Let the truth be told. Obesity is epidemic in the 21st century worldwide. In the United States alone, more than 1/3 of adults suffer from obesity which is about 35% of the population. With time, more and more people are trying to lose weight since they are realizing the potential health hazards associated with this growing problem which can jeopardize their lives. Well if you're overweight or obese and still have your health, it's not too late but now is the time to start tackling this serious issue. Here are 19 simple tips to lose weight in 10 days. This article is focused on 10 days but it doesn't mean it stops after 10 days. You should continue using these tips permanently. The idea is to get you motivated by making you realize that by just following these simple weight loss tips, you can start losing weight in as little as 10 days.

Don't starve - starving yourself is one of the biggest mistakes you can make. You might lose weight temporarily but it comes at a cost. Sluggish metabolism, drop in energy levels, mood swings, health problems and overeating later on. Eventually, you will gain more weight.

Eat breakfast - your mum was right when she told you to eat your breakfast. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Have a nutritious breakfast. Some whole grain toast, oat bran or whole grain oats, 1-2 boiled eggs, some fruits and a glass of water should do the trick.

Avoid large meals - having large meals is a bad idea as your body can only assimilate a number of calories per meal. Excess calories will get stored as adipose tissue(body fat or fat cells). Focus on 4-6 small meals instead of 3 large ones.

Eat every 3 hours - eating at regular interval will keep hunger at bay, raise your metabolic rate and enhance the fat-burning metabolism. No need for unhealthy calorie-laden snacks.

Focus on foods that burn calories fast - some foods can actually help burn fat even while doing nothing. These foods are low in calories and are either high in complex carbs, fiber, vitamins, lean protein, healthy fats and antioxidants. They give a great feeling of satiety and keep hunger pangs at bay.

Examples include brown rice, sweet potatoes, yams, whole grains, oatmeal, oat bran, buckwheat, beans, lentils, sardines, salmon, mackerel, herring, cod, tuna, skinless turkey/chicken breast, eggs, lean beef/pork, cottage cheese, greek yogurt, feta cheese, skim milk, spinach, brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, mushroom, asparagus, cauliflower, broccoli, green beans, bell peppers, kale, fish oil, extra virgin olive oil, canola oil, krill oil, flax seeds, walnuts, pecans, almonds, cashew nuts, macadamia nuts, onion, garlic, turmeric, saffron, ginger, balsamic vinegar, tomato, all berries, apples, watermelon, kiwis, cantaloupe, papaya, pineapple, grapefruit, lemon, citrus, oranges, pears, bananas and the list goes on and on.

Here is a solid resource where you get ideas, tips and advice how to prepare healthy and nutritious weight loss meals. Packed with 250+ fat-burning and muscle-building recipes, Dave Ruel and Karine Losier did a fantastic job with Metabolic Cooking. This is simply a MUST have in your nutrition arsenal.

Avoid high sodium, sugary and oily foods - you'd want to put a stop on eating out unless you can find healthy fast-food joints. Eating outside usually involves eating either too much fat, sodium or sugar, well simply foods which are loaded with unhealthy calories. Examples include deep fried foods like french fries, fried chicken and nuggets, burgers, pizzas, sugary desserts and so on. These calorie-laden foods won't do any good to your waistline. Avoid canned foods as the high sodium content makes you gain water weight.

Avoid processed foods - better stay away from white rice, refined cereals, white bread, white pasta and foods made with white flour. These are loaded with simple carbs and people usually consume these in excess. They spike your blood sugar levels followed by a crash later on and make you more prone to storing fat.

Go gluten free - gluten is a protein usually found in white flour, whole-wheat products, rye, barley and even in certain whole grains. Many people without realizing it have some sort of gluten sensitivity. Those with celiac disease have gluten intolerance. Gluten is harsh on the digestive tract and can't be digested by everyone. Consequently, this affects the absorption of nutrients effectively resulting in excess belly fat. If you're buying whole grain or whole-wheat products which are generally healthy foods, there are some which are gluten free so opt for these.

Do your groceries - let's face it, if you want to lose weight in 10 days, you need to be active in your own healthy grocery shopping. You can also buy in bulk. You need to plan your meals and not simply decide what you gonna eat today and look what's in the kitchen shelves or in the fridge.

