The first thing I’m going to say is that anything that promises quick weight loss can quickly be tossed out the window.

But there are a few things that I would recommend if you want to drop a few pounds of body fat the right way.

While it might be too late this year to head to the beach, there is no reason why you can’t work toward that beach body.

So, here is my list of top 10 beach body secrets:

Get your mind right. Focus and commitment are the No. 1 prerequisites if you would like to change your body. Ask yourself, “If you could achieve anything with your body and you got everything you wanted physically, what would be different?” If this is truly what you want for yourself physically, what is stopping you from wholeheartedly committing yourself? I suggest you write it down.

Remind yourself daily. We all have moments of weakness. Committing to a goal one day will not feel or look the same the next day.

If you want to lose body fat, remind yourself daily about your goal. If you are a visual person, take a picture of yourself and hang it where you will see it every day. Or, maybe a picture of what you want to look like will be better. Either way, at the beginning of the day, tell yourself exactly how the day will unfold in terms of physical activity and your eating.

Drink water. Fat “burning” is affected by how well you are hydrated. Every moment, a countless number of chemical reactions take place in your body. For each one, water is needed. Without the proper amounts of water, these reactions become inefficient. This can drain you of energy, cause your body to function poorly, lead to sickness and put your body into a water-retention mode.

Plus, dehydration can slow your metabolism (your body’s calorie-burning processes) by nearly half of what it would be otherwise.

A good calculation would be to multiply your body weight in pounds by half. This number would be the minimum amount of ounces of water per day you should have.

Exercise vigorously. You should exercise as vigorously as you can more days per week than you are not. Some days, this could be a longer-duration workout. Other days, it may only be a 15-minute mini-workout. Either way, when you choose to do it, challenge yourself.

Be consistent. Those who are the most consistent are the most successful. Exercise is not an “only when it is convenient” thing. The same applies when it comes to making good eating choices.

Exercise and eating properly are not something that can be effective when approached with an “all-or-nothing, sprint to the goal” mentality.

Eat food, not products. Our bodies were designed to eat, digest, absorb and use food. The problem lies in that most of us are confused as to what food actually is.

Food that will give your body the nutrients it needs and allow your body to digest and absorb properly, is hard to find in a box or a can. If you want to get your body functioning well and are looking for that beach body, eat foods that are as close to their natural source as possible.

When trying to choose what to eat, the question to ask is “where did it come from?” The best choices are the ones that have an easy answer to that question.

Eat lean protein at each meal. Your body uses protein for countless purposes in the body. Plus, protein is used to rebuild and repair muscle tissue.

Muscle is the active tissue in your body. It is what “burns” body fat. The only location in your body where body fat is broken down and converted into energy is inside of each muscle cell. Thus, to lose body fat, you must optimize the muscle tissue in your body. In order to do this, you need protein.

Also, the act of digesting protein plays a large role in your daily caloric burn rate. Your body has to work hard to digest protein. Foods like eggs, chicken, turkey, buffalo, ostrich, salmon, shrimp and lean beef are an important part of improving your metabolism.

Eat every three hours. If you are eating lean protein and good, quality carbs about every three hours throughout the day, then your body will incinerate body fat at a high level.

I know this sounds contradictory to almost every diet and weight loss center claim. But if diets and caloric deprivation worked, there would be no such thing as an obesity epidemic.

Diets don’t work. Proper exercise and feeding the body what it needs does. Regardless of time of day, seek out and be prepared for a meal every three hours that consists of visually equal serving sizes of lean protein, a starchy carb and a fibrous carb.

Exercise with resistance. There are many ways to exercise and challenge the body. But in order to lose body fat, resistance exercise must be included at some level. The resistance can come from weights, rubber bands, machines, a wheelbarrow full of rocks, or in some cases, even your own body weight. I suggest weights first, cardio immediately after.

The magic bullet only shoots you in the foot. Starving yourself, wrapping yourself in a thermal body wrap, taking a pill, getting an injection, drinking a shake, electrocuting yourself, rubbing a cream on your skin, cleansing yourself, baking yourself in a sauna and vibrating belts are examples of “magic bullets.” They do not work.

Instead, exercise, feed yourself properly and stick to it.