If you are a teenager and you want to look your best, learn to love yourself first. Being skinny may boost your confidence but it’s not the primary solution — self-love is. But if you’re determined to shed a few extra pounds, we’re here to save you from making the wrong choices when it comes to weight loss.

Most of the time, the entire weight loss journey goes wrong due to lack of knowledge. If you want to lose weight, go for healthy ways to do so. Below are a few healthy tips for weight loss that you can follow.

Set Some Realistic Goals For Yourself

To stay healthy, losing weight is a great idea. But, your fitness goals must be realistic. If you think you are overweight, cutting down on that excess fat becomes mandatory. However, you must focus on taking your health up a notch, rather than worrying about your body weight. The first step should be to improve your diet and taking your physical activity one level up. That would have a much better effect on the whole. You may idolize someone who is an epitome of fitness for you, but you need to realize not everyone has the same body type. Family support and proper education play a key role when teens aim for weight loss.

Increase Your Physical Activity

To stay fit and healthy, hitting the gym is not mandatory. But that doesn’t mean you should just laze around all day. You should move around often – whether it’s walking up the stairs to get something from your room or walking your dog. It’s not exactly an exercise routine but at least your body is moving. If you want to start light exercises, you should bring some variation; you shoudn’t keep doing the same routine over and over again. Try to increase the intensity every week. This will help you boost your muscle mass and burn more calories. You may take part in an activity that you love doing and get involved in that from time to time. Opt for swimming sessions, play soccer, go hiking, practice yoga, attend dancing classes – do whatever you want to stay active. You can choose anything that enthralls you. In addition to that, gardening and social activities are also pretty effective in accentuating the levels of physical activity.

Add Nourishing Foods To Your Diet

Just forget about calorie content. Select foods which have a higher nutrient density. Any food that teens consume should possess essential nutrients such as minerals, vitamins, and fiber. Remember that you are in your growing period and you need proper nutrients like calcium and phosphorus in your diet more than adults. Additionally, for weight loss, you need fruits, vegetables, healthy fats, whole grains, and protein obtained from chicken, eggs, fish, beans, and nuts in your diet plan. This will prevent you from overeating and keep your stomach full. A lot of studies have suggested that a majority of the teenagers fall short of their daily intake of foods that are laden with nutrients. Hence, you should know what you are eating and make it a point to incorporate all the healthy stuff in your daily diet.

Do Not Avoid Fat Altogether

As you are still in your growing period, you require fat much more than what the adults need. When people are on a weight-loss mission, they have a tendency to omit dietary fat completely from their diet. With that being said, cutting out fat from your daily diet plan can have adverse effects on your health. It’s better to opt for healthy fat sources, rather than totally leaving out the fat. These can be good substitutes for unhealthy fat sources. You can find plenty of these good fat-rich food items in your nearest supermarket, and the list includes avocados, seeds, nuts, fatty fish, and olive oil. Believe it or not, these food items have a huge role to play in weight loss, especially if you are a teenager.

Discard Sweetened Beverages

Cutting down on the consumption of sweetened beverages such as soda, sweet teas, fruit drinks, and energy drinks is one of the finest ways to shed off the extra fat. According to several studies, high levels of sugar eventually lead teenagers to pile on excess weight. Aside from that, the risk of developing acne, cavities, non-alcoholic fatty liver ailments, and type-2 diabetes is increased. Hence, you need to cut back on the consumption of unhealthy beverages.

Losing weight can boost self-esteem and improve your health condition. As a teenager, you must keep in mind that you shouldn’t embrace unhealthy practices just to lose weight. Don’t rush it.