Whether you want to lose weight for health benefits, to fit into certain clothing, or to make weight for a sporting event, some general guidelines should be followed:

• Use healthy eating plans that reduce calories but do not forbid specific foods or food groups.
• Increase moderate-intensity physical activity.
• Develop healthy habits, such as using lower-fat versions of your favorite foods.
• Lose weight at a rate of 1/2 to 2 pounds per week.
• Make lifestyle changes to help keep the weight off.

Incorporating a healthy diet and exercise are an important part of any weight loss plan.  Martial Arts programs at LVIRK Training Center are a great form of exercise to help you reach your weight loss goals.  If you desire more personalized training, the instructors at LVIRK Training Center are also available for Private Training sessions.  Clients have successfully lost a lot of weight and gotten in better shape with the assistance of our trainers.  To schedule a private lesson with any of our instructors, please call (610) 443-5107.    

In addition, a multitude of websites and mobile apps offering weight loss support and services exist to help you in your weight loss plan.  SparkPeople (www.sparkpeople.com) is an elaborate online resource and community that offers a calorie counter and meal plans, fitness programs, motivation system, feedback reports, and a free mobile app. 

Lose It! (www.loseit.com) is a very user friendly site that allows you to track your food calories and exercise.  Lose It! also offers recipes and allows you to connect with friends.  Lose It! allows you to set goals and check the status of your goals.  Lose It! also has a free mobile app. 

SELF NutritionData (nutritiondata.self.com) is a great resource for determining the detailed nutritional information of your own custom recipes.

For fighters over the age of 18 that are trying to cut weight, they should use good weight loss practices as discussed above to lose all but the last 10 pounds.  The remaining 10 pounds can be lost in water weight as long as the weigh-ins are the day BEFORE the fight.  In a future article, we will discuss techniques that fighters can use to safely cut the remaining water weight.