If a eat just soup for lunch and dinner is their any chance that I might lose some weight??

Can anybody recommend any way to lose without having to take any pills and not going to the gym because I really do not have the time I work till 7pm and I have a 1 year old I have to take care of..? :

Apologies in advance for what will be a long answer. Just want to give you as many simple ideas I can.

Several things to consider here.

Concerning diet... what you are eating, when you are eating, and portion control are all areas most people, no matter how busy, can modify.

I like a decent soup, but over and over... it would be boring, monotonous... I think one of the easiest things to do is not to start by dramatically changing your diet (unless you are pounding the fast food) but instead start by taking a little less food and bumping up better foods in portions.

For ex, use a smaller plate at dinner time. Take perhaps 2/3 to 3/4 of what you'd normally take. You might "have room" for more food, but you won't feel like you are starving... and in a week or so, you will likely not even miss those extra calories, and perhaps be ready to cut back a little bit more.

Also, our eating patterns are often messed up. We don't have time for breakfast, often eat a much too big lunch, and then we have the biggest meal of the day and the end of it, when our metabolism is slowing down. It makes NO sense.

Its better to piece meals/snacks out throughout the day.

For ex...

Breakfast can be a slice of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and half of a banana.

Then, late morning, have a few bites of lean meat and cheese. Get something that you really like. A couple bites of an aged white cheddar or good baby swiss will be more pleasing than several slices of over processed meat. Same on the meat. The watered down roast beef might taste like nothing, but a decent slice of quality meat, perhaps from a local deli, will be much better. And you'll be amazed at how you will look forward to those couple of bites late morning.

At lunch, be reasonable. Soup can be great. If you like crackers or bread with your soup, go with whole wheat as much as you can and use less. Take a little less soup than you might and add a fruit cup. Or try a slim fast maybe every other day.

Early afternoon, snack on a few healthy nuts. Ill usually do a mix of macademias, almonds, cashews... all dry roasted and light on salt. Like the late morning snack, this can be a nice way to get you to dinner without starving... and it gives your body needed heart healthy oils. Just don't overdo the nuts.

Then at dinner... this is again not the place to be pounding food. I know with a little one you don't have a lot of time to slowly enjoy your dinner... but that doesn't mean you should eat a lot quickly. You shouldn't have to do just soup... you can do other foods, with decent proportions and better cooking (baked instead of fried, for ex)... fresh fruit can be dessert.

One of the biggest things recommended by trainers is to keep a food journal. One study found that people that kept journals lost twice the weight of those who didn't. It keeps you on track. Makes you think about how much you really are eating.

And then there is the occasional treat. If my wife wants a piece of chocolate, its always better to have that one fantastic truffle instead of a handful of M&Ms... the one bite of something yummy will satiate you. "eating around" that craving without satifying it with the right thing can be a problem.

The only other thing id mention concerns exercise. I know how hard it is with a little one. I was a stay at home dad for a time, and it is rough. The problem with cutting back on food alone is in time your metabolism will drop to match the decreased food... and weight loss will stop or slow dramatically. Its why you cannot starve yourself to healthy weight loss... and those who do severely restrict calories usually gain it back when they start eating "normally" again... their body stores all it can to prevent starvation.

Try to plan exercise in your day, or your routines. Park your car farther away in the lot... lets say you take an extra 50 steps to a store by parking back. That's 50 in and 50 out.. 100 "extra steps" that day, on that one trip... take those extra 50 steps in every day and over the course of a year that about 18 miles extra distance you traveled... more calories burned. Are there other things like this you can do, during your day, to "exercise" more while you go about your day?

You can program in simple things like walking more or even stepping in place if you have the little one. If you don't "have the time" you need to use the time you have. When holding your baby securely, or in a sling or harness, you can do squats and lunges carefully. You can do situps with your baby, though I'm not great fan of this... most people don't use good form with situps anyway and extra weight could cause you to hurt yourself.

If I'm watching a game on TV, I might lift weights for a time. Find ways to move your body when you have your child.

Also, one of the best things we did was use workout dvds. You can buy them used at Amazon, or sample things for free from your local library. We have a gym membership and a running trail behind our house, but the dvds get used all the time. Its fast, convenient, and it just works. Most are 35-60 minutes.

I like some of billy blanks tae bo, as does my wife. She does more pilates, and I also do that some. And as the child gets older its fun to have them workout with you. Nothing like a 3 year old trying to imitate your workout.

If there is a local YMCA, remember that they have childcare during workouts. Something to consider, even if you cannot do it now. My son, now 5, loves going to the gym. He gets to play and run around. I get to workout and have time to myself.

Also, as the little ones sleep routine gets predictable... one of the best times to workout in early AM. no... I don't like getting up an hour earlier than needed to prepare for the day, but it gets a workout done while he is sleeping... and it boosts my metabolism for the first half of the day, which means less food is stored. Working out in the early AM is a fantastic way to get it crossed of your list and to lose weight faster.

One of the hardest workouts you can do in a short time? Jump rope. Seriously. It's the devils work. It really, really, really sucks. Really. Try jumping rope for 5 minutes. Heck... try doing it for 2-3 minutes. It really can hurt like heck. One of the best ways to start this kind of workout is to skip rope for maybe 50 counts, then march for 50, then skip again... do this for 10 minutes. Then increase your skipping time and decrease marching time. It works.

Sorry for the long answer. A person doesn't have to commit to a three month body shaping class to lose weight. You can make some progress through lots of little changes.

Ultimately, though, exercise will need to come into play. And it gets easier as the child gets more independent.