Healthy living is more than simply losing weight, although sometimes that is a sign that you are on the correct path. Weight loss can be intimidating and scary, especially for those who've tried and failed before. It may seem unattainable, but stick with it. It will happen, and when it does, you will feel so much better.

There are a few simple ideas to live by, and if this was all you could do, you will be healthier.

1. The most important thing is making sure the calories going into your body are good calories.

   • You can lose weight if you only eat 1 donut a day, but you will not feel good, and this can be dangerous. Better yet, is to eat a lot of food! Just make sure it is healthy.

2. Make sure you burn more calories than you eat and drink.

   • Like I said above, you can lose weight eating donuts, but that is extremely unhealthy. Make sure you are eating lots of good foods, and then burning off those calories. Most of your calories burned throughout the day are from your metabolism: heart beating, lungs breathing, muscles moving.

3. Drink water

   • Liquid calories are easily consumed, and most of the time you don't even get a sense of fullness. Think about drinking a nice cold 12 oz. can of your favorite cola. You probably had it with a meal where you consumed 400 - 700 calories. But in that one can of 12 cola, you just increased your total calories for that meal by more than 150! To burn off those 150 calories, most people have to work out for 30 minutes extra that day.

   • Avoiding liquid calories can quickly bring you total daily calories down.

4. Sleep

   • Make sure you are getting enough sleep

     • For men, you should be getting around 7 - 8 hours of sleep a night

     • For women, you should be getting around 8 - 9 hours of sleep a night

   • Your body performs many types of maintenance while you are sleeping. Cleaning up junk in your brain, and helping you muscles rebuild are just a few.