the increased risk of diabetes (12, 13, 14).
Experts recommend that adults sleep 7-9 hours a night for weight loss and good health.
As mentioned above, no one, regardless of gender, can lose 10 pounds of body fat in just 2 weeks. You need to allow yourself 5 to 10 weeks to do so.
As mentioned above, you cannot lose 10 pounds of fat in 2 weeks with or without exercise.
While it is possible to lose weight without exercise simply by reducing your calorie intake, 2 weeks is too short for this goal.
Check out this article if you are curious about how to lose 10 lbs in a month.
BetterMe: Health Coaching app helps you achieve your body goals with ease and efficiency by helping to choose proper meal plans and effective workouts. Start using our app and you will see good results in a short time.
A girl can lose 2-4 pounds of weight in 14 days.
To achieve this goal, she must:
While cardio exercises are great, she must add resistance exercises to her routine. Resistance training or weight lifting won’t make her bulky or look like a man. Weight training is excellent for toning muscle and increasing one’s metabolic rate, which helps with fat loss.
4. Sleep for at least 7-9 hours a night
Read more: 4-Week Diet Plan to Lose 10 Pounds and Keep Them Off for Good
Most people who insist on rapid weight loss often confuse water loss with fat loss. Exercise helps remove water buildup, mainly through sweat, which they mistake for fat loss.
Some other ways to quickly flush out any retained fluid in the body include:
1. Reduce Your Salt Intake
Research shows that consuming foods high in salt leads to fluid retention through urine concentration and by making you drink more water (15, 16).
Reducing sodium intake will prevent you from drinking as much water as possible. Still, it will allow the kidneys to excrete sodium as required, eventually helping flush out the excess water.
2. Reduce Your Carb Intake
Research shows that increased carb intake can lead to some fluid retention in the body (17). Researchers theorize that this happens because the body stores carbs as glycogen in the muscles bound to water (18).
Simple carbs are also said to cause an insulin spike, which leads to sodium reabsorption in the body (19).
As we’ve seen above, more sodium in the body means more fluid retention.
Consuming carbohydrates in moderation and switching from simple/refined carbohydrates to complex/whole carbohydrates can reduce fluid retention.
Some sources claim you should expect to lose 10-12 pounds in just 17 days through dieting. This claim is untrue. According to the guidelines by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2), if your diet, physical activity, and sleep are as they should be, you should expect to lose around 4-6 pounds in a 17-day timeframe. It depends. A loss of 6 pounds is more noticeable in people who did not start with much extra body fat. If you have more body fat, you might have to lose 10 pounds for those around you to notice the difference. Yes, you can. As mentioned, the recommended weight loss for long-term results is 1-2 pounds per week. To do fasting correctly and above all, safely, you should:Frequently Asked Questions
How much weight can I lose in 17 days?
Is losing 6 pounds noticeable?
Can you lose 1lb a week?
How to do fasting correctly?
The simple answer to “How can I lose 10 lbs in 2 weeks?” is that you cannot if what you are expecting to lose is body fat.
Losing body fat in a few days is impossible, leading to unhealthy weight loss tricks and frustration.
While you might see success stories online, please beware that these may be fabrications or simply water loss results paraded as fat loss.
Proper body fat weight loss takes time and effort. Instead of hoping to ‘beat the game’ through unhealthy tactics, change your mindset and timeline to give yourself and your body enough time to lose this amount of weight or more.
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