How to loose weight
How to lose weight the healthy way:-
The healthiest way to lose weight is neither crash diets nor bursts of exercise. The body likes slow changes in terms of food and exercise.
For example, someone who has not exercised for years should not rush into running miles a day or pounding the treadmill. Not only will the struggle to do so leave you feeling disheartened and demotivated, you're also far more likely to injure yourself and set your fitness levels back further.
The same goes for people who suddenly start starving themselves. Diets that severely restrict calories or the types of food 'allowed' can lead you to be deficient in the nutrients and vitamins that your body needs.
So if you need to lose weight, what should you do?
Energy needs and weight loss
Your body uses food for energy. It stores any excess energy as fat. This means if you eat more food than your body needs for daily activities and cell maintenance, you will gain weight.
To lose weight, you need to get your body to use up these stores of fat. The most effective way to do this is to:
Introduce changes gradually
Small changes can make a big difference. One extra biscuit a week can lead you to gain 5lb a year – cut that biscuit out of your diet and you'll lose the same amount.
You are also more likely to stick to, say, swapping full-fat milk for semi-skimmed or making time for breakfast each morning than a diet that sets rules for all foods.
You should think of weight loss in terms of permanently changing your eating habits. While weight-loss goals are usually set in term of weeks, the end game is to sustain these changes over months and years.
Increase your activity levels
Someone who increases the amount they exercise, but maintains the same diet and calorie intake, will almost certainly lose weight.
No matter if you hate gyms - even light exercise such as a short 20 minute walk will be beneficial if done most days of the week.
Every single time you exercise more than usual, you burn calories and fat.
There are lots of ways to increase the amount of activity you do. Team sports, racket sports, aerobics classes, running, walking, swimming and cycling will all improve your fitness levels.
Find something you enjoy that's easy for you to do in terms of location and cost. You are then more likely to build it into your routine and continue to exercise, despite inevitably missing the odd session through holidays, family commitments, etc.
What is overweight?
Doctors use BMI to assess weight. A BMI of 18.5-25 is healthy. If you have a BMI of more than 25 you are overweight. Over 30 is obese. Over 40 is morbidly obese. To calculate your BMI, you'll need to know your weight in kilos and your height in metres, then follow the example below. 1. Multiply your height by itself, eg 1.7x1.7= 2.89. 2. Divide your weight (eg 80kg) by this figure. 3. 80 ÷ 2.89= 27.7. 27.7 is the BMI. If you are overweight, you can't continue with your current eating habits.
It's not possible to reduce body fat while eating lots of food, cakes and sweets. This doesn't mean you can never have any treats, but you need to learn how to limit these foods to small quantities - say, for special occasions.
In terms of weight-loss, you can get your body to use up existing stores of fat by eating less and making healthier choices.
This doesn't mean crash diet (anything less than 1500 calories), which usually ends up with you either getting weaker or giving up in desperation. Quick-fix diets can lead to a yo-yoing effect of drastic weight loss followed by weight gain, resulting in a vicious cycle.
There are no shortcuts to losing weight in a healthy and reasonable way.
Eating 300 to 500 calories less per day should lead to a loss of between one and two pounds per week. This is a realistic target. It may seem slow, but would add up to a weight loss of more than three stone in a year.
Fat contains the most amount of calories out of all the food types (protein, carbohydrates), so a good way to achieve this is to cut down on fatty foods and eat more wholegrain bread, fruit and vegetables.
Below are ways to reduce calorie intake without having to alter your diet significantly.
Finally, don't be tempted to skip breakfast – or any meal to lose weight. While skipping a meal will reduce your calorie intake for that hour, it will leave you much hungrier later on.
Not only are you likely to overeat to compensate, but you'll often make bad choices to fill the gap: a cereal bar is not as healthy as a bowl of cereal or as filling, leading you to 'need' something extra for lunch.
Irregular eating habits also disrupt your body's metabolism, which makes it harder to lose weight in the first place.
Write down your plan
Food diary
If you're not sure what's wrong with your diet, try keeping a daily diary of everything you eat and drink. You can use a notebook or an online diary. At the end of the week, review your entries for problem areas. Look out for processed foods, alcohol, fast food, roasts, creamy sauces and fried foods. If your diet seems largely healthy, look at portion sizes. If you're not sure what's meant by 'healthy diet', read our series on nutrition. Once you've decided on what changes you're going to make, write them down. For example:
You could use a table like the one below to keep track of your goals, marking your progress for each day with a tick or a cross.
Week: Current weight: Alcohol Exercise Food plan Goals for week
. . Progress Alcohol Exercise Food plan Mood Comments Monday
. . . . . Tuesday
. . . . . Wednesday
. . . . . Thursday
. . . . . Friday
. . . . . Saturday
. . . . . Sunday
. . . . .
