Look to these professional-approved weight-loss methods if you’re looking to figure out how to drop 5 pounds in a healthy, sustainable manner.
Anyone who has a long-term weight loss goal is aware of how incredible it is to see the results of their efforts on the scale, as well as how frustrating it can be when that number remains frozen at a few pounds under their ideal weight. Finding a way to drop 5 pounds can occasionally seem more difficult than losing 50.
Lifestyle changes
When you first set out to lose 15, 20, or even 30-plus pounds, lifestyle changes can help you achieve your objectives. For example, switching from your favourite sugary caffeine fix to a lower-calorie alternative or increasing your daily step total from 1,500 to the advised 10,000 steps can both help you lose weight.
Not just a quick fix
Unfortunately, it gets tougher to maintain weight loss outcomes the closer you get to your target weight and the more attention you need to pay to minute, detailed modifications. The advice you see online about how to lose 5 pounds quickly may not be effective in real life and, depending on the methods and what “quick” means to you, may even be unhealthy. Your body has a specific range of [weight] that it prefers to operate within, and as you go thinner, your body becomes less eager to remove the excess weight, he continues.
Not to mention that your basal metabolic rate, or the number of calories your body burns when at rest, will drop as you lose weight. The department chair of the integrative exercise programme and assistant professor of integrative exercise science at Hiram College in Ohio explains that a lighter “you” will require less calories per day to carry out fundamental tasks (like breathing) than you did when you were heavier.
Old hobbies that used to burn insane quantities of calories suddenly don’t provide the same value as you get more fit. For instance, if walking a mile is no longer as difficult as it once was, you must exert more effort or spend longer working out to achieve the same calorie burn.
As you figure out how to lose 5 pounds, all of this may seem discouraging, but remember that the majority of the effort to make your weight-loss objective a reality has already been done by you. You really only need one of these simple, professional-approved methods for how to lose 5 pounds naturally to narrow the gap. (Remember that scale isn’t everything.)
Tip #1: Lift Weights to Lose Five Pounds
Cardio is fantastic, and it may have even assisted you in your weight loss efforts up until this point. (Congrats!) But if you consistently forgo the weight rack in favour of the elliptical or treadmill, you’ll lose out on the special weight-loss advantages that come solely from lifting weights.
Strength training to increase metabolism and construct lean muscle.
Muscle is a metabolically active tissue in contrast to fat. As a result, muscle burns more calories at rest per pound than fat does (approximately seven to 10 calories per pound of muscle tissue per day, compared to two to three calories per pound of fat per day, says Rebold). Put on more muscle and you’ll burn more calories even while you’re not moving.
Just keep in mind that building muscle won’t make you a calorie-burning monster or a way to lose 5 pounds “quick,” so don’t believe your expanding biceps will be enough to keep you from gaining weight as a result of a poor diet or help you reach your health goal by next week. But a little more muscle can make a big difference if your goal is to slowly and steadily tip the scales. And if the weight still doesn’t come off the scale, don’t give up. Because you are losing fat cells and gaining muscle cells, your weight may stay the same, which is good in this case.
How often should I strength train?
Try this: Strength training at least three times a week for anywhere between 20 and 60 minutes is Matheny’s first tip for losing 5 pounds. Compound movements like squats, deadlifts, push-ups, pull-ups, and lunges should be your main focus because they work numerous muscle groups at once to burn the most calories.
As advised by the American College of Sports Medicine, concentrate on muscle growth (also known as muscular hypertrophy) by keeping to sets of six to twelve repetitions with a moderate weight. If you need a strategy, try this beginner’s strength training workout.
Tip #2: Keep a Food Journal to Lose 5 Pounds (and Drink Journal)
Try keeping a meal journal for a few days if you’re having trouble losing the 5 pounds that just won’t go away; you might be surprised by what you find.
Many individuals are unaware of how much a few nibbles here and there may add up to, according to Keri Gans, R.D.N., owner of Keri Gans Nutrition and member of the Shape advisory board. (
Calorie Deficit: What Is It and Is It Safe?
For instance, you might believe you only consume a few almonds intermittently throughout the day. However, once you begin tracking your food intake, you might find that you’re actually grabbing a large amount every time the dish is passed. Consequently, you consume an additional 200–300 hidden calories each day in addition to the recommended one-ounce serving (160 calories).
Be mindful of what you are consuming.
Keep track of your alcoholic beverages as well. According to Molly Morgan, R.D., a nutritionist in Vestal, New York, “having one or two drinks a day or four or more on the weekend — even if it’s light beer or wine — adds hundreds, even thousands of calories to your diet.” These beverages not only add up in calories, but they can also increase the number of calories in your food. “Because alcohol decreases inhibitions, a burger or order of fries doesn’t seem as unhealthy as it would otherwise.”
Although there are many food tracking applications available (including all of these free weight-loss apps), Gans advises clients to keep things simple and record their meals on paper and a pen. She provides a few justifications for becoming low-tech:
Apps for food tracking also compute calories. This degree of specificity might be useful for certain people, but Gans would rather her clients learn about healthy portion sizes as they discover how to lose 5 pounds than precise calorie counts.
When you manually record your meals, you have the chance to pay attention to additional elements including atmosphere, setting, and feelings.
