Engineer Weight Loss

(By: Wired.com)

Do the math

Want to drop 10 pounds in two months? All you have to do is the math, says Autodesk founder and Hacker’s Diet author John Walker. Here’s the skinny:

1. Multiply the pounds you want to lose by the number of calories in a pound of fat: 10 x 3,500 = 35,000.
2. Divide the total by the days you’ll diet: 35,000 ÷ 60 = 583.
3. Calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate 100 calories per ten pounds of body weight
4. Calculate your calories expenditure from exercize
5. Then use the formula (BMR+Exercise)-diet=total allowed calories

Recalibrate your sensors

Try this: One night, eat only half the amount of food on your plate. Wait 30 minutes, assess your feelings of satiation, and then wait 90. If you're still not hungry, you've probably been overeating. Most people grossly overestimate the amount of food they need to feel full, says Dr. David Kessler, author of The End of Overeating. A sensible meal will keep you full for four hours, and a sensible snack, for two. Experiment with reducing your portion sizes, and serve yourself those meals on smaller plates or bowls.

Identify your danger zones

Then avoid them. Overeating is a compulsion like any other. It would be a bad idea for a shopping addict to go near a mall on Black Friday, or for a chronic gambler to book plane tickets to Vegas. Likewise, are you always pulling into the drive-through on your way home from work? Try taking a different route. Replace your clear glass cookie jars with fruit bowls. This goes for friends, as well. If you find yourself commiserating about dieting difficulties over your third beer, suggest meeting for coffee instead. Or a walk.

Don't deprive yourself

Think of long-term weight loss as a long, pleasant stroll, instead of a sprint to the finish line. Concentrate on accruing good habits slowly and painlessly. If you can eliminate 100 calories per day, that can add up to about 11 pounds a year, says Dr. Brian Wansink, author of Mindless Eating. 100 calories - that's less than the calories in a can of Coke! Substitute one glass of water for one can of soda a day, and you're well on your way to permanent weight loss.

Use peer pressure

Let your significant other know your intend to lose weight - they will help by suggesting that you skip dessert and by keeping the cookies out of the house. If you are really a exhibitionist you can now automatically Tweet your weight and your goal every time you step on a scale with WiThings scale

Exercise

A little exercise regularly can go a long way into helping you shed some pounds. At least 10 minutes of exercise a day can do you a world of good. If your workplace is close by, walk or use a bicycle to get to work. If it's too far, a combination of public transportation and walking could get you there; and in the process, you'll also earn points for being concerned about the environment!