Be patient and persevere
It might take a week or two before you notice any changes, but they will steadily appear. After the first month you will be able to see the results and measure them in terms of looser fitting clothes.
Keeping your motivation up is one of the most difficult aspects of dieting. There will be days when healthy eating goes out the window and there will be weeks where you may not lose any weight – or put a little back on.
This is normal for everyone – dieters or not – so don't let it undo your plans for a slimmer you. You're not doing anything 'wrong', but you may need to look at your plan. Do you need to increase your activity levels? Make a few more changes to your diet? Put more effort into sticking to your current plan?
The other side of this is to make sure you celebrate your goals. While there is joy enough in stepping on the scales and seeing them dip lower, be sure to mark long-term progress with a reward such as new clothes or a night off from housework.
Celebrating is also a way to involve your nearest and dearest – it's up to you whether you want their encouragement in the form of gentle reminders not to eat certain foods, but support from other people can get you through the bumpy patches.
Health benefits of weight loss
Studies show that overweight women who lose between 10lb and 20lb halve their risk of developing diabetes. For men, the risk of heart problems reduces considerably.
Generally, we gain weight as we age. A few pounds over the years are not a problem, but people who gain more than 20lb compared to their weight as an 18-year-old will rapidly increase their risk of health problems due to that extra weight. In particular, women increase their risk of heart attack and double their risk of dying from cancer.
It may seem like these are problems to worry about in the future, but time flies by and tomorrow becomes today. By keeping your weight in the healthy range, you are less likely to be troubled by illnesses in your later years. Attachments : Image 1
The healthiest way to lose weight is neither crash diets nor bursts of exercise. The body likes slow changes in terms of food and exercise.
For example, someone who has not exercised for years should not rush into running miles a day or pounding the treadmill. Not only will the struggle to do so leave you feeling disheartened and demotivated, you're also far more likely to injure yourself and set your fitness levels back further.
The same goes for people who suddenly start starving themselves. Diets that severely restrict calories or the types of food 'allowed' can lead you to be deficient in the nutrients and vitamins that your body needs.
So if you need to lose weight, what should you do?
Energy needs and weight loss
Your body uses food for energy. It stores any excess energy as fat. This means if you eat more food than your body needs for daily activities and cell maintenance, you will gain weight.
To lose weight, you need to get your body to use up these stores of fat. The most effective way to do this is to:
- reduce the amount of calories you eat
- increase your levels of activity.
Introduce changes gradually
Small changes can make a big difference. One extra biscuit a week can lead you to gain 5lb a year – cut that biscuit out of your diet and you'll lose the same amount.
You are also more likely to stick to, say, swapping full-fat milk for semi-skimmed or making time for breakfast each morning than a diet that sets rules for all foods.
You should think of weight loss in terms of permanently changing your eating habits. While weight-loss goals are usually set in term of weeks, the end game is to sustain these changes over months and years.
Increase your activity levels
Someone who increases the amount they exercise, but maintains the same diet and calorie intake, will almost certainly lose weight.
No matter if you hate gyms - even light exercise such as a short 20 minute walk will be beneficial if done most days of the week.
Every single time you exercise more than usual, you burn calories and fat.
There are lots of ways to increase the amount of activity you do. Team sports, racket sports, aerobics classes, running, walking, swimming and cycling will all improve your fitness levels.
Find something you enjoy that's easy for you to do in terms of location and cost. You are then more likely to build it into your routine and continue to exercise, despite inevitably missing the odd session through holidays, family commitments, etc.
- Get out and about at the weekend. Leave your car on the drive and walk to the shops. Try to incorporate longer walks into outings to the park, coast or countryside and take a picnic so you are in control of what you are going to eat that day.
- Every extra step you take helps. Always use the stairs instead of the lift, or get off the bus a stop before the usual one and walk the rest of the way.
- Use commercial breaks between TV-programmes to stand up and do exercise, or consider using an exercise bicycle in the living room while watching your favourite programme.
What is overweight?
Doctors use BMI to assess weight. A BMI of 18.5-25 is healthy. If you have a BMI of more than 25 you are overweight. Over 30 is obese. Over 40 is morbidly obese. To calculate your BMI, you'll need to know your weight in kilos and your height in metres, then follow the example below. 1. Multiply your height by itself, eg 1.7x1.7= 2.89. 2. Divide your weight (eg 80kg) by this figure. 3. 80 ÷ 2.89= 27.7. 27.7 is the BMI. If you are overweight, you can't continue with your current eating habits.
It's not possible to reduce body fat while eating lots of food, cakes and sweets. This doesn't mean you can never have any treats, but you need to learn how to limit these foods to small quantities - say, for special occasions.
