Have you ever opened up a magazine and saw a person who looked so good that they inspired you to get off the couch and start exercising? Every time this happens, you follow the same routine of eating less and exercising more, but you never last more than a week. Even if you do lose a little weight, you do not look like that person you saw in the magazine.

Just like everything else, there is an art and science to losing weight and keeping it off for good. If you want to stop yo-yo dieting and finally find out what really needs to be done, keep reading. There are four steps you must follow in order to look similar to the people who inspire you.

Step #1: Determine a realistic weight loss
Unfortunately, not everyone is built the same. That person you see in the magazine with zero body fat and killer abs might have a totally different body composition than you. That does not mean you are destined to a life fighting off a stubborn spare tire, but it might mean that you should take the focus off from others and put it onto yourself.

If you are 100 pounds overweight, it's going to take a while to burn off all of the years it took you put on the extra fat. Do not beat yourself up. Just be realistic. It's going to take some hard work and dedication. Focus on losing 5 pounds in the first week rather than wondering when the remaining 95 pounds will disappear.

Step #2: Use All Natural Supplements
One of the most important aspects of losing weight is providing your body with proper nutrition. In order to get this, you will probably have to look outside of the grocery store. Eating salads all day long will not provide you with enough nutrients to keep you healthy and energetic. Sometimes these people with six-pack abs get them by using unhealthy steroids which will cause problems later on in life.

This is the part that most people miss: A 180 calorie soy-based protein meal replacement shake can provide your body with the same amount of nutrition you can get from eating a 1,000 calorie meal. Think about it.

Step #3: Moderation
Most people associate the thought of a diet with too much hard work passing up the foods they love. Unfortunately, if you want to be healthy and look fit, you ca not sit down and help yourself to a large pepperoni pizza three times a day. That does not mean you can never eat pizza though. It's called moderation.

Usually a successful weight loss program will consist of meal replacement shakes and one regular meal every day. Since you are getting such good nutrition with the soy-protein shakes, you can literally choose to eat anything you want for your main meal. If you want pizza, then eat pizza! A diet should not be torture. Just do not eat a ton of it like you did to gain all the extra weight.

Step #4: Exercise
You knew this was coming. There is absolutely no way around it. If you want to lose weight and retain a healthy lifestyle, you must exercise every single day. It must become a regular part of your life like paying taxes and sleeping. The satisfaction of being healthy has to outweigh the temporary discomfort of exercise in order for you to properly weave it into your life.

You do not need to exercise strenuously to lose weight. Forget about those people in the magazines that do 1,000 sit-ups a day. You don't need to be them, you need to be you. 10 sit-ups a day is better than none, which is how many you are probably doing. Focus on your small improvements. Exercise of any kind will help speed up weight loss and make you feel better about yourself.

Following the 4 steps listed above is critical to your success at losing weight. There will never be a magic pill or easy way to take pounds of fat off your body. You put them there so it's up to you to take them off. Just remember that you did not put them on all in one day, so you ca not expect to take them all off in one day either.