Losing weight is never easy, but it's never going to be easier than when you're 16. You're still growing, your body operates at a higher pace than when you're older, and you're not as set in your habits of eating and exercise. But kids who are overweight tend to be overweight or obese as adults, so the time to change your ways is now.
Change Your Ways
If you're carrying extra weight it's because you eat more calories than you burn in activity. To set things right, you need to decrease how many calories you consume and increase the number of calories you burn. The best way to approach this challenge is to steadily change your habits. Eat a little less each week, and find enjoyable ways to increase your activity level. Create healthy eating and exercise habits now that will keep you trim through your teen years and beyond.
Don't Do This
Crash diets don't work. People usually regain the weight as soon as they stop the diet, which they do because the diet is too hard to maintain. If you get into a habit of losing and then regaining weight, you throw off your body's self-regulatory mechanisms, so you're more prone to various health problems as you get older, including high cholesterol, high-blood pressure, diabetes, gallbladder disease and depression.
The Math
For every 3,500 calories you eliminate by eating less or burning calories in activity, you lose 1 lb. of weight. Many health and fitness experts advise that you lose no more than 1 or 2 lbs. per week. This rate of weight loss allows you to slowly change your habits. Most experts recommend that you lose some of these calories by tightening your calorie budget and lose the remainder by increasing your activity. To lose 1 lb. a week, cut out 500 calories per day from your diet.
Reading Assignment
Study the nutritional labels of the foods you eat. Educate yourself on the calories and other nutrition contained in everything you put in your mouth. Drop empty-calorie foods -- items that provide calories but little nutrition -- from your diet.
Reduce the F's
Cut back on fried, fast and fatty foods. They might taste good, but if you eat them routinely, these foods give you more calories than you need. Lay off of the burgers, hot dogs and beef burritos. Instead, eat lean turkey and chicken breast. Drink skim milk instead of whole milk, and minimize your use of butter, margarine, sour cream, cheese and ice cream. Avoid fast food restaurants. If your friends or family drag you to one, skip the fries and choose grilled chicken or salad.
Save the S's
Save snack, starchy and sweet foods for special treats. These foods tend to be high in calories and low in nutrition. Eliminate cookies, candy, chips, crackers, pastries and full-sugar soda from your daily diet. Use them as very occasional treats. Eat apples or yogurt as a snack. Apples contain pectin, a fiber that binds with dietary fat. Yogurt enhances weight loss and reduces belly fat, according to the January 2005 issue of "International Journal of Obesity."
Exercise
Exercise does not have to be painful. Make it social and fun. Join a sports or cheering team or do martial arts, dance, gymnastics or any other form of activity you might enjoy. Walk and talk with friends instead of hanging out at the house. Play active video games that make you dance or move. Every day find some sort of activity that makes you use your large lower body muscles for at least 30 to 60 minutes.
References
- ABC News: Soda Stats: How Those Empty Calories Add Up; Yunji De Nies, et al; April 21, 2010
- "International Journal of Obesity"; Dairy Augmentation of Total and Central Fat Loss; Michael Zemel, et al; January 2005
- MayoClinic.com: Weight Loss: 6 Strategies for Success
- National Institutes of Health: Tips For Losing Weight
- "US News and World Report"; The Ups and Downs of 'Yo-Yo' Dieting; Karen Pallarito; October 2008
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