How to Lose 25 Pounds

I’ve lost twenty-five pounds (11.34 kg) since February. Now, I wear an XS/0 in nearly everything I wear, just as I did when I married my husband a decade ago. My friends and family have all wondered how I did it. When I tell them it was simple (NOT easy), they’re shocked. I’ll tell you my secret: I started eating less and better. That, paired with my active lifestyle and more intentional exercise, meant the weight dropped steadily. That’s how to lose 25 pounds! Read on for my tips and tricks.

Explore 15 Habits That Helped Me Lose My First 15 Pounds in Six Weeks.

Eat Less
1 pound of body fat is the result of consuming 3,500 calories. To get rid of 1 pound of fat, I had to burn 3,500 calories more than I ate. This meant eating less. I calculated my caloric goal with the help of a nutritionist and stuck to it. I focused on eating enough fiber and protein, which kept me from feeling miserably hungry.

Eat Whole Foods
To make healthier choices, I stuck to eating whole foods whenever possible. These are the opposite of processed foods, i.e., things in their natural state like seafood and fish, spinach, fruit, nuts, seeds, berries, and oats.

Processed foods have higher calories, less fiber, less protein, and more additives. Cutting out the middle man (processing) keeps my diet “cleaner,” for lack of a better word.

Eliminate (or Drastically Reduce) Sugar
This was tough for me because I’d gotten into the habit of eating chocolate from Vermont. They sell it in New England Whole Foods, and let me tell you, it’s superb. But, I’d sometimes eat 450 calories of chocolate in a day, which lacked nutritional value and never made me feel full and satiated. So, cutting that and other sugary things out was the first move I made.

Cutting out sweets made hitting my goals much easier because I had calories budgeted for other things like cocktail shrimp, salads with avocado, grilled mushroom burgers, and more that were actually filling. I also had much more energy and stopped bloating as much after cutting sugar.

I hate this worked so well for me, but if you want to lose weight, reducing or eliminating added sugar is a fantastic first step. It was really tough at first, but now I don’t even miss it.

Track Everything
I use the LoseIt! App (paid version – I bought a lifetime subscription around Thanksgiving for $80 USD) and I use it religiously. I track every snack, sauce, and drink I consume. This helps keep me on track.

Before I began tracking carefully, I guessed I was eating around 1,700 calories a day. The first week of tracking everything, whether I liked the numbers I was seeing or not, was shocking! Sometimes I was eating 3,000 calories a day and getting 4x as much sodium as I was supposed to. It’s no wonder I looked puffy and always felt bloated.

That honest tracking gave me a great insight into what I needed to fix. That’s how I discovered I was eating way too much salt and far too much sugar. Some days, I only ate 800 calories. Others, I ate around 3,000. That high and low wasn’t healthy. Tracking helped me identify negative and positive patterns (like eating seafood, fresh, whole foods, and drinking celery juice.)

Lower Sodium Intake
We switched to lower sodium versions of so many things from jams and sauces to seasoning blends and cheeses. Once you know that adults are only meant to have around 2,000 mg / day, but some sauces have 750mg per teaspoon, you begin to realize what’s healthy and what isn’t.

Increase Protein Intake
Eating more protein gave me more energy and kept me feeling fuller longer. I sometimes eat fish and seafood, but mostly I eat tofu and tempeh, rice and beans, lentils, nuts, seeds, and other plant based protein sources. They’re very low in calorie and I can do so much with them that I never get bored.

Eat Plenty of Fiber
Adults need at least 25g of fiber per day. Fiber comes from plants, legumes, and whole grains. Fiber helps with feeling full, much like protein.

Weigh & Measure Carefully
In order to track and discover trends in my diet, I needed to weigh and measure carefully. I use measuring cups and spoons and a scale in every meal I eat at home. At first it’s tedious, but now it’s comforting to know I’m hitting my goals. Realisitcally, it takes less than 30 seconds to weigh and measure things properly.

Don’t Drink Your Daily Calories
Drinking alcohol, soda, and other sugary beverages can really add in the calories. For me, I used to get smoothies or matcha lattes when I was out and I was shocked that some of the smoothies I thought were healthy were full of additives that dialed up the calorie content.

Find Enjoyable Exercise
Exercising wasn’t that fun until I discovered I really like squats, lunges, and doing cardio. When I tried to keep up with my husband’s weight lifting I was always discouraged, way too sore, and I never felt like I was progressing. Finding what I liked and doing that paired with things like hiking, dancing, yoga, calisthenics and pilates all helped me look forward to working out. That made it easier to keep up on.