Drink more water - water is vital for health and general wellbeing but it is also very effective for weight loss due to the fact that it has no calories and yet can give a feeling of great satiety. Water keeps you hydrated for exercising, detoxifies your body, prevents constipation and helps maintain a healthy digestive tract and colon. All these bring positive results for losing weight. Go for at least 8 big glasses or 2 liter water bottle.

Drink green tea - green tea is highly beneficial for people who want to lose weight. Apart water, you can have 1-2 cups of hot green tea everyday. Green tea is rich in antioxidants called catechins which can flush out toxins from your body and also stimulate your fat-burning metabolism. Since it contains water, it adds up to your daily water intake.

Avoid soda, soda pop, diet soda, diet carbonated soft drinks, soft drinks, sugary drinks and fruit juices - stay away from sodas and soft drinks as they are usually loaded with artificial sweeteners like aspartame(nutrasweet), saccharine, sucralose or other sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners disrupt the weight loss process. Sugary drinks and fruit juices contain high amounts of sugar and these can impede your weight loss. If you can get 100% fruit juice and no concentrate with added sugar, that's a better alternative but usually more expensive than eating fruits.

Avoid the booze - drinks like beer should be avoided if your goal is to lose weight in 10 days. Beers have mostly empty calories, it does not mean zero calories, on the contrary, it has a good amount of calories. Empty calories simply mean not much nutritional value. A typical regular beer pint can easily yield 150 calories. So if you drink several pints in one day, calories will add up fast. If you want to drink alcohol, you can privilege a glass of red wine moderately from time to time. Red wine is low in calories and rich in antioxidants called resveratrol.

Don't eat heavy at night - eating too heavily at night for dinner is not a wise idea as you don't need too much energy at this time. Also bedtime is not far away and you don't want to go to sleep on a heavy stomach. This is counterproductive for weight loss. Eat a small meal at night focusing on lean protein, limited complex carbs, vegetables and some healthy fats. If you have an early dinner and get a craving later in the night, you can still eat or drink something filling like a protein snack which is low in calories such as cottage cheese, greek yogurt, skim milk or a casein protein shake.

Perform resistance training - also known as strength training, resistance training consists of any exercise which requires the muscles to contract under any form of resistance. It can be weightlifting or bodyweight training. Some examples include bench press, deadlifts, rows, squats, lunges, push-ups, pull-ups, dips, bicep curls, triceps extension, military shoulder press etc… Resistance training build muscle, burn fat and boost your metabolism. You can perform resistance training 2 times per week for 45-60 minutes per workout. Vary the exercises to avoid monotony.

Perform high intensity interval training(HIT) - this is a great strategy to burn fat faster in less time, for instance instead of doing leisure walking, do brisk walking. Also you can run short distances very fast and repeat. If you're using the treadmill, instead of doing 45 minutes of jogging at low pace, try doing 15 minutes of high intensity fast-paced running. Then rest and repeat for 2-3 more sessions. You can also use the incline treadmill mode for added difficulty. But always start slowly if you're a beginner, don't just start undertaking this high intensity workout from scratch. Work your way up gradually. Perform HIT 3 times per week.

Get adequate rest - getting enough sleep is crucial to be able to lose weight in 10 days. Sleep deprivation results in a drop in energy levels, sluggish metabolism, lower appetite and poor exercise performance. To keep fit, get at least 7-8 hours of quality sleep everyday.

Use supplements - supplements can give an additional boost to your weight loss ambitions. They will provide an edge in your nutrition. For instance post-workout, get a solid whey protein isolate to repair and rebuild your depleted muscle tissues and some dextrose to replenish your depleted glycogen stores(energy storage cells). Mix both ingredients with some ice cubes in a blender for a refreshing whey protein isolate shake. Don't worry about some simple carbs like dextrose post-workout as you'll need fast-acting and fast-digesting carbs at this critical point in time. For prebed protein snack, a casein protein shake is a popular choice to provide your body with a sustained release of slow-digesting amino acids to maintain your muscles and metabolism.

Be consistent - no matter what you do, if you're not consistent in your efforts, you won't achieve great things. Stick to your routine and implement the tips outlined in this long article and I guarantee you will lose weight in 10 days.