In terms of weight-loss, you can get your body to use up existing stores of fat by eating less and making healthier choices.
This doesn't mean crash diet (anything less than 1500 calories), which usually ends up with you either getting weaker or giving up in desperation. Quick-fix diets can lead to a yo-yoing effect of drastic weight loss followed by weight gain, resulting in a vicious cycle.
There are no shortcuts to losing weight in a healthy and reasonable way.
Eating 300 to 500 calories less per day should lead to a loss of between one and two pounds per week. This is a realistic target. It may seem slow, but would add up to a weight loss of more than three stone in a year.
Fat contains the most amount of calories out of all the food types (protein, carbohydrates), so a good way to achieve this is to cut down on fatty foods and eat more wholegrain bread, fruit and vegetables.
Below are ways to reduce calorie intake without having to alter your diet significantly.
- Replace fizzy drinks and fruit cordials with water.
- Swap whole milk for semi-skimmed, or semi-skimmed for skimmed.
- Eat less lunch than usual. For example, make your own sandwich and limit the use of margarine/butter and full-fat mayonnaise (store-bought sandwiches often contain both).
- Stop taking sugar in tea and coffee.
- Have smaller portions of the food you enjoy.
- Avoid having a second helping at dinner.
- Cut out unhealthy treats such as confectionary, sugary biscuits and crisps between meals.
- Cut down on beer and alcohol.
Finally, don't be tempted to skip breakfast – or any meal to lose weight. While skipping a meal will reduce your calorie intake for that hour, it will leave you much hungrier later on.
Not only are you likely to overeat to compensate, but you'll often make bad choices to fill the gap: a cereal bar is not as healthy as a bowl of cereal or as filling, leading you to 'need' something extra for lunch.
Irregular eating habits also disrupt your body's metabolism, which makes it harder to lose weight in the first place.
Write down your plan
Food diary
If you're not sure what's wrong with your diet, try keeping a daily diary of everything you eat and drink. You can use a notebook or an online diary. At the end of the week, review your entries for problem areas. Look out for processed foods, alcohol, fast food, roasts, creamy sauces and fried foods. If your diet seems largely healthy, look at portion sizes. If you're not sure what's meant by 'healthy diet', read our series on nutrition. Once you've decided on what changes you're going to make, write them down. For example:
-
- Exercise: one 20 minute walk every lunch hour.
- Alcohol: none in the week, two small glasses of wine on Friday, Saturday, Sunday.
- Food: no chocolate or biscuits in the week, choose healthy snacks such as fruit, trim all fat from meat, eat no fried or fast food.
Week 1 - Exercise: one 20 minute walk every lunch hour.
You could use a table like the one below to keep track of your goals, marking your progress for each day with a tick or a cross.
Week: Current weight: Alcohol Exercise Food plan Goals for week
. . Progress Alcohol Exercise Food plan Mood Comments Monday
. . . . . Tuesday
. . . . . Wednesday
. . . . . Thursday
. . . . . Friday
. . . . . Saturday
. . . . . Sunday
. . . . .
Be patient and persevere
It might take a week or two before you notice any changes, but they will steadily appear. After the first month you will be able to see the results and measure them in terms of looser fitting clothes.
Keeping your motivation up is one of the most difficult aspects of dieting. There will be days when healthy eating goes out the window and there will be weeks where you may not lose any weight – or put a little back on.
This is normal for everyone – dieters or not – so don't let it undo your plans for a slimmer you. You're not doing anything 'wrong', but you may need to look at your plan. Do you need to increase your activity levels? Make a few more changes to your diet? Put more effort into sticking to your current plan?
The other side of this is to make sure you celebrate your goals. While there is joy enough in stepping on the scales and seeing them dip lower, be sure to mark long-term progress with a reward such as new clothes or a night off from housework.
Celebrating is also a way to involve your nearest and dearest – it's up to you whether you want their encouragement in the form of gentle reminders not to eat certain foods, but support from other people can get you through the bumpy patches.
Health benefits of weight loss
Studies show that overweight women who lose between 10lb and 20lb halve their risk of developing diabetes. For men, the risk of heart problems reduces considerably.
Generally, we gain weight as we age. A few pounds over the years are not a problem, but people who gain more than 20lb compared to their weight as an 18-year-old will rapidly increase their risk of health problems due to that extra weight. In particular, women increase their risk of heart attack and double their risk of dying from cancer.
It may seem like these are problems to worry about in the future, but time flies by and tomorrow becomes today. By keeping your weight in the healthy range, you are less likely to be troubled by illnesses in your later years. Attachments : Image 1
-
- Share:
-
-
-
-
-
-
Reach -
Credibility
-
READ MORE:
Related Allvoices Contributions
-
How well do you know your body?
