Overweight Health Problems
Quite apart from the fact that your body will be in better shape if you lose weight, there are many other health issues that will benefit from a reduction in body fat.
Diabetes is one of the most obvious areas of concern with overweight people with a large number of the population suffering from diabetes and the related health problems that this disease can bring with it.
Many people are unaware that diabetes is the leading cause of blindness. And diabetes is also a major cause of kidney disease.
In addition to this, diabetes increases your chance of having heart disease and suffering from a stroke by almost 400%.
In men it can also cause erectile dysfunction.
High blood cholesterol and high blood pressure are also prevalent with people who are overweight.
Even a small reduction in body fat can have quite a substantial effect on your overall quality of health and it will also help to reduce the possibility of you suffering from other diseases later in life.
If you are overweight you are also more likely to snore at night because the fatty tissue at the back of your throat will obstruct your breathing passage when you are lying down and due to this you won't be getting good quality sleep and your energy levels will be reduced accordingly.
Losing even a small amount of body fat can reduce your snoring quite considerably and the benefit from getting better quality sleep at night is you will have a lot more energy.
Being over tired also tends to make most people want to eat more food in an attempt to boost energy levels and this only adds to your weight problems so as you can see all these little steps assist each other to help optimize your overall health and well-being.
Diabetes is one of the most obvious areas of concern with overweight people with a large number of the population suffering from diabetes and the related health problems that this disease can bring with it.
Many people are unaware that diabetes is the leading cause of blindness. And diabetes is also a major cause of kidney disease.
In addition to this, diabetes increases your chance of having heart disease and suffering from a stroke by almost 400%.
In men it can also cause erectile dysfunction.
High blood cholesterol and high blood pressure are also prevalent with people who are overweight.
Even a small reduction in body fat can have quite a substantial effect on your overall quality of health and it will also help to reduce the possibility of you suffering from other diseases later in life.
If you are overweight you are also more likely to snore at night because the fatty tissue at the back of your throat will obstruct your breathing passage when you are lying down and due to this you won't be getting good quality sleep and your energy levels will be reduced accordingly.
Losing even a small amount of body fat can reduce your snoring quite considerably and the benefit from getting better quality sleep at night is you will have a lot more energy.
Being over tired also tends to make most people want to eat more food in an attempt to boost energy levels and this only adds to your weight problems so as you can see all these little steps assist each other to help optimize your overall health and well-being.
Setting Goals
Most successful people find that setting goals is one of the most important parts of achieving those goals and this applies to almost everything in life including your ability to be successful with weight loss.
What you do have to realize however is these goals need to be realistic and you need to believe that you can achieve them or you will be starting off on the wrong foot and failure will be imminent.
To make your goal achievable you need to look at it over an extended period of time rather than believing that you can lose 15 pounds in a couple of weeks.
While this might be possible it is certainly a lot harder to achieve than to expect to lose that weight over the course of several months.
Keeping a diary helps a lot of people to achieve their goals as it helps to enforce the actions that are required to meet those goals on a daily basis.
In your diary you can record your body weight, the foods you've been eating, any supplements you have been taking and the results that you have been getting from these actions.
This helps you to readjust your goals and make changes to your fitness and nutrition as things change in the course of your weight loss program.
Within your major goal you should also have short-term goals and once again these need to be realistic to keep you motivated.
These short-term goals will change from time to time as during the course of your weight loss program you will probably find that progress accelerates after certain stages of your plan.
Sometimes you will also plateau for a while where your weight loss will tend to slow down and by having a diary you will be able to look at those areas that you might be able to change to get over that plateau and continue to progress.
What you do have to realize however is these goals need to be realistic and you need to believe that you can achieve them or you will be starting off on the wrong foot and failure will be imminent.
To make your goal achievable you need to look at it over an extended period of time rather than believing that you can lose 15 pounds in a couple of weeks.
While this might be possible it is certainly a lot harder to achieve than to expect to lose that weight over the course of several months.
Keeping a diary helps a lot of people to achieve their goals as it helps to enforce the actions that are required to meet those goals on a daily basis.
In your diary you can record your body weight, the foods you've been eating, any supplements you have been taking and the results that you have been getting from these actions.
This helps you to readjust your goals and make changes to your fitness and nutrition as things change in the course of your weight loss program.
Within your major goal you should also have short-term goals and once again these need to be realistic to keep you motivated.
These short-term goals will change from time to time as during the course of your weight loss program you will probably find that progress accelerates after certain stages of your plan.
Sometimes you will also plateau for a while where your weight loss will tend to slow down and by having a diary you will be able to look at those areas that you might be able to change to get over that plateau and continue to progress.
