You have two components of weight loss -- diet and exercise. Weight loss can significantly improve health status and can even eliminate some health problems. Fueling your body with the proper nutrients is essential not only for weight loss but for exercise. Appropriate calorie intake from the right foods and a daily exercise routine is the best combination for healthy weight loss.
Benefits of Weight Loss
Being overweight or obese increases your risk for certain health conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. The combination of physical inactivity and an unhealthy diet leads to weight gain and symptoms, like high blood sugar and high blood pressure. Weight loss can reverse health problems, including diabetes and high blood pressure. Other less-severe side effects of being overweight or obese are fatigue, inflammation, joint pain, menstrual abnormalities, skin disease and mental stress. Therefore, weight loss through a lifestyle change of eating a healthy diet and regular exercise can reverse or cure these conditions.
Weight Loss and Calorie Control
You can achieve weight loss by consuming fewer calories than you burn. You must have fewer calories in and more calories out. One way to regulate this is through your diet. You need a certain amount of calories to maintain normal daily bodily functioning. However, you can create a calorie deficit by eating fewer calories than what your total metabolic rate demands. The number of calories you consume is important, as well as the types of foods the calories come from.
Food Basics
A healthy diet consists of plenty of fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy, lean meats, poultry and fish, whole grains, and healthy sources of fat, such as nuts, avocados, and olive and canola oil. You should eat fruits and vegetables in a 1-to-3 ratio, meaning that you should eat one fruit for every three vegetables. Whole grain products include high fiber breads and cereals, brown rice and whole wheat pasta. Choose low-fat dairy products, like skim or 1 percent milk, part-skim or reduced fat cheeses, and light yogurt. Lean meats include 90 to 99 percent lean ground beef/chicken/turkey, center cuts of pork, sirloin, top loin or flank steak. Poultry, like skinless chicken or turkey, and fish are also good sources of protein. Most fat should come from heart-healthy sources, like nuts (walnuts, almonds, peanuts), avocados, and olive or canola oil. Because each person's calorie needs are different, each person needs different serving amounts from each food group. In general, you should include a source of protein, carbohydrate and fat in every meal and snack. Aim for three servings of fruits and nine servings of vegetables daily. Eat every three to four hours to control appetite and regulate blood sugar levels. Eating often helps to curb hunger and protects against overeating at meals. Portion control is essential when you are trying to lose weight, especially when eating out. Portions in restaurants are usually two to three servings, so split your meal or take half of it home. It takes about 20 minutes to feel full, so eat slowly and allow yourself time to determine whether you are full before finishing your entire meal. Be aware of how hungry you are before you begin eating. Stop eating once you start to feel full.
Weight Loss Through Exercise
Another way to create a calorie deficit is through regular daily physical activity. Exercise is important for maintaining health, and it contributes to healthy weight loss. Cardiovascular exercise, such as walking, running, cycling, swimming, burns calories, raises heart rate and improves heart health. You should do 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise most days of the week to prevent chronic disease. Increasing exercise time will increase health benefits and result in greater weight loss. Resistance exercise, or weight training, builds lean muscle mass and increases metabolism. Resistance exercise includes weight machines, free weights or band work. Therefore, combine cardiovascular and resistance training for a complete exercise routine. Be sure to hydrate before, during and after exercise to replace fluids and electrolytes lost through sweat. If excessive sweating occurs, rehydrate with a sports drink or water fortified with electrolytes. Otherwise, if you sweat normally, rehydrating with water only is sufficient.
Other Ways to Shave Calories
We consume extra calories in many ways without even realizing it. We add calories to foods through sauces, condiments and cooking methods. Becoming more mindful of what you add to your foods can help cut down on calories. Sauces that are creamy or thick, such as an alfredo, are usually high in fat and calories. You should limit these types of sauces in your diet and consume them in moderate amounts. Condiments are a significant source of calories if they are not used carefully. Ketchup, barbecue sauce and other dipping sauces are commonly high in sugar, while mayonnaise and salad dressings, like ranch, are high in fat. Choose low-fat or low-sugar varieties of these condiments, and use them sensibly. Finally, beverages can be a significant source of calories, especially sugar. Juices, sodas, and other sweetened beverages have a concentrated amount of simple sugar with little nutrient value. Drink unsweetened, diet or naturally sweetened versions of these beverages. Alcohol is also a source of empty calories, having no nutrient value and is converted into sugar in the body. Limit alcohol to no more than one drink per day for women and no more than two drinks for men. For effective weight loss, do not drink alcohol or beverages that contain calories. Instead, drink plenty of water or decaffeinated tea or coffee.
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