With less than two months to go before the tropical vacation you’ve always dreamed of, you’re in a foot race with time to lose those love handles and hone that beach-baby body. When the deadline is only 50 days away, it’s going to take hard work and commitment on your part to get back in shape. The focus, above all, is on health, so visit your doctor before getting started. No magic pill can do the work for you. You need some major diet and lifestyle changes to get in shape quickly and stay in great shape for life.
Set Reasonable Goals

On a healthy diet, you can lose an average of 2 pounds per week, by burning 1,000 calories more per day than you consume. According to MayoClinic.com, losing weight even more quickly calls for additional lifestyle changes. The site recommends the “SMART” method of goal setting. Your weight loss plan should be “specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-related.” Know how much you want to lose, set an attainable weekly weight loss goal and chart your progress.
Start Simple

If you’ve been lounging around all winter on the sofa, your muscles will scream in protest if you try to run a 5K race tomorrow. Design your getting-in-shape goals to give your body time to adapt to the higher level of activity. This is determined by your current diet, lifestyle and activity level. If your main source of exercise has been walking from the sofa to the refrigerator for a snack, start with a brisk 30-minute walk twice a day, and increase the duration of the walk and your walking speed gradually. If you’re used to moderate exercise already, sign up for an aerobics class and schedule in a morning run. As your body adapts, increase your activity level.
Diet for Health

There’s no better time than right now to start eating healthy. Fortunately, cutting out junk foods and eating nutritious balanced meals jump-starts your weight loss. You can’t drop the pounds without reducing caloric intake, but you can’t maintain increased activity levels without giving your body the fuel it needs. Reduce portion size at mealtime and choose wholegrain products over processed breads and pastries. Cut out candy, cookies and booze, which all undermine your weight-loss goals. Opt for lean sources of protein and fill up on fresh yellow and leafy green vegetables. Buy skim dairy products and drink six to eight full glasses of water daily, more when you’re exercising. Add a multivitamin to ensure that you’re getting all the nutrients you need.
Avoid Gimmicks

Starving yourself or living on a diet of lemon and cayenne pepper water won’t lead to long-term weight loss, and it won’t help you build muscles. Fad diets and diet pills offer amazing results in a short time, but the only healthy way to lose weight and get in shape is to reduce caloric intake and increase the amount of calories you burn through exercise. Fad diets are unhealthy and they make it hard to maintain the weight loss, which results in yo-yo dieting syndrome.