Planning Your Weight Loss Program
Every successful venture in life gets better results with good planning and this also applies to fat reduction and weight loss.
If you put a little planning into your weight loss program before you start you'll have a better opportunity to succeed.
The first step is to determine how much weight you want to lose because unless you have a solid goal in your mind it makes it all the more difficult to achieve your weight reduction.
If you are obese then it is important that you seek professional advice before starting on any weight loss program so you remain safe and healthy throughout the process.
In any case it always pays to get support where possible from professionals and even enlisting the support of your friends and family to help you with your goal to lose weight.
If you have any health problems or health concerns discussing things with your doctor is essential before starting weight loss as changes in nutrition and exercise can place additional loads on your body.
Stand in front of a mirror and look at your body while visualizing how you want it to look. It is also a good idea to take a photo of your body at the start of your weight loss program as we often forget the progress we make and looking back can be handy to offer encouragement at times when you feel like the going might be a little difficult.
One other thing that is very important is to distance yourself from negative people and those who don't offer you any support because there are always those around who don't want to see others improve in their life.
These basic points that I have just discussed will go a long way to helping you succeed and achieve what you set out for with your weight loss program.
If you put a little planning into your weight loss program before you start you'll have a better opportunity to succeed.
The first step is to determine how much weight you want to lose because unless you have a solid goal in your mind it makes it all the more difficult to achieve your weight reduction.
If you are obese then it is important that you seek professional advice before starting on any weight loss program so you remain safe and healthy throughout the process.
In any case it always pays to get support where possible from professionals and even enlisting the support of your friends and family to help you with your goal to lose weight.
If you have any health problems or health concerns discussing things with your doctor is essential before starting weight loss as changes in nutrition and exercise can place additional loads on your body.
Stand in front of a mirror and look at your body while visualizing how you want it to look. It is also a good idea to take a photo of your body at the start of your weight loss program as we often forget the progress we make and looking back can be handy to offer encouragement at times when you feel like the going might be a little difficult.
One other thing that is very important is to distance yourself from negative people and those who don't offer you any support because there are always those around who don't want to see others improve in their life.
These basic points that I have just discussed will go a long way to helping you succeed and achieve what you set out for with your weight loss program.
Calories Revisited
The problem with restricting your calories too much is the fact that it slows down your metabolism and in doing so it makes it all the more difficult to sustain weight loss.
This is one of the reasons why it is suggested that you don't reduce your calories by an excessive amount on a daily basis if you want to keep reducing weight over the long-term.
On the other hand when you have excess calories over and above the energy needs of your body then these calories will be stored as fat.
You can see by the last two sentences that it is crucially important for you to get your calorie intake levels correct if you are to lose weight.
Your daily calorie requirement depends on a number of different factors including your weight, your age, gender and your lifestyle as a more active person will need more calories due to the fact that they will be burning more in the course of the day.
On average every pound of your body weight represents approximately 3500 calories. Based on this average, to lose 1 pound you will need to reduce your calorie intake by 3500 calories.
On diet alone, you can see how it won't be possible to lose a pound a day unless of course you already have a considerable calorie intake and the reduction will still leave you with sufficient food and nutrition to remain healthy.
Supplements can certainly help to make up for any nutrition deficiencies a lot of the time.
By reducing your calories by only 100 calories per day over the course of the year you would have consumed 36,500 less calories and that converts to a weight reduction of almost 10 1/2 pounds.
That is an easily accomplished weight reduction with very little change to your lifestyle and habits.
This is one of the reasons why it is suggested that you don't reduce your calories by an excessive amount on a daily basis if you want to keep reducing weight over the long-term.
On the other hand when you have excess calories over and above the energy needs of your body then these calories will be stored as fat.
You can see by the last two sentences that it is crucially important for you to get your calorie intake levels correct if you are to lose weight.
Your daily calorie requirement depends on a number of different factors including your weight, your age, gender and your lifestyle as a more active person will need more calories due to the fact that they will be burning more in the course of the day.
On average every pound of your body weight represents approximately 3500 calories. Based on this average, to lose 1 pound you will need to reduce your calorie intake by 3500 calories.
On diet alone, you can see how it won't be possible to lose a pound a day unless of course you already have a considerable calorie intake and the reduction will still leave you with sufficient food and nutrition to remain healthy.
Supplements can certainly help to make up for any nutrition deficiencies a lot of the time.
By reducing your calories by only 100 calories per day over the course of the year you would have consumed 36,500 less calories and that converts to a weight reduction of almost 10 1/2 pounds.
