There is one simple thing that you can do now, today, or tonight to help you lose weight. This one thing is not exercise, it is not magic pills, it is not your eating. This one change is internal and only you can do this.

If you are reading this article, you are either:

-Fed up of your fat belly and the taunts of your friends and colleagues regarding it.

-Eager to get into a two-piece and flaunt your sexy body on a sea-beach

-Served an ultimatum by your doctor that you could die prematurely unless you get rid of fat in time

-Fed up of all your past weight loss endeavors because they bore no fruit

Now, if you fall in any of the five categories above, then this article is for you. While different people have different reasons for losing weight, the weight loss tips almost always remain more or less same. In this article I will tell you about the simple and most important strategy for fast weight loss.

What is your weight loss goal? This is one question you should be able to answer without blinking an eye; if not then you need to find the answer NOW, before everything else. Trying to lose weight without a set goal is like driving on a highway without a proper map to guide you; in both cases you are likely to lose your way and become unsuccessful in reaching your destination.

The very first thing you need to do for the purpose of successful weight loss is to set a goal which is easy and doable. Note that I mentioned 'easy and doable'. Far too many people fail in weight loss even after setting their respective goals because their goals tend to be vague or unrealistic.

If you have a goal of 'losing all the extra pounds by the end of the year' or 'acquiring a body like Jessica Simpson or Beyonce Knowles' within two-and-half months, you would hardly reach these targets, mainly because they are vague and unrealistic. While it is okay to dream big, you should also keep your own weaknesses and strengths in mind when setting your weight loss goals.

So what are realistic and doable goals? Let's take first example goal I mentioned above: "I want to lose all extra pounds by the end of the current year." Let's say that you want to do this, but this is NOT your goal. Your next step would be to figure out exactly how many 'extra pounds' you need to lose. Assuming that you have thirty pounds to lose, it would realistically take you at least 15 weeks or four months to lose them naturally and healthily (at the rate of two pounds per week); that is, assuming that you won't 'cheat' on your diet at all, which is very unlikely.

So to be further realistic, you can add 1 day 'cheat period' every week when you could indulge yourself to the favorite foods of your choice. With the inclusion of this extra 'cheat day', you would probably need another month or two to reach your goal. All in all, you should be able to reach your goal in about six months.

Therefore your goal would be to "lose 15 pounds in 6 months at the rate of two pounds maximum per day". Now that is what I would call a REALISTIC goal. Once you set a realistic goal, you have won half the battle.