Lose Weight By Taking Hot Baths

A few months ago I posted a weight loss tip entitled, "Hot Baths Can Burn Extra Calories".

In that article I summarized that by soaking in a hot bath, your heart beats faster, and thereby you burn some extra calories. But at that time I tried to convey that it would only burn just a small amount, not a large amount.

I'm rethinking that now.

For example, yesterday I filled up the tub with hot water (not really hot, but just hot enough to my liking, about 100 degrees F), and soaked in it for 40 minutes. As my body temperature increased, my heart rate increased. Not too long after, I worked up a sweat.

After that, I cooled off by draining most of the water and refilling the tub with cold water. I then soaked in that for about 10 minutes.

I ended up losing 3 pounds that day!

Now, to lose three pounds in one day, I have to burn 10,500 calories (1 pound = 3,500 calories). On top of that, I consumed about 1,000 calories that day. And, I didn't really do any exercises aside from working on my motorcycle that afternoon.

Granted, I have a high metabolism to start off with.

But I think that soaking in a hot bath does more than just raise your heart rate. It must raise your metabolism somehow, and then keeps it running at a high rate for hours after that.

I also wonder if draining the hot water and immediately refilling it with cold water does anything too?

I don't want to suggest that you'll lose 3 pounds in one day by doing this. You may only lose 1 pound, or 1/4 of a pound. Who knows, each person is different.

But I'd like to encourage readers to test this out over a period of time and see if you find similar results, or can discover some patterns.

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Have a Walking Meeting

If you work in an office, you probably attend meetings. And if you're in a managerial position, you have a lot of them.

So make a suggestion to your fellow meeting participants, and do a walking meeting.

Walking meetings are where the meeting is conducted while walking. You go outside, and walk around the building, through downtown, or wherever. Walking meetings generally go at a slow pace.

If your company has the money, and is willing to spend it, set aside a room for treadmills. Then conduct the meeting at a walking pace on the treadmills.

It sounds off the wall, but believe it or not, they're increasing in popularity. Offices have found that when employees get energized, they take on a positive attitude, and that translates into increased productivity and creativity.

In fact, the Japanese discovered this many decades ago. In the mornings, before work got started, they required everyone to do some stretching and calisthenics. Americans saw this as ridiculous, but it was enough to give workers a more positive attitude. And now, American office places are rethinking this.

But your office doesn't have to buy treadmills. A walking meeting outdoors works fine.

I remember in my office working days, once in awhile we'd have an "outside meeting", where we just stood outside the building and talked. Just the standing alone burns calories.

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Hitting the Weight Loss Wall

The "wall" in weight loss refers to when you can't seem to lose anymore weight. Even though you think you have more weight to lose, it just seems to get harder and harder to lose.

First of all, it makes sense. The less body mass you have, the less calories your body needs.

So if you want to lose even more weight, you have to cut back the calories even more, and exercise even more. The skinnier you get, the more you have to diet and exercise.

That's why it's important to know what your body mass index (BMI) is. Read my article "How to Calculate Body Mass Index". If you're already within the range of 18.5 to 24.9, you're already considered to be optimal. Losing more weight will make you underweight.

If you're within that range, and you still see fat on your body, it's probably not fat, but extra skin and flabby muscle. A lot of people complain of their pooch belly. It's actually just your intestines pushing against your weak flabby abdomen, and further exacerbated by extra skin on your gut. That's where abdominal exercises come in.

But if you're still above the optimal BMI range, and you can't seem to lose anymore weight, consider that if you're muscle-bound, it will put you at a higher BMI even though you have little fat on your body.

If you're not muscle-bound, and still above the optimal BMI range, then you need to reevaluate your diet and exercise regimen. A lot of people think that they're eating healthy, but don't fully understand how the body metabolizes foods and burns calories.

For example, fruits are good for vitamins and fiber, but they introduce a lot of sugar into your bloodstream. Sugar causes your body to stop burning fat. You may be eating too much sugar. Eating some fruits is good, I still eat them. But eating a lot of fruit will make it tough to lose weight. Read my article, "Carbs Are OK, Just Not Sugar", to learn how sugar ruins a diet.

Also stay away from fruit juice! Read my article, "Eat Fresh Fruits, Not Fruit Juice".

One really great way to get past the "weight loss wall", is to put more focus on lean meats. Eat them for breakfast. If you're determined to get past that wall, buy lean steaks and grill them on your BBQ. Then keep them in the refrigerator, and eat one steak in the morning before you leave for work. You can nuke it just to warm it back up, or eat it cold. That will keep your metabolism running all day long, and actually keep you feeling full for much longer. Read my article, "Eat Steak as a Diet Food".

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Eating Steak as a Diet Food

Could you imagine eating a 12oz steak every day, and losing weight?

You've no doubt heard about low-carb diets that put a lot of preference on meat.

But how is it that a sirloin steak can be so beneficial towards losing weight?

Here are the reasons why...

• A steak is high protein. Protein takes longer to digest, and the digestive process itself burns calories. The longer your body is digesting food, the more calories it burns.



• Protein prevents muscle loss. Muscle loss is a common problem in dieting because people deprive themselves of needed vitamins and minerals. When you lose muscle, the less your body metabolizes to keep those muscles fed. But the more muscle you have, the more you must metabolize.



• Meat contains no sugar. Sugar is perhaps the biggest enemy towards weight loss. Sugar not only adds calories, but it also causes the body to burn less fat. The higher your blood-sugar level, the less fat you burn.



• Eating meat keeps you feeling full longer. Because protein takes longer to digest and metabolize, you end up feeling full much longer than if you were to eat fruit, vegetables, and starches.



• Eating a steak is exercise in itself. Chewing and slicing a steak burns calories, and the more chewing and slicing, the more you're exercising. Contrast that to pasta, which requires very little chewing, allowing you to consume lots of calories in short time.

To get the maximum effect from eating a steak, eat it in the morning for breakfast. Your digestive system will work all afternoon long converting that protein into energy, and will actually cause you to eat a smaller lunch, if any at all.

Read my previous article, "Eat More Meat for Breakfast".

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