There's no such thing as targeted weight loss. Just burn more calories than you take in and you'll slim down. Figure out your resting metabolic rate, and eat at about 500 calories a day less than that. Do cardio as much as you can until you get closer to your goal weight. Nothing wrong with doing it 5 days a week. It doesn't kill gains, and you won't have to worry about that until you're thinking about bulking up (with muscle). Lift 3 days a week. Eat healthily and often so you're not starving throughout the day.

The most important thing is to make it tenable. If you go hardcore on day one, you'll probably be done by week 2 and that won't help you. Slowly make positive changes and your body will reflect your efforts. Why the emphasis on 4 months?

Generally 2lbs a week is a healthy amount to aim for and keep up.

I'm going to assume that your ankle is better and if so...here's my story.

Was an athlete in college until Senior year, at which point I gained 40 lbs. I managed to lose 30 lbs in a few months after graduating, and have kept the weight off since. Look up "the Abs Diet" by Men's Health. It's a fantastic read that has amazing workouts. Switch from lifting to doing circuits, and eat healthier (the book has a great nutrition section), and you should be good to go!

this diet sucks. 4 bananas is a shit load of carbs. you are much better off eating brown rice and some lean meat for dinner rather than 2 bananas. id stick to one banana and an apple, eat slow digesting cars (brown rice, whole wheat, bran, sweet potato, etc) and a lean meat.

I also find that drinking a ton of water helps stave off passing hunger pangs. Used to drink a gallon a day between meals to help defeat the urge to snack on empty carbs.

Do some strength training too. It'll burn calories during the workout and after it's finished as well.

From an eating stand point, try to change up your habits. Pay attention to portion control, especially when eating out/ordering in. Stop eating when you are full, even if there is still food on the plate - this one can be easier said than done, as most of us habitually want to finish what's in front of us/what we paid for.

If you're going for absolute speed, the fastest way would be to do a PSMF (protein sparing modified fast) with 3x a week of heavy lifting and LISS (low intensity steady state exercise on off days - eg. walking).

Read this for more (and read the rest of Lyle's articles)
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/the-rapid-fat-loss-handbook

Basic premise is, eat 1.2- 1.5g/lb bodyweight of lean protein. Fill the rest with vegetables. Lift heavy weights. It basically works out to something like 1200 calories a day.

You'll lose weight super fast and maintain most of your muscle mass because of the protein and weights, but it's going to be absolutely miserable.

A less miserable way of doing it (that is sustainable in the long run) is doing intermittent fasting. Different ways of doing it such as 8 hr feeding windows (basically skip breakfast), alternate day fasting (skip days.. ug.. could not do that).

Couple that with a good gym program (I'd recommend starting strength or stronglifts) and you'll be good to go.

wadtk's diet is junk. You will lose weight, but not the right kind of weight. You need more protein or you will lose lean mass during your diet.

Grapes? I hope you're kidding.

HAHA just realized that.

Less than 1000 a day is pushing it for the majority of people. It takes some serious discipline and commitment. It truly is a lifestyle change.
-Stick to fish, chicken, lean meant, bison, turkey, ham for entrees
-Oatmeal in the mornings-just plain, nothing added or it just dilutes the nutritional advantages
-water, and only water. no soda or fruit juices. perhaps some crystal light added but go easy
-cardio/weights as many days as you can 4-7days per week is good
-stop drinking
-make it fun, do swimming, basketball, get out and do sprints on the track, tennis, biking, start walking whenever you can
-get a phone app to help to you keep track of all this so you can quantify your progress on a minute-b-minute basis
-don't eat out. its never a good idea, and there are no healthy places to eat out at
-learn to love to cook, experiment, enjoy

Go on...

Why post this on WSO?

This is what I've bee doing throughout my analyst stint and I'm ripped as fuck.

Crossfit + Paleo diet + 8 or more hours of sleep per night. That will be huge help

Went to the doctor today for a physical. He said he wouldn't change what I'm eating, especially b/c of my workout regimen. Of course, I knew he would say this.

