Obesity And Weight Control Through Exercises

Although dieting is an essential part of weight control, exercise is also critically important. A properly planned and executed exercise program can burn calories while you exercise, and while you sleep as well. It's also important to find out how much weight you need to lose and to lose weight at a moderate rate.

ObesityTest

One of the easiest ways to determine how much weight you need to lose is to measure your body mass index, or BMI. Your BMI is a measurement of your body weight relative to your height body, and can be calculated online (see Resources section). A healthy BMI ranges from 18.5 to 24.9. If you have a small frame, subtract 10 percent from your score; if you have a large frame, add 10 percent. Once you know your BMI, you can calculate how much weight you'll need to lose to fall within the healthy range. The National Institutes of Health recommends that you lose no more than 1 to 2 lbs. per week.

Body Metabolism

Exercise isn't the only time your body burns calories. About 80 percent of the calories your body burns in a day are used to perform basic bodily functions, according to David Katz, director of Yale University's Prevention Research Center. The rate at which your body burns calories to perform these functions is your metabolic rate. If your metabolic rate is high, your body burns more calories to do the same amount of work as a person with a low metabolism. Your metabolic rate is largely genetically determined, And exercise is one of the few ways that you can raise it. Aerobic exercise raises your metabolism while you're exercising, and weight training raises it 24 hours a day by building new muscle mass.

Aerobics

Aerobic exercise is sustained, high-intensity exercise that raises your heart rate to between 60 and 80 percent of its maximum rate. The more you weigh, the more calories you'll burn in an hour of aerobics. Nevertheless, aerobics burns only a few hundred calories per hour for everyone other than heavy people who perform high-intensity exercise. Since you must burn 3,500 calories to lose a pound, you need to exercise several hours a week to see fast results. Although an hour a day of high-intensity aerobics may not be enough by itself to take off 2 lbs. a week, aerobics can be used as a part of a comprehensive diet and exercise plan.

Weight Training

Since muscle tissue is more dense in blood vessels that fat tissue, your body burns more calories supplying your muscles with nutrients than it does supplying fat. That is why increasing your muscle-to-fat ratio can raise your metabolism. Weight training will also burn 200 to 300 calories per hour. To maximize muscle mass gains, you must add 0.65 to 0.80 g of protein per pound of body weight every day, asserts the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Although weight training will increase the weight of your muscles, when combined with a sensible diet plan you can end up with a net weight loss. Even if you don't lose weight, you'll raise your muscle-to-fat ratio, resulting in a healthier weight.