Workout with Friends
I’ve worked out with several friends regularly, and it’s always more fun with someone else. Even going for a walk with a loved one can mix things up and keep it fun.

Get Outside
If you’re outside, chances are you’re burning calories. We’d swim in the ocean, go for walks or run, hike, bike, and just take the long way and it really helped my mental health while getting me closer to hitting 10,000 steps and my exercise goal every day.

Set-up Rewards
When I lost 5, 10, 15, and 20 pounds I treated myself to new things I really wanted, like a paint set, new workout clothes and equipment, and even a spa day. It really helped keep me motivated! When it feels too tough too keep going, dangle a reward in front of yourself. You’ll find you can do it!

Find The “Why”
Knowing why you want to lose weight and focusing on that goal will help you reach it. I wanted to be healthier, stronger, and feel better about myself. I also inadvertently get treated much better by everyone, even strangers. Brands are willing to pay me more now that I “better align with their marketing strategy” *eyeroll emoji*

Weigh Yourself on the Same Scale
I’ve found that the scale at my gym, the nutritionist and my home were all different. I picked one and exclusively used the one at home. That ensured my weight didn’t randomly “fluctuate”. The number could be slightly off, but the number of pounds I’ve lost is the same.

Drink Plenty of Water
Drinking water is amazing for you. It keeps me full, makes my skin look better and prevents bloating.

Only Eat When Hungry
I didn’t really have a problem with eating when I was bored, but my husband did. He cut that out and he’s now lost 37 pounds! Of course, he also did everything I’ve done, on top of only eating when he’s really hungry.

Closet Cleanout
Something that motivated me was cleaning out my closet when I lost the first 10 pounds. I sold things I didn’t like or that didn’t fit and used that money to buy myself bribes rewards!

Create a Vision Board
I am a very visual person (hello, photography!) so creating a vision board for me was crucial. I included healthy food photos, places I wanted to travel, cute outfits, and anything that inspired me. Looking at it often helped me focus on my goals.

Invest in Cute Workout Gear
When I no longer fit in certain things like leggings or sports bras, I replaced them with nicer, ethically made organic cotton pieces. It gave me something to look forward to! If you plan to lose a significant amount of weight, I don’t recommend doing this all at once unless you’ve reached your ultimate goal weight, but replacing a few items here and there does the brain good!

Wear Proper Footwear
I bought a few pair of tennis shoes with awesome arch support and great cushion (Ons) and they made me look forward to getting active. I have one pair exclusively for home workouts, another for the gym, and a few I wear when walking/running/hiking.

Investigate Allergies
I didn’t know until very recently that gluten-allergies can cause a lot of other issues. My allergist did a few tests and found that rice, gluten, and dairy all caused reactions in me. It’s not enough that I can’t eat rice or dairy like my gluten allergy that can hospitalize me, but it’s enough that avoiding them has further reduced my bloating issues.

If you have food allergies or suspect you might, addressing them can give you clarity, direction, and improve the way you feel drastically.

Get Plenty of Sleep
During sleep our body repairs and strengthens itself. Plus, if you’re sleeping, you can’t eat delicious Vermont chocolates. So, the next time you’re craving something that might derail your goals, consider drinking lots of water and taking a quick nap instead. Also, create a distraction-free sleep environment with black-out curtains. Sleep with your phone in another room or on do not disturb mode.

Reduce Stress / Cortisol
This is really tough. Too much cortisol, a stress hormone, can throw our bodies out of whack and make losing weight more difficult. Reducing stress looks different for everyone, but for me it looked like spending more time away from my computer, in nature, with my husband. It meant setting aside an hour or two every day to just relax and have fun, whether that was reading or playing a board game or gardening, it made a big difference in my mental health. This made me more resilient to stress, increased my self-confidence, and prevented me from falling off the wagon, so to speak.

Eat on Smaller Plates
I love this one. Eating on smaller plates tricked my brain into thinking I was eating more. About a year or two ago, we replaced our dishes with lots of cute ones from Japan and instead of using a huge dinner plate at meal times, I use a small rice dish or a couple tiny plates and eat slower. It really, really helped me!

That’s how to lose 25 pounds! I hope this helps you on your journey!

Follow me on Instagram, YouTube & Pinterest for more!