Cut the junk food, cut ALL grains (excessive, unnecessary source of carbs and anti-nutrients). Eat hearty protein and fat-filled meals. You can drop 2+ pounds per week. The math doesn't add up as far as using exercise to create a calorie deficit. You'll just feel starved if you even achieve this. Note--I'm not suggesting indefinite ketogenic diet, but if you go very low carb for a period, you *will* jumpstart weight loss. 100-150g of carbs for maintenance weight should do it. You need nourishment to trigger satiety and proper hormonal/body composition, and this is achieved by switching off your "fat sensor", the leptin hormone--by eating fat and the accompanying nutrients. This is a gross over-simplification, but the data, studies, books, info are out there. Don't follow conventional wisdom on this, it has not worked for the masses, now, has it?

sounds like atkins...I don't know about you guys but I feel lethargic as hell on low carb/high fat diets.

-Eat Cereal, PBJs and ramen noodles.
-Run 5 times a week, averaging at least 5 miles. Do it on a long hill, pushing harder while going uphill. Sprint uphill on your toes a few times.
-Do some pushups/squats at least twice a week so your muscles don't atrophy excessively.
You could probably do it in 4 months this way.

And after the 16 weeks, the OP's going to gain it all back even more quickly.

I wonder why nobody asked this to the OP yet: What do you regularly eat?

Thanks John Basedow!

I've heard breast feeding makes you lose weight FAST!

I'm glad you're cooking more, but also be careful with what ingredients you use. No butter. Stick with a little bit olive oil. Try to avoid rice & pasta. Avoid alcohol - messes up your metabolism and takes longer for your body to process it. Eat more smaller portions. Eat more lean meat. Try to cut out rich foods. Avoid soda & chips and all other junk food. Drink lots and lots of water to curb hunger & to remove toxins from your body.

My sister went on this diet where she only ate fruits and veggies. You eat your veggies mostly raw unless you want to use a little bit of ranch or something. For protein, she had grilled chicken. I think she only ate fruits when she was craving sweets. She did portion control where you only eat what you can fit on your palm every 3-4 hours. She didn't really have weight to lose, but she wanted to tone up her body for her engagement party. It's a very strict diet, but after you reach your goal weight, you can slowly ease into your normal routine.

I tried to do this, but I love food too much. I don't eat junk food. But I do the portion control. To me, it's easier than counting calories. I still have alcohol from time to time when I'm out with my friends. I don't eat red meat as much, but I will cook it for a special occasion or cause I'm craving for some steak haha. I read somewhere that the point of eating isn't to feel full. You eat to give yourself the energy you need to continue with your day. By eating smaller portions every 3-4 hours, you keep your metabolism up and avoid going into starvation mode. You don't feel hungry, but you don't feel full either. For the longest time, I used to eat till I'm full, and it takes awhile for you to get used to not feeling full when you eat.

When I first started living in an apartment, I would cook the wrong things. I would tell myself cooking is better than going out to eat, and even though it was cheaper, it wasn't healthy. I looked into many recipes and tried to find a healthier alternative. For example, chicken parmesan -- I would cook it on the skillet using butter, but now, I bake it & know how to make it taste exactly the same without any butter or oil! Baking, steaming, grilling is always a better alternative than frying. Personally, I love cooking & baking so I tend to make it as a little project to find the healthiest way to cook a dish or find the best recipe for chewy chocolate chip cookies & etc.

Diet is extremely important. I read somewhere that diet is 70% & exercise is 30% to get the body you want. My ex did the p90x & it worked out for him. He usually ran on the treadmill in intervals, but after switching over to p90x to build more muscle, he noticed his stamina & endurance was higher. So perhaps you could try that.

Personally, I hate running. A great alternative is jump roping. It's good cardio & you can control the intensity as well & make it a full-body workout. Plus, it's cheap.

Sorry for this long post..hope it helped