Diet and exercise combined are king, together they represent the quickest way to lose weight. How do you burn more calories than you take in?

There’s no need to starve, and in fact periods of starvation such as missing a meal could lead to more weight gain when the body enters “starvation” mode, not to mention starving yourself could cause serious damage to your body. Patience is a virtue when trying to lose weight, as with many endeavors.

Combining a healthy diet with exercise is a long term plan for the quickest way to lose weight. And the best part is you won’t regain the weight.

Diet doesn’t mean a diet, a short term alteration of normal eating habits. Diet means the everyday, day in and day out, for all the days of your life way that you eat. A good diet includes foods from each of the food groups, taken in moderation and the right amounts.

And with a well balanced diet it’s easy to adjust calories down when you need to lose a few pounds temporarily.

If it seems to be a daunting task consider that you likely already eat the foods necessary, just in too large quantities.

Cut down quantities, replace starches with whole grains, and you can still even eat cake while losing weight .

The key to maintaining a healthy diet is planning. When you fail to plan you miss meals, that leads to binge eating. When you fail to plan you often find yourself at the mercy of a fast food restaurant or a friend whose cooking leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to healthy foods.

Plan meals in advance, including for occasions like parties and social gatherings. It only takes a few questions to find out what’s being served and plan the days other meals accordingly to not break the bank for calories. Don’t let a failure discourage you. Sometimes you’ll eat the wrong things. But when you get bucked off get right back on. Get back to the diet.

As for exercise perform 30 minutes of aerobic exercise seven days a week. That’s the goal, don’t worry if you miss a day here or there. Add extra activity such as parking further from the store or office for a little walk, or taking stairs instead of the elevator.

Simple math says good diet plus exercise equals the quickest way to lose weight.