With as much as 50 percent of the U.S population overweight or obese, many people are trying to lose weight through diet, exercise or both. The obesity epidemic is also not just a U.S. issue --- people in many other counties are experiencing a problem. Being significantly overweight can have a negative impact on your health. This includes an increased risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer. You can make a number of simple changes to help you lose fat.
Reduce Your Calorific Intake
Body fat is stored energy waiting to be used. One lb. of fat equals approximately 3,500 calories. To use this fat for energy, you need to consume fewer calories than you expend. Reduce your calorific intake by 250 below your maintenance requirements per day. This conservative reduction in food will not result in hunger and will not trigger the phenomenon called the starvation response, which results in decreased metabolism and an increased propensity for fat storage.
Eat Little and Often
Keeping your blood glucose levels stable is a key factor in regulating insulin levels and hunger. By eating five to six small meals a day, you are more likely to experience stable blood glucose levels and therefore control your insulin levels. High levels of insulin are associated with fat storage and the inhibition of fat burning, so keeping your insulin levels low is very beneficial. Also, eating little and often ensures that you are never more than a couple of hours away from your next meal so even if you begin to feel hungry, you are less likely to break your diet because your next meal is not far away.
Develop the Exercise Habit
If you choose to try to lose fat by diet alone, you will need to reduce your calorific intake quite significantly to experience any noticeable weight loss. This is likely to result in severe hunger, low energy levels and an increased likelihood of straying from your diet. Exercise burns calories, which means that you won't need to reduce your calorific intake so dramatically. In addition, exercise raises your metabolic rate after your workout. This means that you burn more calories even at rest. Interval training and resistance training are the most effective forms of exercise for boosting your metabolism. Try to find a form of exercise you really enjoy and do it three to five times a week.
Seek Out NEPA
NEPA stands for non-exercise physical activity. NEPA includes walking for transport, gardening, taking the stairs instead of the elevator or carrying your groceries instead of using a shopping trolley. While each of these examples of NEPA only uses very small amounts of energy, an accumulation of time spent being more active can result in a significant increase in total daily energy expenditure. In addition to your regular workouts, try to be as active as you can each and every day. A daily after-dinner walk of 20 minutes could result in an additional 10 lbs. of fat loss in a year.
Avoid Calorie-dense Beverages
Almost all food and drink contains calories. While water is calorie free, and regular tea and coffee contain very few calories, many beverages contain a lot of sugar, fat or both. Calorie-dense beverages have little effect on your hunger levels because they are not in your stomach for long enough to make you feel full. This means that you can easily ingest a lot of calories in liquid form without realizing it or adjusting your subsequent calorific intake. The calorific load in drinks is often referred to as hidden calories. To avoid hidden calories, consume mainly water and unsweetened tea and coffee. Avoid fruit juices, soda and sugar, and fat-dense coffee drinks. Alcoholic drinks also contain a lot of calories and can increase your calorie levels while stimulating the hunger centers of your brain.
References
- "ACSM's Resources for the Personal Trainer"; American College of Sports Medicine; 2009
- "Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook"; Nancy Clark; 2008
- "Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating"; Walter C. Willett, M.D., and P.J. Skerrett; 2005
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