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How to lose weight - without working out

You can lose weight outside of the gym.
/ Source: TODAY

If hitting the gym is getting tough, there are other ways to lose weight without even breaking a sweat. Whether you’re looking to add more movement and healthier choices to your day, or you’re just trying not to feel guilty about skipping a workout, doing a few easy things throughout the day can help you lose weight and keep it off.

Implement these five simple suggestions outside the gym:

1. Work while standing

Standing during a meeting and at your desk is proven to help with weight loss. Research shows you’re expending more energy while standing than you are while sitting. In fact, treadmill desks have been proven to help improve your health. It's simple: Standing desks and treadmill desks decrease sitting time and increase energy expenditure, which make them a great way to burn calories and lose weight at work.

While not everyone can afford a treadmill desk, incorporating more time on your feet is a great way to up your calorie burn. Try to stand for your shorter, 30-minute meetings, and only sit for the hour-long ones.

2. Boost your metabolism at your desk

While you’re standing at work, sip on a couple of cups of green tea throughout the day. Green tea has been found to boost your metabolism and therefore help with weight loss. Research also shows consuming green tea daily has a positive effect on reducing obesity and body fat. If you’re craving something sweet, add in a drizzle of honey.

RELATED: How a daily cup of tea may improve your health

3. Hydrate

Grab as many water bottles from the fridge as you can throughout the day. While dieting or limiting calories especially, water has been proven to help people lose more weight. Recent studies have also shown drinking more water helps reduce hunger.

4. Spice things up

Add spices to your diet. Ginger is shown to have a unique ability to accelerate gastric emptying, which means it’ll get things moving! It’s also been proven to help reduce body weight. Add some freshly grated ginger to your salad or throw it into a smoothie.

Cinnamon is another great spice with a host of health benefits — it's been shown to help stabilize blood sugar levels, which will help reduce cravings. Cayenne pepper or chili pepper is another great spice that you can add as a seasoning for veggies or meats. The capsaicin found in these has been proven to reduce belly fat and also suppress your appetite.

5. Get lean with steam

Finally, while this last suggestion does involve sweat, it’s seemingly effortless: Visit a sauna. This type of therapy has been used for hundreds of years and can be a valuable tool for individuals with hypertension or other healthy problems. It's widely regarded as a great way to cleanse the body. You’ll lose weight, but it’s only water weight. Sitting in the steam room or sauna is a good last-minute way to burn calories and reduce bloat.

RELATED: Take the heat: Sauna time may tune up your heart

A healthy lifestyle with more movement, water, green tea and metabolism-boosting spices is the key to long-lasting weight loss success.

Stephanie Mansour is a weight-loss and lifestyle coach for women. Join her weight-loss challenge here!