By: MoLeahey
You may be thinking, I know my body better then anyone else....it is mine after all. What kind of question is that? Who doesn't know their own body? I would say to a certain point you are correct. You know when you move your feet and legs forward, you walk. You know many things that were learned as a child. Many other ...
about 1 month ago
-
Where to find online diet & nutrition facts about what's in most ...
By: AnneHart
You can find diet and nutrition facts about what's in most commercial foods online at the DietFacts.com database. For example, take pumpkin pie. If you make it at home, you can adjust the calorie content by the ingredients you add. But if you buy a commercial pumpkin pie, you can find out the ingredients anda the calorie content of a slice of pie ...
about 1 month ago
-
By: MohammadHassan
Amid the busy lifestyles, long working hours, jam-packed schedules most of the times, most of us end up ignoring our health. So, to give you a wake-up call to rise healthier and live longer, we bring to you ten ways to live healthy.... Go for exercise – Regular exercising helps in maintaining or ...
about 1 month ago
-
By: lucymlogan
In a society that plasters images of emaciated women on every form of media, it can be difficult to convince gaunt women that their weight (for which they are routinely praised) may be the cause of their infertility. A body mass index (BMI) below 18.5 is considered underweight. Though bulimia, anorexia, or extreme exercise are likely ...
about 1 month ago
News Stories
- News Source: Androscoggin News | about 1 month agoIT took some horror holiday photographs to shock Nicole Stanbury, 27, into realising that she had to lose weight. The airport security officer says: "I saw photos of myself from our family holiday to Disneyland in Florida this March and was so...
Blogs
>
- Blog Source: www.minimins.comGoal Weight: 168lb. Goal Date: dec 2010. BMI Information: Start BMI: 50.9. Current BMI: 41.3. Goal BMI: 26.3. Statistics: Total Weight Loss: 61lb. Weight to Lose: 96lb % Lost 18.77%. How much protein would it make then in skimmed milk? ...
- Blog Source: www.minimins.comGoal BMI: 21.3. Statistics: Total Weight Loss: 10lb. Weight to Lose: 25lb % Lost 6.45%. I use all mine, I need about 6 for all my cups of coffee (semi-skimmed milk = 1/2 per cup) I use the rest, just had 3 chunks cadbury's caramel ...
- Blog Source: www.minimins.comStart BMI: 29.7. Current BMI: 25.7. Goal BMI: 20.3. Statistics: Total Weight Loss: 25lb. Weight to Lose: 33lb % Lost 13.59%. Hey babe im not on refeed but the breakfast ting has been scaring me too and everyone's refeed diary seems to be the same. ..
- Blog Source: www.minimins.comCurrent BMI: 44.1. Goal BMI: 22.5. Statistics: Total Weight Loss: 3lb. Weight to Lose: 122lb % Lost 1.19%. Garlic is a must, lean meats, mullerlights are a must, low fat cheese, skimmed or semi skimmed milk, tomatoes any shape or form, ...
- Blog Source: www.minimins.comCurrent Weight: 186lb. Goal Weight: 117lb. BMI Information: Start BMI: 39.1. Current BMI: 36.3. Goal BMI: 22.8. Statistics: Total Weight Loss: 14lb. Weight to Lose: 69lb % Lost 7%. Weetabix and semi skimmed here oh and a banana. ...
- Blog Source: www.minimins.comCurrent BMI: 20.4. Goal BMI: 22. Statistics: Total Weight Loss: 80lb. Weight to Lose: -9lb % Lost 40.2%. Well you can have skimmed milk from very early on, so I treated myself on about day 5 to a skinny latte, because I had missed them ...
Images
>
-
Image Source: indiwo.in.com -
Image Source: i.ehow.com -
Image Source: www.amptoons.com -
Image Source: www.vantageproed.com -
Image Source: i.ehow.com -
Image Source: www.stepsweightloss...
Videos
>
- Video Source: www.truveo.comFast Weight Loss Tips "...Video Source: www.truveo.comFast Weight Loss Tips "2009 Diet Of The Year" at: Fat-Zap.com
- Video Source: www.truveo.com
- Video Source: www.truveo.com
Post a Comment Comments: 0
Reported by mohammedd
Cell phones use report code: Most Popular Reports
Related Tweets
-
@bobbymacReuters After Forbes magazine cuts its jobs, will it be at a good fighting weight for the family to sell it? Oh, and who would buy it? Hm........
about 1 month ago -
@lfmccullough RT @AP_Mobile: Alarming weight gain seen in kids on psych drugs - http://bit.ly/Wdl19
about 1 month ago
Related Allvoices Reports
Site Links
Site Topics
Contributions
- Report Your News
- Add your voice and contribute via your cellphone - check out how to Report News via Your Cellphone
- Blog Widget
- Widget for Blog Owner
