In two weeks there’s a major event coming up that you want to look great for. Unfortunately, you’re not quite “there.” There’s no easy way to lose weight, and the things you’ve been doing have resulted in weight gain or no results. Weight loss comes down to one simple fact: Create a caloric deficit. A pound of fat is made up of 3,500 calories.

If you want to lose 10 pounds, that is 35,000 calories to lose from your body in just two weeks.

In order to lose 5 pounds in one week, you need to be in a calorie deficit every week of 17,500 calories (5 pounds: 3,500 x 5 = 17,500 calories). That turns into a deficit of 2,500 calories per day (17,500 calories / 7). In other words, you have to WANT IT!

Step 1

Set a goal. Setting a realistic goal will make it simpler to stay focused and on track in the next two weeks. Four pounds in two weeks will take lots of discipline and commitment, but it is an achievable goal–unlike 15 pounds.

Step 2

Learn your TDEE. Total Daily Energy Expenditure is the number of calories you burn per day. Create a caloric deficit from this value. To figure out this number you must first calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate or BMR, the rate at which your body naturally burns calories.

The formula for men is: 66 + (13.7 X weight in kg) + (5 X height in cm) – (6.8 X age)

The formula for women is: 655 + (9.6 X weight in kg) + (1.8 X height in cm) – (4.7 X age)

To get the TDEE, multiply by an activity factor. For sedentary people, with little to no exercise, it’s 1.2; Lightly active, exercising one to three days,1.375; Moderately active, exercising six or seven days a week, 1.55; Very active, exercising every day and sometimes twice a day, 1.725.

Step 3

Eat more often. Eating five or six small meals a day will help to keep your appetite under control and prevent any binge eating at meals. Start your day with breakfast, mid-morning snack, lunch, mid-afternoon snack and dinner. You should be eating something healthy every three hours.

Step 4

Drink more water. Dehydration can actually cause your body to retain water, which gives you a bloated look. Drinking glasses of water before a meal helps to decrease hunger, and according to research at Virginia Tech, can also increase your metabolism for a brief period of time.

Step 5

Get moving. Start being more active to burn more calories. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that a healthy adult should be doing at least 90 minutes of cardio activity a week.

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