How to Lose 25 Pounds in Three Months

Fit couple enjoying salads and smiling.

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Did your doctor recently advise that you take serious steps to shed some pounds? You're not alone. Whether it's to improve health or quality of life, boost their mood, change their appearance or a combination of all three, millions of people are working hard to lose weight and reach their goals. The good news is that losing 25 pounds in three months is an ambitious but realistic goal if you're committed to succeed. Here's some advice to get you started.

The key to achieving lasting weight loss is to follow the established safe guideline of 1 to 2 pounds per week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Crash diets are unhealthy, and the weight you lose is likely to come back when you resume a normal diet. To lose 25 pounds in three months, you'll need to significantly reduce calories; however, with some smart dietary changes and increased exercise, you can make your goal while maintaining good health.

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DIET

Step 1

Download the free LIVESTRONG MyPlate calorie tracker app for iPhone and Android has helped millions of people lose weight the healthy way — by getting support from an active community as they track their eating and exercise. Here's a guide to using MyPlate to reach your goals.

Step 2

Build a meal plan that meets your calorie target, and place the emphasis on nutrient-dense foods like lean protein, fruits and vegetables. Nutrient-dense foods are those that pack lots of micronutrients into foods that are low in calories. MyPlate can help you determine which foods are best.

Step 3

Cut the empty calories first. When you evaluate what you eat each day at your current weight, you're likely to find big savings just by reducing the unnecessary items. For example, you can cut your daily calorie intake by up to 350 calories just by skipping the once-daily soda and the mocha java special from your local coffee shop.

Step 4

Eat three meals per day, and budget one to two snacks into your calorie target. Cutting calories should never mean skipping meals. Food is fuel, and your body needs consistent input to keep your metabolism humming. The steady intake will help you deal with unexpected cravings.

Step 5

Measure your portions. Once you've established your calorie target, accurate accounting is a must. "Eyeballing" what you think is a portion is a recipe for disaster.

Step 6

Track what you eat, and remember that a bad day does not mean all is lost. You can make up the excess calories from one bad day slowly over the rest of the week through exercise and additional calorie cutting.

Exercise

Step 1

Perform moderate-to-vigorous cardio exercises such as jogging and swimming 30 to 60 minutes per day. Use an online calorie calculator like MyPlate to estimate the calorie burn you get for various activities. Remember, not all exercise happens at the gym. Physically demanding weekend chores, like yard work, are significant calorie burners.

Step 2

Train your muscles twice weekly by lifting weights or doing pushups, V-ups, squats and chinups. These activities build muscle tissue, which helps increase your metabolism.

Step 3

Vary your workouts to help prevent boredom and prevent overuse injury. For example, use a stationary bike one day, then take a brisk walk up hilly terrain the next.