| Be Healthy While Losing Weight |
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| Written by Gary L. Condoluci, LMT |
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Almost 108 million Americans were overweight or obese in 1999. Until now, obesity continues to be a serious problem and is predicted to reach epidemic levels by the year 2020. To prevent obesity, the best thing to be done is to educate the public on how carrying extra pounds can damage their health. These are just some of the diseases which you're at a higher risk of if you're overweight: 1. Heart disease 2. Stroke 3. Diabetes 4. Cancer 5. Arthritis 6. Hypertension Losing weight helps to prevent and control these diseases. Many companies have taken advantage of the obesity epidemic by selling fad diet plans. These make plenty of money for their manufacturers, but do not provide a long term solution. Instead, they tend to rely on pills and supplements. Even when these diets do allow users to lose some weight, this type of rapid weight loss is not healthy; and gaining back the lost pounds in the dreaded yo-yo is even worse " and that's exactly what happens to most of the people who use these programs. Better by far is a healthy weight loss plan which lets you lose those excess pounds and keep them off. The key is to set realistic weight loss goals instead of trying to lose it all in a matter of weeks. The following are some valuable tips for healthy weight loss: 1. Do not starve your self Don't diet! Repeat, don't diet - this is the most important advice for healthy weight loss. You may seem happy and feel that you are losing those unwanted flabs on your belly and thighs by skipping meals. But remember that this would not last long. Your body cannot tolerate having insufficient food to fuel the energy that you use up everyday. What happens is that your body will get used to using stored energy instead of the calories from your diet - so when you do eat, this energy will be immediately stored as fat! This is hardly what you want. 2. Start your day right. Mothers always say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Have a healthy meal in the morning to jump-start your metabolism. Your food intake after you wake up will be used to burn fat all day long. 3. Eat small, healthy meals frequently. You'll lose weight faster by eating five or six small meals instead of three large meals per day. This curbs the urge to overeat and gets your metabolism working faster. 4. Decide on how much weight you want to lose. Set a weight loss target which you know that you can achieve. There's no way to lose 30 pounds in a week (no healthy way, anyhow) and keep this extra weight off. Instead, eat a healthy diet and live a healthy lifestyle " this will take the weight off gradually and in a healthy way and allow you to stay slim for life. Once youve decided on your plan and your goals, stick to them! 5. Drink lots of water Your body needs sufficient water to burn fat and keep your cells hydrated and healthy. 6. Avoid too much sugar You should be eating a diet which is largely composed of fresh fruits and vegetables along with whole grains and lean protein. While its fine to treat yourself to the occasional pastry, it shouldn't be a regular part of your diet. 7. Get the right dietary fats Fat does not make you fat, regardless of what anyone says. You need some fat in your diet to stay healthy, in fact. However, these should be heart-healthy fats like peanut and olive oils. Fish oils are also healthy and contain healthy Omega-3 fatty acids. 8. Get regular exercise Leave your car if you are only going a few blocks from home, take the stairs instead of the elevator, jog, cycle or skate. Use these activities and other home chores if you are too lazy to go to the gym and take exercise classes. Make sure that you do this regularly and you will not even notice that you are already shedding pounds with these mundane activities. No matter how much weight you want to lose, setting realistic weight loss goals provides you with positive reinforcement and useful benchmarks to measure your progress. Remember not to push yourself too hard. Don't be afraid to take it easy for a day and pat yourself on the back after you meet that first goal; you've earned it. Of course, don't wait too long - you'll want to get back in the saddle and on your way towards the next goal. Eat healthy, drink lots of water, have enough sleep and exercise. This will give you a higher chance of losing weight and improving your health, which would result to a new, healthier you! About the Author: Gary L. Condoluci, LMT is a Massage Therapist who has studied information on fast fat loss. His studies have also led to information on dieting tips. You are welcome to reprint this article - but get your own unique content version here. Kindly provided by 4Girls.dk You are welcome to use this article on your own website, if you include this link. |