Losing weight is probably on the top of nearly everyone's New Year's resolution this year. This is the year you will get to your goal weight. All you have to do is incorporate these simple steps into your life and I'll show you how to lose weight.

1) Drink lots of water - Drinking a lot of water (at least six to eight 8-ounce glasses a day) is very important for your health and it will help you shed pounds faster. Water hydrates your body and replenishes your system.

It helps to flush out your intestines of anything that shouldn't still be there and keeps your liver working like it should. Water will even help your skin, making it clearer, as well as making your hair healthier. Drinking six to eight glasses of water a day may seem a bit overwhelming at first, but it is not that hard at all. The best part about adding more water to your diet is that it will force you to not drink other beverages that are not healthy, such as sodas, juices, coffee, etc.

2) Exercise - Getting your body moving is vital to losing weight. You should start slow, especially if you haven't exercised in a while. After a couple of weeks of small steps in exercise, such as walking once a day for thirty minutes, you need to start increasing the intensity of your exercise. Increasing the intensity of your exercise and continually challenging yourself will help you lose weight easier, make you feel better, give you more energy and help you drop weight faster than if you just kept doing the same thing.

Plus, it can get rather boring doing the same thing all the time. Changing it up about once a week will keep it fun for you. The key to a good workout routine is doing it at least three times a week (everyday is the best) and including aerobic exercise with weight training, which I will talk about below. Aerobics will help your flexibility, keep your heart healthy, improve your lung function and so much more.

3) Diet - I know, the word sounds daunting, but it's not about taking away or restricting you. Dieting is about change. You must change the way you think about food, the way you eat and the way you see food. Don't make any drastic changes, because you will probably not be able to make them and simply get disappointed and that leads to quitting.

Moderation is the key for any diet, for anyone. Add foods to your diet that you never tried before. Eating a variety of healthy foods is extremely important. You should be eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, meats, fish and grains. Change your grains to whole grains, as this is much healthier than processed, refined grains. Eat fish at least twice a week if you can. You can increase your metabolism simply by eating six smaller meals daily rather than three larger meals.

This will also help shrink your stomach so you don't feel that you need to eat so much in one sitting. There are many healthy snacks out there such as peanuts, vegetables, fruit, yogurt, cheeses, cereals, pretzels and so on. These are also foods you should be able to eat on the go. Food is not your enemy - it is your friend.

Food is what gives us the fuel we need to do what we need to do in a day. However, without exercise, dieting can be frustrating. We need to exercise as well to use those calories and carbohydrates so we can turn our fat into muscle, which brings me to my next point of discussion.

4) Gaining muscle - Gaining muscle just might be the most important aspect of your weight loss plan. With more muscle (even just an added pound of muscle), you will increase your metabolism. By increasing your metabolism, you will be burning fat even when you are sleeping!

With weight training, you can use dumbbells, ankle weights or a resistance workout. This will even help make your bones healthier and stronger. Gaining muscle may be just as important as the fat you lose.