That is an easily accomplished weight reduction with very little change to your lifestyle and habits.
Getting Started Making Changes
The sooner you start on the path to reaching your weight loss goals the sooner you can enjoy all the benefits of better health and well-being from the reduction in body fat that you will be able to achieve.
If you have been considering a weight loss program for some time, or you have been on other weight loss programs in the past and have not succeeded to date, then today can be the day that you decide to change your way and give yourself improved health for the rest of your life.
Even the smallest change that you can make today will be the first step to a new you.
If nothing else, decide to drink enough water today to remain hydrated and accept that alone as your first step towards improving your health and reducing your weight to more acceptable levels where you can feel happy about your body.
The start of any weight loss program can be the smallest change in direction in your life. What is the most important factor is actually making that change and taking that first step.
Doing that today could be the breakthrough that you need to push yourself to better things.
Nobody even needs to know that you have started on a weight loss program because the change will be minimal and very often talking about doing something stops people from actually doing it. Energy can be wasted in words whereas action will change your life.
The fact that you are reading this information means that you have either taken action already or you are still anticipating taking the action that you know is needed. For your own health and well-being today is that day.
The quality of your life in the future can very well depend on the action that you take right now
If you have been considering a weight loss program for some time, or you have been on other weight loss programs in the past and have not succeeded to date, then today can be the day that you decide to change your way and give yourself improved health for the rest of your life.
Even the smallest change that you can make today will be the first step to a new you.
If nothing else, decide to drink enough water today to remain hydrated and accept that alone as your first step towards improving your health and reducing your weight to more acceptable levels where you can feel happy about your body.
The start of any weight loss program can be the smallest change in direction in your life. What is the most important factor is actually making that change and taking that first step.
Doing that today could be the breakthrough that you need to push yourself to better things.
Nobody even needs to know that you have started on a weight loss program because the change will be minimal and very often talking about doing something stops people from actually doing it. Energy can be wasted in words whereas action will change your life.
The fact that you are reading this information means that you have either taken action already or you are still anticipating taking the action that you know is needed. For your own health and well-being today is that day.
The quality of your life in the future can very well depend on the action that you take right now
.
The Right Program For You
There are many fad diets constantly getting promoted with huge advertising campaigns and it seems that not a week goes by when somebody hasn't released the latest and greatest weight loss program onto the market.
Unfortunately the majority of these weight loss programs don't work for most people because they are simply too hard to maintain or alternatively they are detrimental to your overall health.
There is not one diet that is perfect for everyone but there are some very good programs available that will give most people very positive results and these are all based on the same foundation of sound nutrition, good exercise and realistic expectations.
Realistic expectations will get you a long way to achieving your goals so do take the time to consider what you can do, and what you can maintain over the long term.
Once again using good quality supplements can help considerably by maintaining balanced nutrition and reducing hunger that comes about from your body telling you that something is missing in your nutrition.
Having the support of those people around you will increase your chances of success and can help to give you the opportunity to set higher expectations and achieve your goals a lot sooner.
Support for your goals is a huge factor in achieving them even if you don't need other people to remain motivated so accept all and any help that comes your way.
The fact that you are considering a weight loss program only proves that you know what is good for you and all that is required now is for you to take action and make the necessary changes to your lifestyle that are overdue.
The first step is always the hardest and the further you go the easier the journey becomes provided of course that you have chosen the right path to follow.
Unfortunately the majority of these weight loss programs don't work for most people because they are simply too hard to maintain or alternatively they are detrimental to your overall health.
There is not one diet that is perfect for everyone but there are some very good programs available that will give most people very positive results and these are all based on the same foundation of sound nutrition, good exercise and realistic expectations.
Realistic expectations will get you a long way to achieving your goals so do take the time to consider what you can do, and what you can maintain over the long term.
Once again using good quality supplements can help considerably by maintaining balanced nutrition and reducing hunger that comes about from your body telling you that something is missing in your nutrition.
Having the support of those people around you will increase your chances of success and can help to give you the opportunity to set higher expectations and achieve your goals a lot sooner.
Support for your goals is a huge factor in achieving them even if you don't need other people to remain motivated so accept all and any help that comes your way.
The fact that you are considering a weight loss program only proves that you know what is good for you and all that is required now is for you to take action and make the necessary changes to your lifestyle that are overdue.
The first step is always the hardest and the further you go the easier the journey becomes provided of course that you have chosen the right path to follow.
Exercise Programs
For many people who are overweight starting an exercise program can be quite difficult.
What you need to understand is that you don't have to immediately start going out for long-distance runs. In fact to do so if you are quite overweight could be detrimental to your health.
