A Half Hour Guide for Weight Loss

Losing weight by overhauling your diet and exercise routine can be a daunting task. Even if you know that controlling your weight helps reduce the risk of obesity, heart disease and diabetes, it doesn't make it any easier to do. Fortunately, you don't have to commit hours at a time to successfully reach your weight loss goals. A half-hour each day can help you burn calories and create the deficit needed to drop those unwanted pounds and get healthy.

Cardiovascular Exercise
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that adults get at least 2-1/2 hours of cardio each week. If you break this amount of time into daily chunks of 30 minutes, you'll have no problem reaching this goal. To keep a half-hour workout from feeling infinitely long, choose exercises you enjoy so that you're more likely to do them for 30 minutes each day. Walking, swimming, dancing, biking and team sports are good options that burn calories for weight loss. For example, a 160-pound person can burn nearly 300 and 150 calories, respectively during a half-hour basketball game and a half- hour bike ride.

Intensity
Part of what influences the number of calories you burn during cardio activity is your level of workout intensity. The CDC recommends a moderate to vigorous intensity to maximize your calorie burn for weight loss. While working out at a moderate pace, you'll feel slightly winded, but you'll still be able to hold a conversation. It's important to keep up your pace for the full half hour otherwise you could wind up overestimating your calorie burn, which can negatively impact your weight loss efforts.

Strength Training
MayoClinic.com recommends two or three weekly strength training sessions, each one lasting for 20 to 30 minutes. You won't have to commit a half hour every day, but adding strength training to your routine helps build lean muscle mass. This translates to a faster metabolism, which can help you lose weight effectively. Lift weights, use resistance bands or do body weight exercises, such as squats and push-ups, suggests MayoClinic.com. Allow a day of rest between each session so your muscles can recover and repair.

Diet
Committing at least half an hour each day for planning and preparing your meals and snacks can help you control your calorie intake for weight loss. Write down your meal plan for the day so you can balance the amount of fat and calories you consume. Consider keeping a food journal, which holds you accountable and helps you discern behavioral patterns that interfere with weight loss. Knowing what you'll eat each time you get hungry can help you drop excess weight by preventing you from making poor diet choices in the future.