Did the title grab your attention? Good, because if there was any month of the year it should, it would have to be this one.

If you’re anything like most of people in the western world right now, you’re probably feeling very bloated and very guilty.

We say we’ll start as soon as the festive treats lurking about our houses are all consumed, fair enough. But do we really have a concrete plan to work with? Have you actually thought long and hard about how you’re going to achieve it?

Over the years, on these very pages, we’ve looked into an endless number of physical options, methods, techniques and theories. I receive healthy doses of feedback every week from a wide range of readers, from hardcore enthusiasts to inactive people who experienced a spark of motivation to start exercising. This week, however, I feel we truly are all on the same page. We want to lose fat, and fast.

Of the hundreds of people of all shapes, sizes and dispositions I’ve seen over the years, there have been many success stories and many disappointments. What matters to me the most is the common denominators. What gels together the success stories and what is it exactly that they’re getting right? If you want to lose weight fast, read on, because here follow the common denominators that could make the difference between success or failure for you over the coming months.

Let’s kick things off with the cardinal rule: don’t misinterpret the lose weight fast goal. The word ‘fast’ is the culprit. It seems to trigger in our minds a host of other associated meanings.

Stop searching for shortcuts and take responsibility for your own weight loss

‘Quick fix’, ‘shortcut’, ‘secret methods’, to name but a few. Now the problem is that if you have come into your newfound regimen with any of these ideas in your mind, like thousands who have come before you, you are destined to fail.

I’ve never seen anyone with this mentality get anywhere with their efforts without getting frustrated or bitter, and ultimately dropping out along the way. The reality is that anyone can lose fat, and it’s actually not that complicated, but your results will be directly related to the enthusiasm with which you engross yourself in the basic methods without losing heart, or changing your mind along the way looking for something faster or easier. Remember that you and you alone are responsible for your efforts and consequent results, and absolutely nobody or nothing else.

So with the right attitude in place, let’s move on to the second rule. Your eating and exercise habits will have to go hand in hand like wheels of a bicycle if you are to move forward.

Some people believe in dieting, while others believe exercise is more than enough, but the truth is that by focusing on just one of these areas exclusively without the other, you are short-changing yourself and not getting the just rewards you deserve for your work and sacrifice.

Now here’s a statement you’ve probably read or heard countless times: you need to eat healthier food and less of it. You absolutely need to cut out all dirty foods like sweets and junk food or pretty much anything high in refined sugar.

Simple enough, but have you ever actually tried it? No, I mean really tried it. No sweets or junk food means no sweets or junk food at all. I have yet to meet someone who, when grilled, has not admitted to still sneaking in the odd naughty treat here and there.

This doesn’t mean to say you can kiss goodbye to the things you like permanently, because getting healthier is all about lifestyle change and not something you only keep up for a few weeks. But the less the better and didn’t you say you want to lose fat fast?

Keep in mind that losing weight without exercising will drop the kilograms on the scales, but it won’t necessarily give you an attractive appearance. Also, as soon as you stop dieting, you will probably put the weight right back on.

This usually happens because you will have lost muscle in the process too.

With less muscle, you actually need less food, so the moment you eat more again, it’s all surplus, and gets tidied away as body fat, leaving you worse off than before.

As for your exercise, while there is some truth to the philosophy that you can lose weight just by exercising without having to change your diet, it must be noted that in reality this means a colossal load of training.

So unless you’re prepared to put in two to three hard workouts a day or become a professional athlete, don’t adopt this strategy.

There’s nothing wrong with taking up exercise without changing your diet if you want to, as the bene-fits of exercise alone are numerous, but didn’t you say you want to lose weight fast?

More physical activity means more of the food you eat, as well as the food stored away as body fat will be used up. So don’t worry too much about what type of training you do. Enjoy it, and the more of it, and the greater the intensity and enthusiasm, the better.

In short, stop searching for shortcuts and take responsibility for your own weight loss. It’s down to you, nobody else.

Don’t just diet and don’t just exercise. Do both, and do them well. Don’t just talk about it or think about it, do it.

matthew.muscat.inglott@mcast.org.mt