How Lose Weight In 6 Months

Kia Jeffers was excited to start a new fitness program in March 2020: She had signed up for a nine-week Beachbody course, taught by trainer Autumn Calabrese.

She had made arrangements to help her two kids get to school on time so that she could be at the workout studio early in the morning and committed to working out five days a week for the entirety of the program.

I gained a lot of weight finishing my post-doctorate degree and getting on to the job market, and in the process my commitment to yoga and other activities kind of slacked off. I was eating really unhealthily. I weighed too much, I didn't like how I looked, I felt uncomfortable in my skin, Jeffers, 46, told Health; when she started the program, she weighed 197 pounds. I was like 'I need help', this is a program that focuses on getting fit in a healthful way, and I was willing to prioritize myself to get that done.

Dubrow Diet: How I Lost 40kg In 6 Months

She was excited to start the course, but things quickly changed when the coronavirus pandemic hit the country, shuttering gyms and cancelling the classes. Jeffers was even more affected than most: She is a nurse who has spent much of the pandemic doing COVID-related work with underserved populations in community settings.

However, a virtual version of the course soon became possible, and soon Jeffers was doing the course at 11:00 P.M. after finishing shifts at work.

I started the program right when COVID became a big thing, and everything around me felt like chaos, with my children transitioning to virtual school and work transitioning, and this was the one thing I could control, Jeffers said.

Weight Loss Diet Plan: Woman Loses 5 Stone In 6 Months

Jeffers said that the at-home workouts wound up being even better than a studio class, because she was able to get out the stress of the day before going to bed. The thirty-minute daily classes incorporate density training, tabata exercises and other constantly-changing regimens.

You're not just doing one move over and over again, Jeffers said. ...It works your whole body, you're sweating two minutes into it, and working along with Autumn (Calabrese) is really motivating, because she's like the Energizer Bunny. I love the variety and the intensity and the result. I felt like I was not only dropping weight, but I was getting stronger and I had more endurance.

Jeffers loved the nine-week program so much that she did it twice more after completing her first round. In total, she lost 39.6 pounds in just 27 weeks, something that she attributes to both the regimen itself and the healthy eating habits that she reestablished.

In 6 Months M/24. My Secret? Diet And Exercise. Want To Lose About 20 To 30 More, But Hit My Goal For The Year.

You're seeing how you're progressing as you go from week to week, she said. You see that you can do more reps or lift heavier weights as you get further. ... You're seeing your progression as you go along, in addition to losing weight.

Jeffers said that she would recommend that others who are looking to lose weight try to find a similarly structured program that helps them stay on track.

Getting with a structured program is good, because you don't have to think about 'Oh, is it leg day, is it ab day, am I doing the right number of reps at the right amount of weight?' Starting with no-brainers as much as possible is important, she said.

Month Diet Before Weight Loss Surgery

The program also let her connect with others who were doing the same regimen, which she said is another thing people should seek out.

Joining with other people who are committed to weight loss or fitness or mental health and wellness, it feels less isolating and can be a source of motivation, said Jeffers, who added that she and her friends connect over Zoom while on walks. ...As exhausting as the workouts are, working along somebody who's motivating and knowing you're connecting with other people is its own support system.

Kerry Breen is a reporter and associate editor for , where she reports on health news, pop culture and more. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from New York University. Like most people who want to lose weight, Matt Ellengold was good at procrastinating when it came time to do something about it. He knew he'd let himself go a bit, and that he needed to show himself more self-care, but couldn't seem to dig himself out of his funk.

How To Lose 6 Kilos In Six Months

The self-loathing just built—and the realization of how much I'd let myself go physically was depressing, he says. I even moved into an apartment block that had gym facilities, and I said every day that I'd go tomorrow, and tomorrow that never happened. I promised myself I would change my diet, eat more healthily, and it didn’t happen. Ellengold, 38, who lives in London and works as an investor relations professional in the private equity industry, admits that fear played a big role—his confidence was low, and he felt self-conscious about his body in the gym.

One afternoon, after going for a walk in the park with his brother, he looked at some photos from their day together. I thought, 'wow, that's me?' he says. It really sunk in then—that I had to do something about this. Ellengold's therapist helped give him a nudge, too: For a number of years, he asked me what I was doing for exercise, and of course I wasn't doing anything, Ellengold says. Once again, his therapist urged him to change that before their next appointment. I couldn't go to see him again without having done something, Ellengold says. That was the turning point.

It was June of 2018 and Ellengold, then 37, weighed roughly 240 pounds. Unsure of how to get started, he decided the first step would be to admit that he needed some help. After some Googling around, he found a nearby gym—Ultimate Performance—that seemed to specialize in dramatic body transformations. As he scanned through the list of men and women who'd gone from overweight and out of shape to resembling full-blown fitness models, he thought it all looked too good to be true. I was skeptical that it could happen for me, he says. Maybe for these people, but not something I’d be able to do.

M/21/5'11” [235>203=32lb Lost](6 Months)lost Weight Due Depression. Excited To Be Playing Rugby Again This Fall To See How Well I Do. I'm Focusing On Being Fit Rather Than Losing Weight Now, Any

After an introductory session with his trainer, James Ellis-Ford, Ellengold was told that if he committed to the plan offered to him, he could realistically get himself down to 185 pounds and 12 percent bodyfat in as little as 24 weeks. I thought he was crazy, Ellengold says. He showed me some photos of what I could look like, and he might as well have shown me a unicorn. Ellis-Ford explained some basic principles of weight loss—including macros, and how much protein Ellengold would need to shoot for in a given day. Then they got to work.

Ellengold's regimen involved training three days a week with UP, and doing cardio on his own time to continue building up a caloric deficit, shooting for at least 10, 000 steps per day. After the first workout, Ellengold recalls, he thought he was going to collapse: I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t do anything. I was physically wrecked. James said, 'You’ll always remember your first session now', and he was right. I can still remember it. Ellengold also tracked what he ate using the MyFitnessPal app, and he bought a Fitbit to track his steps. After a few months, he bumped up his training to four times per week. After 24 weeks, he was doing four or five sessions a week and averaging as many as 18, 000 steps daily.

The steady progress kept Ellengold feeling motivated: He was losing weight and generally feeling better. I started to believe that maybe this mythical, too-good-to-be-true transformation could actually happen for me. In the end, Ellengold met his goal—and then some: After 24 weeks of training and eating healthier, he'd lost more than 60 pounds, and his body fat dropped from an estimated 35 percent to a super-lean 10 percent. When I showed the before and after photos, everyone was stunned. If I could have seen those photos before, I would not have believed you, he says.

Lose 20 Lbs In 6 Weeks By Eating Clean

More importantly, Ellengold adds, his mental health has improved considerably—he feels more comfortable in his own skin, and his self-esteem has risen, too. The positive side-effects have been immeasurable. For someone that has battled depression for 20 years to now regularly look forward to getting up in the morning...The training and diet have given me structure and discipline, and I now have control over what I put in my body.

Naturally, when people see the dramatic transformation that Ellengold underwent, they have questions about how to get started on their own path. Ellengold's first piece of advice: Don't be afraid to ask for help. Set clear, attainable goals—long and short-term. The momentum will help instill confidence. Nothing for most of us is easy—it’ll take hard work, dedication, and sacrifice, he says, but the payoff could be immeasurable. Don’t compare yourself to anyone else. Just aim to be a better version of yourself every day.

Mike Darling is an executive

How To Lose Weight In 6 Weeks