Bump Up the Calorie Burn

How to lose weight by being more active.

By Martica Heaner, M.A., M.Ed., for MSN Health & Fitness

This week you're going to help your weight loss along by increasing your overall energy expenditure.

The plan for Week 3:

Eat six meals or snacks every day. If you are on a strict diet and/or you eat infrequently, you're not maximizing what is known as the thermic effect of food. The process of eating, breaking down and absorbing nutrients in food usually accounts for 8 percent to 10 percent of your daily energy expenditure, or about 200 to 400 calories for the average active person. Eating too little or waiting long periods between meals can minimize the effect. Some experts speculate that eating small, frequent meals has the potential to speed up your metabolism.

Keep in mind that eating protein with carbohydrates seems to induce a greater thermic effect—getting sufficient protein along with eating more "good" carbs tends to make you feel satiated, so you'll eat less and still feel full. And the greater amounts of fiber in the less-processed carbs crowd out extra calories. That helps your body burn more stored energy, and you'll therefore lose more weight. Continue to log everything you eat this week and how many times you eat. Make sure to meet a quota of six times per day. Read this week's Eat Smart tips; you can also track your eating habits on My Wellness Center.

Be more active all day. You can eat more if you move more. But to avoid gaining weight, you'll have to eat less if you don't move much. So the key to avoiding the starving-yourself feeling of deprivation that you get on many diets is to be more active. If you're more active, you can eat and feel satisfied, but still control your weight.

Burn more calories by walking. Exercising at higher intensities increases your burn rate, which is one reason why the Walk-the-Fat-Off routines include intervals of walking faster or more vigorously. And exercising harder provides another payoff: After a longer, high-intensity workout, your body stays revved up, burning extra calories even after you've gotten off the treadmill. A post-cardio afterburn could mean a loss of anywhere from 15 to 50 extra calories on top of what you burned while exercising.

This week's routines include more high-intensity intervals. Push yourself to work as hard as you comfortably can. Simply walking fast may be intense enough if you're new to exercise. If you're a seasoned walker, slipping in a few seconds of jogging or stair climbing may give you the boost you need. Challenge yourself a little more this week. (See "Walk the Fat Off" to the right.)

Go to Week 4: Keep from Slipping Up

Lose 10 Pounds in 5 Weeks

Go to Week 1
Go to Week 2

Go to Week 3

Go to Week 4
Go to Week 5
Join the discussion!
Sort by:
1-4 of 4
Saturday, October 24, 2009 10:39:14 PM

I switched to eating 6 small meals a day at specific times about 5 months ago and have lost 26 pounds. 8am, 12n, 2p, 4p, 6p, 8p worked well for me...

 

This method of eating has definitely sped up my metabolism. I have all but abandoned this way of eating while on vacation for a couple of weeks with absolutely no weight gain. I was astonished! It is an awesome lifestyle change. I do not consider it a diet because i can eat whatever I want to...I consider it educated eating with portion control!

 

Good luck!

Thursday, October 22, 2009 6:13:42 AM
Sad I am so unhappy with my weight and diet.
Stuck in a rut is, I think, my quote of the year.
Will try this.

Sunday, October 18, 2009 10:20:34 PM
PLEASE HELP ME! I AM 5'2in , 185lbs I HAVE TO LOSE 40lbs TILL DECEBER 2009.I HAVE A KNEE PROBLEMSad.
Tuesday, June 02, 2009 4:29:44 PM
WOW! yOUR ADVICE REALLY HELPED. I stopped eating after 6 and in 2 weeks, I lose 3 pounds along with walking everyday for about an hour. Thank you so much.
1-4 of 4
To add a comment, pleasesign in
Week 3//Bump Up the Calorie Burn

Week 3: Bump up the calorie burn with these workouts. Each day this week, perform the recommended activity. Modify the routine if needed. On days with two routines, you can do them separately or combine them into one workout.

If you are using a pedometer, remember to increase your end-of-day step total by the recommended number. This will encourage you be more active all day long, not just during your workouts. If this is your first week using a pedometer, you'll need to figure out the average number of steps you take each day. If you are already following the routines, you can safely jump in at any point midway and aim for the pedometer quotas.

Download the Just Starting routine (pdf).
Download the Regular Walker routine (pdf).

Martica Heaner

The "Lose 10 Pounds in 5 Weeks" diet and exercise plan was created by Martica Heaner, M.A., M.Ed.

MSN Health & Fitness does not provide medical or any other health care advice, diagnosis or treatment.



IMA Winner 2009