Everyone wants to know how to lose weight fast and effortlessly.

Many spend hours spinning their wheels and never get traction, moving themselves towards reaching a specific goal. The biggest problem I’ve seen in this area is a lack of momentum. This can be applied to may areas of life. Weight loss is no exception. Momentum is the key. It takes time and persistence to build, but once it’s going, it’s hard to stop.

There are many ways to skin a cat. There are many ways to get from point A to point B. Just like those two examples, there are many ways to lose weight fast. Some ways are more efficient than others, but most methods that are recommended work. The biggest key is to keep going with it and let the momentum build. This article is about how to lose weight quickly, but time is relative, so we’re going to focus on a safe and sustainable way to do it.

There is no way to achieve anything worth achieving over night. If it’s worth any value at all, it will need to be earned. There are so many fad weight loss solutions flooding the TV, social media, and radio (okay – maybe you don’t listen to the radio, but you get my point). The truth is, many of these fad weight loss diets or schemes really do work… in the short term. The problem is that they are rarely, if ever sustainable, and sustainability is everything, because who wants to lose 20 pounds, only to gain it back after being satisfied and getting off the fad diet. They key to lasting success is sustainability, and it can be achieved relatively quickly if done right. Below, I’ve outlined 5 steps to follow that will teach you how to lose weight quickly, safely, and never gain it back.

Step 1 – Set a Specific and Realistic Goal

Goals that get achieved are SMART – specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time bound.  An example of a weight loss goal should be like this:  I will lose 20 pounds in 3 months by eating 1800 calories a day consisting of 40% protein, 30% fats, and 30% carbs. The goal can be more specific if you choose, or less specific. The important thing is that the goal is SMART and you track your progress as you go.

Step 2 – Construct a Nutritional Plan

Everyone has different nutritional needs due to variations in metabolism, height, weight, gender, genetics, hormones, etc. With all that said, the underlying principle on how to lose weight fast doesn’t change from person to person. A calorie deficit is all that is required. It’s simple – your burn more calories than you consume. The basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the amount of calories you burn at rest – it is your daily maintenance caloric needs. If you consume that amount of calories, without exercising, you will neither gain fat or lose fat. To calculate your BMR, check out this tool here. If you use bodybuilding.com’s BRM tool, take the result with a grain of salt. There are several factors that are unique to you that a tool like that can’t account for. Now that you know your daily caloric needs, subtract a few hundred calories from that, and use a tracking app like myfitnesspal to ensure you’re hitting your daily calorie goals. If you feel that you’d like to get expert advise on specifically what foods and macro-nutrients would be best suited for you, check out my coaching plans for an option that meets your needs.

Step 3 – Develop a Workout Routine

While nutrition is the most important thing to get right when it comes to losing weight, having a solid workout regiment can make the process go much faster, and you’ll enjoy many other benefits from the physical activity as well. Many people have this misconception that lifting weights can make a woman look manly. This couldn’t be further from the truth. The only women you see with muscles to rival those of strong men are likely taking steroids – plain and simple. Women simply don’t have enough natural free testosterone to get a manly look from lifting weights. If you had to chose one over the other, lifting weights for women is actually a better strategy than doing cardio. This is because muscle burns more calories than fat. The more muscle you build, the faster your metabolism will be, hence you’ll burn calories more effortlessly.

Commit to exercise 3 to 5 days a week, and stick to it! Just like nutrition, momentum is key. Whatever you choose to do, stick with it! Once again, if you’d like to get expert advice on how to build a workout routine that works for you, I include this in my coaching plans as well.

Step 4 – Let the Momentum Build and Check for Sustainability

So now, you’ve got a goal. You have a nutritional and exercise schedule.  Now you want to know what to do to get the most out of your efforts. Stick with it! Keep going! You’ll have strings of days where you’re really seeing the results, then you may feel like you’ve hit a wall, and there’s been no progress for a week. That’s the game we play. It’s like hitting a wall, and the wall doesn’t budge, but when you hit that metaphorical wall, you put a dent in it that you can’t see. If you hit it a few more times, it will come crashing down, and it will me so worth it!

Sustainability is absolutely critical for your weight loss journey. It is easy to get hyped up about making a positive change in your life. You decide to go all out, and then 3 weeks into the new diet, you give up because it is too hard. You want to make a lifestyle change, not go on a diet. Diets don’t last. It is important that you like the foods that you eat, and you’re satisfied with the amount you eat. This is the trickiest part. Try different recopies that fit your macro-nutrient goals and have real food ingredients – there are thousands of these recopies available for free all over the internet!

Step 5 – Track Your Progress

The only way to know if you’re making progress is to keep track. I recommend myfitness pal, as mentioned earlier in this post for tracking calories, macro-nutrients, measurements, and body composition. Take progress photos. Weigh yourself at the same day and time on a weekly basis. Don’t do daily weigh-ins. This can be misleading due to varying levels of water retention, and measure your body composition. Keep a record of your progress in chronological order so you can see where you were and compare to where you are. When you see the progress, you will have the momentum and motivation to keep it up and see your ultimate goals all the way through.

If you only get one thing out of this post, let it be this:  whatever plan you come up with to lose weight, make sure the plan is something you can do long term – something you can make into a lifestyle. When you can enjoy the food you eat and you find satisfaction in your exercise, you have the right combination to build momentum and sustainability. Make the decision to stick to something today. Within weeks you’ll be so far ahead of everyone else who didn’t do it. I’m here to help. I’d love to hear from you about where you’re at in your weight loss journey, and if you need help, I can be your guide. Now go out there and get some momentum!