Looking for Weight-loss Answers?
Losing weight and keeping it off is a real challenge for most people. That’s why it’s important to begin a weight loss program with the help of your health care team, including, if possible, a dietitian. They can help you find ways to decrease calories but still consume the foods you enjoy. And they can suggest strategies to help you change old habits for new ones. It’s important to remember that losing even a relatively small amount of weight can make a real improvement in reducing your risk for diabetes and other serious conditions.
Doctors say obesity, also known as severe overweight, is a complex condition. A doctor may advise medical interventions in addition to changes in behavior. But experts say the most successful weight-loss plans include a well-balanced diet and exercise.
Exercise is known as physical activity and includes anything that gets you moving, such as walking, dancing, or working in the yard. You can earn the benefits of being physically active without going to a gym, playing sports, or using fancy equipment. When you’re physically fit, you have the strength, flexibility, and endurance needed for your daily activities. Being physically active helps you feel better physically and mentally. People who want to avoid weight gain have to balance the number of calories they eat with the number of calories they use. To lose weight, you can reduce the number of calories you take in, or increase the number you use, or both.
Experts at the National Institutes of Health say to lose weight, a person should do an hour of moderate to intensive physical activity most days of the week. This could include fast walking, sports or strength training. You should also follow a nutritious eating plan and take in fewer calories than your body uses each day.
A recent study looked at four of the most popular dieting plans in the United States. Researchers at Stanford University in California studied more than three hundred overweight women, mostly in their thirties and forties.