In the beginning of an exercise program it is better to start by going for walks and don't be too concerned if initially they are short walks and slow ones at that.
You can't expect to run before you walk and you will find that once you start taking the steps towards your goal it will become easier and easier.
Even if you don't like exercise you need to be aware of the fact that exercise is one of the fastest ways for you to reduce weight and improve your health and speed up your metabolism to help reach your goals.
The more exercise you do, the more energetic you will become and this in turn makes it a lot easier for you to achieve your daily activities.
Exercise also helps to flush out toxins in the body and improve your digestive system with increased blood flow throughout the body so even small levels of exercise are going to benefit to some degree.
Any exercise that involves the use of resistance such as weightlifting will boost your ability to lose weight considerably as muscle burns fat and any muscle that you can build will help to lower your fat levels.
These resistance training type exercises also help to increase the strength of your bones that is very important as you age.
If possible, it is good to have some physical activity each day and at least you should assign time to do a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise three times per week.
If you find that you can't do that initially don't be too concerned as you will build up to it before too long and most people end up enjoying it and make it part of their regular lifestyle.
What you need to understand is that you don't have to immediately start going out for long-distance runs. In fact to do so if you are quite overweight could be detrimental to your health.
In the beginning of an exercise program it is better to start by going for walks and don't be too concerned if initially they are short walks and slow ones at that.
You can't expect to run before you walk and you will find that once you start taking the steps towards your goal it will become easier and easier.
Even if you don't like exercise you need to be aware of the fact that exercise is one of the fastest ways for you to reduce weight and improve your health and speed up your metabolism to help reach your goals.
The more exercise you do, the more energetic you will become and this in turn makes it a lot easier for you to achieve your daily activities.
Exercise also helps to flush out toxins in the body and improve your digestive system with increased blood flow throughout the body so even small levels of exercise are going to benefit to some degree.
Any exercise that involves the use of resistance such as weightlifting will boost your ability to lose weight considerably as muscle burns fat and any muscle that you can build will help to lower your fat levels.
These resistance training type exercises also help to increase the strength of your bones that is very important as you age.
If possible, it is good to have some physical activity each day and at least you should assign time to do a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise three times per week.
If you find that you can't do that initially don't be too concerned as you will build up to it before too long and most people end up enjoying it and make it part of their regular lifestyle.
Emotional Triggers
There are many different reasons why people become overweight.
It is not as simple as saying that overweight people just eat too much because there can be any number of psychological reasons that make people want to eat more.
Emotional triggers such as stress, sadness, depression and so on can all make a person want to eat more food. This is due to the fact that there are certain chemicals in the brain that are linked to both mood and hunger.
Many people associate eating with various different emotions and for this reason they choose to eat more food to make themselves feel better, or happier, or more comforted.
If you feel that this is the reason for your weight problem then it is probably better to get those issues resolved first by seeing a specialist rather than trying to attack the food problem first.
For a lot of people it is habit to over eat and behavioral modification will be the key to weight loss success in these cases.
One of the easiest ways to change your eating behavior is to eliminate any temptations. This is best done at the supermarket by not actually buying foods that are going to cause you a problem.
By not having these low value foods in the house you won't be tempted to eat them because they won't be there and this will encourage you to eat better foods and in doing so change your behavior patterns.
This process is made considerably easier if all members of the household will help towards achieving the goal of better eating.
If you do the shopping then you will be able to determine what food is purchased and this will help to make your weight loss easier, and in doing so it will help the nutrition of all members of the household.
It is not as simple as saying that overweight people just eat too much because there can be any number of psychological reasons that make people want to eat more.
Emotional triggers such as stress, sadness, depression and so on can all make a person want to eat more food. This is due to the fact that there are certain chemicals in the brain that are linked to both mood and hunger.
Many people associate eating with various different emotions and for this reason they choose to eat more food to make themselves feel better, or happier, or more comforted.
If you feel that this is the reason for your weight problem then it is probably better to get those issues resolved first by seeing a specialist rather than trying to attack the food problem first.
For a lot of people it is habit to over eat and behavioral modification will be the key to weight loss success in these cases.
One of the easiest ways to change your eating behavior is to eliminate any temptations. This is best done at the supermarket by not actually buying foods that are going to cause you a problem.
By not having these low value foods in the house you won't be tempted to eat them because they won't be there and this will encourage you to eat better foods and in doing so change your behavior patterns.
This process is made considerably easier if all members of the household will help towards achieving the goal of better eating.
If you do the shopping then you will be able to determine what food is purchased and this will help to make your weight loss easier, and in doing so it will help the nutrition of all members of the household.
