How to Lose 15 Pounds in 2 Weeks: 7 Tips That Will Change Your Life

Have you ever wondered why stubborn fat wouldn’t go away despite trying different weight loss methods? If you are looking to lose 15 pounds in 2 weeks, you might have come across various celebrity gimmicks, fad diets, and magic pills promising you will lose weight fast.

However, do these solutions work? Losing weight can sometimes be slow and frustrating, but the idea behind it is to adopt a safe and reasonable plan that helps you keep the excess pounds at bay.

If you are on a weight-loss mission, you might have a number in mind concerning the amount of weight you desire to lose, and 15 pounds might be an excellent place to start. Our team assessed what it takes to lose 15 pounds and shed off the extra weight in a healthy way.

Can You Lose 15 Pounds in 2 Weeks?

Instead of asking how to lose 15 pounds in 2 weeks, you first have to ask if it is even possible, and the answer is no. Losing that much weight in just two weeks might be life-threatening.

Dietitians also do not recommend losing weight that fast as it might have adverse health effects.

Also, whether you will manage to keep off the lost weight depends on the method you use rather than the time it takes to lose weight. Aggressive crash diets only cause unsustainable calorie restrictions, which your body fights back against and reclaims the lost weight.

So even though it is possible, doctors do not recommend it. In general, weight loss is a slow, gradual process, and a mix of diet and healthy lifestyle changes can help develop actionable strategies that help you lose weight.

How Fast Can You Lose 15 Pounds?

The typical recommendation for a normal weight loss is 1 to 2 pounds a week, meaning it takes 2–4 months to lose 15 pounds successfully.

How fast you lose this weight is also subjective as it depends on other factors such as having enough sleep, your basal metabolic rate, activity levels, and diet.

The rate at which you lose 15 pounds also depends on what percentage of your body weight 15 pounds account for. Research suggests that gradually shedding 5–10% off your body weight can lead to immense health benefits.

You, therefore, need to eat a low-calorie diet rich in healthy fats and lean proteins and combine it with a proper workout plan to help you burn more calories and create a calorie deficit.

How to Lose 15 Pounds in 2 Weeks: 7 Smart Steps

Though it sounds inviting, it is not advisable to try losing 15 pounds in two weeks. Gradual weight loss is more successful in giving desirable results.

If you desire to lose weight fast, first, you need to understand how it works. Healthy weight loss comes from long-term lifestyle changes, such as adopting a healthy diet plan and workout routine. This creates a caloric deficit that forces the body to burn stored fat.

Below are practical health tips you can use to lose 15 pounds.

#1 Eat more vegetables and fruits

If you are on a high-calorie diet, substituting it with fruits and veggies helps you lose weight faster. When trying to lose weight, you need to be on a calorie deficit.

In their natural state, fruits and vegetables are low in calories compared to the same volume of other foods, which helps reduce the overall calorie count in your diet.

Consumption of more fruits and vegetables is also associated with better weight management and lower obesity risks, mainly because they are energy-dense foods.

Most low-carb fruits are packed with fewer calories than the amounts of vitamins, minerals, and nutrients; hence are more satiating with every serving.

They are also rich in fiber which keeps you satiated and delays hunger pangs, thus increasing the time between eating occasions. They also take longer to digest, and the body expends more energy while resting.

Fiber also helps regulate blood sugar levels. After consuming fiber-rich foods, it is hard for one to experience sugar cravings brought about by eating processed foods.

A diet rich in fruits and vegetables contains antioxidants that help lower cholesterol levels associated with obesity and diabetes.

Fruits and vegetables are nutrient-dense with more vitamins and minerals than other foods with the same calorie quantity. They have enough nutrients to give you an energy boost for exercise and other daily activities.

#2 Make small dietary changes

Restrictive diets that are unbalanced result in short-term weight loss that is hard to maintain. However, making small dietary changes can lead to a healthier lifestyle.

Some of the dietary changes you can make is swapping your junk foods for healthier alternatives. Replacing your bag of chips with an ounce of cheese or a piece of fruit is a healthy and tasty substitute. The fruit’s high water and fiber content will also satisfy your hunger for extended periods.

Other food swaps you can make are munching on high-fiber popcorn instead of cookies laden with unhealthy carbs and drinking water instead of sweetened beverages. Healthy, tasty swaps also help your body fill up on the necessary nutrients to lose stubborn weight.

Chewing gum affects how much food you consume as it stimulates specific gut hormones and reduces hunger pangs hence helping.

Another meaningful dietary change is portion control. People tend to eat more food when consistently offered larger portions. Controlling meal portions helps reduce the extra calories that would otherwise go to fat storage.

#3 Try fasting

Fasting helps lower calorie consumption which leads to weight loss over time.

Regulating the eating window in a day also helps lower cholesterol and blood sugar levels. There are different fasting plans, and for the best results, you need to figure out what works for you best. However, if you don’t know where to start, try the DoFasting app.

The DoFasting app is a personalized intermittent fasting assistant, tailored to meet individual needs as different clients have varying weight goals and preferences.

