Various tips can help a person lose weight without going on a strict diet. These include eating more protein and fiber, getting more quality sleep, cutting down on sugary beverages, and more.

People lose weight when they expend more energy than they consume over a period. If a person is at a consistent weight, they must increase activity levels, consume fewer calories, or combine the two to lose weight.

Maintaining physical activity is essential for optimal health. The Centers Trusted Sourcefor Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)Trusted Source recommends that all adults get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week, in addition to at least 2 days of strengthening activities. As such, it is not healthy to attempt to lose weight without exercising at all.

This may lead people to reduce calorie intake to lose weight. However, restrictive diets are often not helpful for long-term weight management and can sometimes be harmful to health.

Eating a nutritionally balanced diet and maintaining an active lifestyle is most often the best way to lose weight. As part of a healthy lifestyle, the following tips may help people lose weight without overly restricting calories.

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Understanding what is in foods, how to prepare meals, and developing expertise in the kitchen can be a powerful way to improve a diet. People who are knowledgeable about cooking different foods may be more likely to eat a wide variety of highly nutritious ingredients, including fruit and vegetables, which are beneficial for weight loss.

Some studies have found links between a lack of cooking skills and the risk of obesity.

Reading food labels can also help people better understand what is in the items they buy. For example, many processed foods are high in salts, sugars, and fats that individuals may be unaware of. Diets involving large quantities of processed foods have links withTrusted Source weight gain.

Therefore, choosing to make whole dishes at home can help people control what goes into their food.

Protein is an essential part of a nutritious diet for growth and efficient metabolism. Protein can increase:

Prioritizing protein can help people feel fuller (satiated) for longer without reducing their overall caloric intake. Satiety may also help individuals limit overeating and snacking between meals.

A person can find fiber in fruit, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains. However, the body does not digest it as easily as other macronutrients. A portion of ingested fiber remains solid throughout the digestive process, forming part of the stool.

Eating fiber may aidTrusted Source in weight loss by slowing digestion, increasing fullness, and promoting gut health.

People can add more fiber into a balanced diet by:

  • eating fruit every day
  • including whole grains in the diet, such as steel-cut oats and brown rice
  • eating plenty of vegetables

Studies also suggest that increasing fiber intake can help people stick to diets.

Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that are integral to digestion. Humans act as the host of these bacteria and provide them with food, including fiber. In turn, the bacteria benefit the intestine and a person’s general health.

The benefits they provide include:

  • energy for the gut wall and liver cells
  • specific fatty acids with anticancer properties
  • a way to help regulate body weight

However, a diet that is high in sugar and fat can alter the balance of bacteria in the gut, reducing the number of “good” bacteria.

Research suggests that probiotics could help prevent or manage obesity as part of a balanced diet.

Probiotics also occur naturally in various fermented foods, including:

Sufficient quality sleep is essential for general health and weight maintenance. Issues with sleep disrupt important hormones, including those involved in metabolism.

Getting less than 7 hoursTrusted Source of sleep a night can increase the risk of overweight or obesity.

Raised stress levels can also disrupt hormonal balance. When a person is stressed, their body produces hormones called glucocorticoids. Chronic stress can increase a person’s appetite, leading to weight gain.

Stress can also trigger emotional eating, which is when a person eats less nutritious foods to try to control and improve a negative mood.

Methods to reduce stress include:

  • reducing caffeine intake
  • practicing meditation or mindfulness
  • saying no to non-essential commitments
  • spending time outdoors
  • trying yoga

The best way to promote healthy, sustainable weight loss is to live a balanced, consistent lifestyle that prioritizes diet, physical activity, stress management, and restorative sleep.

Restrictive diets may lead to short-term weight loss but are often unsustainable and can sometimes be dangerous to health.