Well that is a question asked by everyone who has wanted to lose weight. No one wants to go on a diet for months at a time, however this generally leads to a crash diet which allows us to lose half a stone in a month but at the end of the month, or if we are being really good at the end of the second month, we give up; we cant handle starving ourselves any more and end up pigging out which leads to putting on more weight than we started the diet at. So what is the fastest way to lose weight?

The fastest way is the way that allows us to save as much muscle as possible but losing fat as quickly as possible and yes women I am including you in this when I say you don't want to lose muscle. There are a few reasons for this, firstly if you are losing muscle then you are not eating enough to stop your body going into starvation. A starvation diet tends to lead to the body craving food, which makes it difficult for you to say no to that slice of cake. It also means when you start eating again your body will not replace the muscle it has lost, it will replace the fat instead and more. Secondly muscle burns calories at rest, fat doesn't, therefore the more muscle you have the more calories you can eat. But again I can hear you ask "what is the fastest way to lose weight?"

Well your body needs food to work however too much food and you put on fat, too little food and you end up feeling tiered, starving and ultimately burn muscle rather than the fat you actually want to burn. You therefore need to eat the correct calorie deficit, by doing this your weight loss can be quick and more importantly permanent. Unlike a crash diet you can and will lose the weight permanently if you eat sensible, however you can also have a treat now and again. I actually recommend you have a treat once a week, by allowing yourself this you will not feel guilty. The problem with feeling guilty is lot of people will eat the wrong, then give up for that day meaning the 200 extra calories they consumed in their "treat" ends up turning into an extra 2000 calories as they give up for that day. Therefore have a treat, once a week, but limit yourself to just that treat, no guilt and no weight gain.

To summaries what is the fastest way to lose weight?

• Don't crash diet, you want to lose fat not muscle
  Don't starve yourself, eat enough calories to leave a sensible deficit
  Have a treat once a week