Make Healthy Weight Loss Your Springtime Goal. |
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| By don | ||||
Many of us look at ourselves in the springtime and wonder, just what we did do to ourselves over the winter. This article won't cover why this weight gain happens, that is covered in a previous article. What we are going to do, is cover the steps we need to take for a healthy, safe weight loss, to get rid of the Springtime Bulge. :Motivation :Target Weight :Plan. :Support :Maintenance Motivation Losing weight can be a daunting task, if you are not prepared mentally. What do I mean by that? Well are you going to TRY to lose weight, or are you GOING to lose those extra pounds and inches? You see, TRYING to lose weight says to me, that you are not sure of the outcome. GOING to lose weight suggests a more positive outlook. What will help you become more positive about the results? You need to know what's in it for you. Why are you going to lose weight? For YOUR HEALTH? Carrying an extra 20-25 pounds, is like carrying a 1 year old baby about. (National Center fo Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion(2000)) Can you imagine the extra strain on your heart and muscles. All your clothes are too small? You don't like what you see in the mirror? It doesn't matter what your reason is. Hey, maybe it's all three, but if it makes you more determined to lose, then write it down. Put it on the fridge and keep reading it over, as a constant reminder why you are putting yourself through this. Target Weight. How Much Are You Going to Lose? Don't guess. First, calculate your BMI. We need some measurements. (a) weight in pounds. Call it W (b) height in inches. Call it H From this we can calculate the BMI (Body Mass Index). The formula is:- (W x 703) divided by (HxH) = BMI Results: less than 18.5..underweight 18.5-24.9 average 25-29.9 overweight over 30 obese. Repeat this calculation with different values for W, so that the answer comes to 22. Here's an example: wx703/HxH=BMI (217x703)/(74x74)=27.86 ... overweight Target Weight Wx703/74x74=22/1 W=(74x74)x22/703 =171.37lbs For a target BMI of 24, the target weight would be 187 pounds. Now to recap, we have written down our reasons..our motivation. We have calculated our target weight..our goal. The Plan. What's involved in making a plan? Remember, that a healthy weight loss involves burning more energy than we consume. It's seems to be the consensus, that one pound of excess fat is equivalent to 3500 calories. Losing one pound of weight per week is a nice healthy target. That's either burning an extra 500 calories a day or consuming 500 calories less per day. It has to be your plan but I would recommend a combination of diet and exercise. If you decide to start exercising to help your weight loss, then I would start slow with moderate fat burning exercise about three times a week. Exercising for twenty minutes is about the norm to start. Fat burning exercises includes walking, jogging, running, elliptical exercise trainer workouts, cycling and swimming. Exercising for twenty minutes is about the norm to start. Dieting. There are several organized commercial companies, which specialize in weight control. Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, LA Weight Loss, Herbal Magic to name a few. Or you could google "weight loss" and pick a program that suits you. The most important thing to remember, is to include all the main food groups in your menu. Protein portions should be lean and low fat eg. turkey, chicken and fish, and about 4 ounces in weight. It should fill quarter of your plate. Another quarter of your plate should be slow sugar carbohydrate like wholegrain rice or pasta or even a baked potato with margarine. The other half of the plate should be mixed vegetables. (Negative calorie vegetables. See the Bulk Up Your Diet Article.). Support. As in project that tests your willpower, positive support is crucial. That's where programs like Jenny Craig etc come into their own. Yes you can do it on your own, but it's more fun when someone else tells you you are doing fantastic. Maintenance. This will be covered in a future article. |
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