Regular Weight Management Patterns
By getting into a regular pattern it makes the task of losing weight considerably easier.
If you know that you are going to exercise at the same time every day then your body will soon become adjusted to the fact that it will be exercising and this not only makes the exercise easier but it also ensures that you will stick to the plan and reach your goals a lot sooner than you would if you weren't consistent in your actions.
By keeping a record of your fitness training, you will be able to improve your performance in small steps that will result in big gains over the course of your program.
A regular checkup with your doctor is always recommended to ensure that all aspects of your health are improving and any concerns that you might have can be answered before they have the chance to escalate.
You might occasionally have a break from your weight loss program and this is not unexpected. It can actually do you a lot of good to have the occasional break from routine, provided of course that you get back to the program in a reasonable time and don't slip back to your old habits.
By adding variety to your food and your exercise it will ensure that you don't get bored as this is one of the main reasons that many people struggle to maintain their plan and achieve their goals.
If possible get others to join in with you when you are training as this can help to relieve any boredom and also inspire you to do more training and improve your performance.
Always try to associate with positive people and those who will help you to reach your goals and don't accept any negative energy from others as this will only hinder your chances of success.
If you know that you are going to exercise at the same time every day then your body will soon become adjusted to the fact that it will be exercising and this not only makes the exercise easier but it also ensures that you will stick to the plan and reach your goals a lot sooner than you would if you weren't consistent in your actions.
By keeping a record of your fitness training, you will be able to improve your performance in small steps that will result in big gains over the course of your program.
A regular checkup with your doctor is always recommended to ensure that all aspects of your health are improving and any concerns that you might have can be answered before they have the chance to escalate.
You might occasionally have a break from your weight loss program and this is not unexpected. It can actually do you a lot of good to have the occasional break from routine, provided of course that you get back to the program in a reasonable time and don't slip back to your old habits.
By adding variety to your food and your exercise it will ensure that you don't get bored as this is one of the main reasons that many people struggle to maintain their plan and achieve their goals.
If possible get others to join in with you when you are training as this can help to relieve any boredom and also inspire you to do more training and improve your performance.
Always try to associate with positive people and those who will help you to reach your goals and don't accept any negative energy from others as this will only hinder your chances of success.
Your Calorie Consumption
The amount of calories that you consume on a daily basis will determine whether you gain or lose weight and this is one of the most important aspects of any weight loss program that you decide to go on.
Studies have been taken where overweight people believed they were eating no more food than other people they associated with who were considerably slimmer than them.
The overweight people were under the false impression that the reason why they were heavier and gaining weight was due to their body's metabolism.
When keeping a record of their food consumption over a specified period of time it was shown that they were actually consuming more calories and it had nothing to do with their metabolism but rather their choice of food and the quantities they were eating.
You only need to reduce your calorie intake by 100 calories per day to make a substantial effect on your weight over the period of the year.
This is a very manageable goal for almost everybody and it is not too difficult to cut back by that amount, however many of the weight loss programs are recommending considerably more reduction in calories making it very difficult to maintain and as a result of this many people are failing to achieve what they start out to do.
Now when you combine the fact that you only need to reduce calories by that much, with additional supplementation of vitamins and minerals that can help your overall health, you can see how you can stay nutritionally balanced throughout the whole weight loss process and not feel as though you are starving yourself.
For many people just knowing that the hurdle is not so great, and that there are suitable supplements to assist them, is enough to ensure that they can start and maintain a good weight loss program.
Studies have been taken where overweight people believed they were eating no more food than other people they associated with who were considerably slimmer than them.
The overweight people were under the false impression that the reason why they were heavier and gaining weight was due to their body's metabolism.
When keeping a record of their food consumption over a specified period of time it was shown that they were actually consuming more calories and it had nothing to do with their metabolism but rather their choice of food and the quantities they were eating.
You only need to reduce your calorie intake by 100 calories per day to make a substantial effect on your weight over the period of the year.
This is a very manageable goal for almost everybody and it is not too difficult to cut back by that amount, however many of the weight loss programs are recommending considerably more reduction in calories making it very difficult to maintain and as a result of this many people are failing to achieve what they start out to do.
Now when you combine the fact that you only need to reduce calories by that much, with additional supplementation of vitamins and minerals that can help your overall health, you can see how you can stay nutritionally balanced throughout the whole weight loss process and not feel as though you are starving yourself.
For many people just knowing that the hurdle is not so great, and that there are suitable supplements to assist them, is enough to ensure that they can start and maintain a good weight loss program.
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