You may utilise this knowledge to become proactive about packing a healthy alternative on days when you have high-stress work meetings, for instance, if you discover that you always choose a quick take-out lunch on those days. According to Gans, keeping a food log can be like playing detective.
Take note of what you consume.
Try this: Grab a pen and a notebook (or, if you prefer, use an app) and begin keeping track of everything you consume each day. Continue until you detect a shift in the scale or a rise in your awareness of your eating patterns, advises Gans. You might discover that you only need to keep a food journal for a few days to see results.
Or it might take a few weeks before you notice a difference. In either event, it’s a weight loss strategy for 5 pounds recommended by a dietician that’s worth trying.
The Most Important Consideration Before Setting Weight Loss Goals
Doing less HIIT is Tip #3 on How to Lose 5 Pounds.
It may seem paradoxical, but if you’re having trouble figuring out how to lose 5 pounds (and keep them off), the solution may lie in doing less rather than more, especially when it comes to HIIT (HIIT).
Yes, HIIT aids in weight loss. According to a study published in the International Journal of Obesity, women who engaged in 20-minute HIIT sessions lost up to 7.3 pounds by the end of 15 weeks, compared to women who engaged in 40 minutes of steady-state aerobic exercise who actually gained up to 2.7 pounds.
But Matheny says that people who want to lose weight often get too excited about HIIT. Additionally, overdoing HIIT can have some unfavourable side effects, such as extreme discomfort and exhaustion, difficulty falling asleep, and lack of enthusiasm, none of which will aid in losing the final 5 pounds.
Matheny also says that HIIT raises the amount of cortisol in the body. Cortisol is often called the “stress hormone.” Over time, a high level of cortisol could make your blood sugar rise and make your body hold on to the fat you’re trying to lose.
Don’t skip your post-workout meal, according to Tip #4 for Losing 5 Pounds.
If you don’t refuel, you can actually hinder your long-term weight loss goals by causing that last bit of weight to cling on for a while.
Of course, you might not feel hungry right away after your workout. According to a small pilot study published in the Journal of Endocrinology, intense exercise sessions (done at or above 75 percent of your maximum heart rate) or lengthy workouts (performed for 90 minutes or more) may decrease hunger for up to 90 minutes after the activity is finished.
That being said, eating after your workouts is crucial, and it can be the cause of your inability to drop 5 pounds.
Your body heals itself when you eat, claims Matheny. You can get the nutrients required to repair your muscles and restock your glycogen stores by consuming a protein-rich snack that also contains a little quantity of carbohydrates.
According to Matheny, skimping on your recovery food can prevent your body from healing or building lean muscle, which will reduce the effectiveness of your subsequent session. (Try one of the 14 wholesome post-workout snacks that personal trainers recommend.)
Aim for 20 to 25 grams of protein and less than 250 calories for your post-workout snack. Limit your carbohydrate intake to no more than 10 grams if your workout is shorter than 30 minutes. Keep your carbohydrate intake around 25 grammes for workouts lasting an hour or longer.
One cup of Greek yoghurt or a slice of toast with eggs are two excellent alternatives. Again, this isn’t advice on how to drop 5 pounds quickly; rather, it’s advice on how to do it gradually and healthfully. As a result, don’t anticipate reaching your target weight right away. (See additional suggestions for pre- and post-workout snacks here.)
Make sleep a priority—Tip #5 on How to Lose 5 Pounds
Regularly skipping sleep affects your hormones in a severe way, leading levels of ghrelin, or “hunger hormone,” to surge and levels of leptin, or “satiety hormone,” to fall. This can make losing those last 5 pounds very impossible.
The owner of Genki Nutrition, Guild Magazine’s food director, and media representative for the New York State Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Jonathan Valdez, claims that people who don’t get enough sleep are more likely to crave fat and sugar, have a slower metabolism and increased insulin resistance, and eat more calories because they are awake for longer periods of time.
For instance, a tiny study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that participants who slept only four hours per night for five nights consumed 300 more calories per day than those who slept nine hours per night for the same amount of time. Even worse, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, the majority of those extra calories came from sources of saturated fat, which elevates LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and enhances the risk of heart disease. (Learn what to eat to get more restful sleep.)
Try this: As advised by the National Sleep Foundation, try to get seven to nine hours of sleep per night. Create a pleasant evening routine without any technology or email to help you fall asleep more quickly. Your brain will receive a signal that it is time for your body to shut down by following a night time regimen.
But Is Learning How to Lose 5 Pounds Really Worth It?
If you’ve followed every suggestion on our list for losing 5 pounds but are still struggling to lose those last few pounds, ask yourself if you’re aiming for an unattainable goal. In the end, your blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels are the ones that need the most attention.
There’s no need to worry about another 5 pounds as long as they are at healthy ranges, especially if you’re eating well, according to Gans. Not to mention, if you’ve added strength training to your fitness regimen, all that extra muscle you’ve gained can make your weight stay the same or even increase.
And it might be time to draw the line if your plan for losing 5 pounds entails eliminating entire food groups and meticulously keeping track of every calorie. Because of this, Gans continues, “Life is too short not to enjoy a French fry.”