The app assists its users through customized fasting schedules to keep them on track during fasting. It has all the tools and necessary features to help users reach their goals.

Among the features of this app is an expansive library of over 5,000 regularly updated recipes sorted in different categories. You can save your favorite meals and revisit the recipes later during your eating window.

The diets are unique for people with different needs. The diet options include caloric, ketogenic, vegetarian, Mediterranean, low-fat, gluten-free, and more.

#4 Incorporate strength training sessions

If you want to lose that many pounds in 2 weeks, you have probably thought of increasing your physical activity levels. Cardio exercises are among the most effective ways of burning fat during workout sessions.

Incorporating aerobic exercise in your workout plan also helps burn calories. However, strength training helps you keep burning extra calories even after an exercise session. Strength training helps the body build more muscle, and muscle burns more calories than fat.

Lean muscle also increases the afterburn effect, commonly known as excess post-exercise energy consumption (EPOC), where the body torches calories to repair strained muscles from a workout.

Strength training boosts your metabolism, and since you are likely combining your diet with weight training, you are likely to lose weight quickly. Regular resistance training also helps prevent dieters from gaining unwanted weight, especially harmful visceral fat.

Another addition to your exercise routine for losing weight is high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts. They are more effective in weight loss than moderate exercises like brisk walking. HIIT workout sessions are also brief, hence saving time.

#5 Avoid empty calories

Many packaged foods and beverages contain empty calories with little nutritional value. They only give your body added sugars and solid fats, leading to nutritional deficiencies and weight gain.

Sugary foods like donuts, packaged cakes, and cookies have sugars and solid fats. An ice cream diet is also full of solid fats, and other fast foods like pizzas, burgers, and milkshakes also contain empty calories.

Research shows a direct link between reducing consumption of empty calories from sugary beverages such as alcoholic drinks and weight loss. The average American adult consumes sweetened drinks that add 145 calories to their daily caloric intake. If they consume sweet tea or coke, the calorie count racks up to 350.

Replacing these beverages with healthy drinks like water has a ripple effect and can save you up to 36 pounds of body weight a year. Lemon juice is also known to boost weight loss thanks to vitamin C and antioxidants that help digest food better.

It would be best to replace foods with empty calories with healthy natural sources such as fresh fruits, whole grains, vegetables, low-fat dairy, and lean meats – such as skinless chicken breast – and legumes.

#6 Stop stress eating

Sometimes, people emotionally eat to try to soothe negative feelings and stress. They may even feel guilty after eating this way but fall into an endless cycle of excess eating, leading to weight gain.

Negative emotions may cause an emotional void, and it is believed that people tend to eat to create a false feeling of filling that void. Some factors that cause emotional eating are mixed hunger cues, stress, and hormonal changes.

During stressful periods, some people tend to consume more calories, and it is called emotional eating.

The best way to overcome emotional eating is to find ways to cope with negative emotions and avoid stress. A brisk 2-mile walk or a yoga routine can help you out of emotional moments.

Some studies also suggest that meditation is a treatment for binge eating and emotional eating disorders. Food may temporarily help one deal with emotions, but addressing the cause works better in the long term for weight management.

#7 Eat spicy food

Recent studies show that besides tingling the tongue, spicy foods also help you lose weight. They help reduce your cravings for sweet, fatty, and salty foods. You also feel fuller faster and eat less food throughout the day when you eat spicy food.

In fact, spicy foods are suitable for gut bacteria and improve gastrointestinal health as well as reduce inflammation in the gut, which is linked to obesity.

These foods also help break down fat, reduce the risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol, and temporarily boost metabolism and make you burn more calories. However, as much as you add spice to your food, remember that the goal is to eat a healthy diet to reach your weight loss target.

How Many Calories Should I Eat to Lose 15 Pounds?

The acceptable weight loss rate is 1 to 2 pounds in one week, translating to a deficit of 500 calories a day. Losing weight at a faster rate than this translates to crash dieting. Following a crash diet deprives you of essential nutrients and weakens your immune system.

The rate at which you lose this weight depends on genetics, age, weight, and gender.

To achieve a calorie deficit of 1,000 through eating a low-carb diet alone is an arduous task as most American adults consume between 1,600 to 2,100 calories a day to maintain their body weight.

Eating very low-calorie diets depriving you of 1,000 calories a day would put you below the minimum calorie requirement of 1,200 calories necessary for adequate nutrition. Such a calorie deficit can also create a sense of deprivation, cause muscle loss and make it harder to stick to a diet.

Therefore, an extra calorie burn is necessary from exercising for lasting results. A study showed that people who combined dieting and exercising lost the most weight and were more successful in keeping it off.

Conclusion

Is it possible to lose 15 pounds in 2 weeks? The short answer is no.

The tips listed in this article give you an actionable strategy for cutting off the excess pounds.

Weight loss calls for a holistic lifestyle change if you desire long-term results. It would help strike a balance between your food choices, physical activity levels, sleep, and stress levels.

Slow and steady weight loss sometimes does not sound promising, but it is better for your overall health. Consult with your doctor before starting any diet.