Shooting for a healthy weight and body fat percentage is key for your health and the reduction of disease risk factors. Every unique body will respond a bit differently to exercise and dietary changes, depending on genetics. Making well balanced food choices and keeping up with a consistent exercise plan will help you to achieve your optimal body weight and fat percentage.
Weight Loss Facts
To lose weight it is a simple equation of “calories in” versus “calories out.” It is a matter of eating less than you are burning throughout the day. You can burn more calories throughout the day by increasing your physical activity and you can reduce your calories in by controlling portion sizes and reducing high calorie culprit foods.
One pound is equal to 3,500 calories. Healthy weight loss is one to two pounds per week, in most cases. To lose weight, it is a matter of creating a deficit of calories of 500 to 1,000 calories per day. A combination of a healthy, well balanced diet and exercise is the safest and most effective way to achieve these goals.
Losing Inches
Exercise, especially strength training, helps you to replace body fat with lean muscle tissue. Although this may actually cause you to maintain your weight or gain a couple of pounds when you get started, increasing lean muscle tissue is very healthy long-term. You may notice that your clothes are fitting better and you have more energy as you decrease your body fat percentage.
Muscle takes up less room on the body, because it is a dense and compact tissue, compared to body fat, which has a squishy, dimply texture. When you start exercising, instead of just stepping on the scale, go to the gym or your doctor’s office to get your body fat percentage calculated. This way, you can see the changes in your body composition as you increase your strength training and exercise habits.
Weight Loss After Loss of Inches
In you are overweight or obese and are losing inches but not weight, be patient! As you build lean muscle tissue and reduce body fat, you will also boost your metabolism to burn more calories while at rest and when exercising. If you are trying to lose those “last 10 pounds,” and find that you are losing inches instead, get excited! One pound of muscle burns three to 10 times as many calories as a pound of fat, depending on if you are exercising or resting.
Stay consistent with your exercise plan and maintain a healthy diet. Exercise recommendations for weight loss may include 60 to 90 minutes of moderate physical activity most days of the week, including two days of strength training. Choose fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, and lean proteins, and control your portion sizes to help with weight loss.
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