Want to lose weight fast to fit in your old pants, a vacation on the beach, or just for your own peace of mind? Lose weight too fast and you could harm your body.

Fad diets, diet pills, extreme fasting and other fast weight loss methods may work but they can also cause you to lose muscle, counter productive to a long term weight loss program, and can cause damage to your heart and other internal organs.

Remember Fen-Fen? A drug with a combination of fenfluramine hydrochloride and phentermine hydrochloride, two stimulants, which promotes weight loss by reducing appetite. It is no longer available due to its damaging of the heart's valves.

Determine how many calories you consume, because burning more than you consume results in weight loss. Keep a written record of every morsel, for at least a week. Don't cheat.

Cheating on this only harms you. Now with the help of sources like mypyramidtracker.gov figure out the calories in what you eat.

Once you have a list of all the calories you eat, look for ways to ditch them. This can be as simple as cutting down on portion sizes.

Portion sizes are generally too large both at home and in restaurants. There are a lot of other easy cuts that don't significantly change what you eat. These include salad dressing, butter, candies, and juice or soda.

Salad dressing is the largest source of calories on most dinner tables! Simply switching to water as a main drink is a big step in weight loss.

Also note that empty calories such as sugars and starchy foods (carbohydrates) are the first things to cut. These are easily replaced in your diet – try whole grain breads.

An easy place to target for calorie reduction is the side dish. This portion of the meal often contains more calories than the main course. Make a switch to healthy foods, or cut out the sides completely.

Pumping iron increases lean muscle mass, which increases your metabolism. It's a decent calorie burner, but will help you burn calories even when sitting still.

Aerobic workouts are the key. Many experts say to enjoy aerobic activity for 30 minutes a day 3-5 days a week. Nonsense.

Don't pay attention to the 3-5 times a week school of thought on this Make it seven days a week, which means an activity you can sustain day after day for the rest of your life.

There's the plan to lose weight fast. Now get moving!