Perhaps the last time you had a checkup at your doctor's office, he or she recommended that you drop a little weight. A person's ideal weight depends on several factors, including age, gender, your bodyframe size, the amount of exercise you get, and any health conditions or medications that could have an impact on your weight, such as insulin taken by Type One diabetics, or people in recovery from surgery or cancer treatments. There are many scams available that offer quick weight loss results, but in reality there is no quick fix for losing weight and then maintaining your weight at the correct level. It is a matter of balancing diet and exercise in an appropriate way so that you can drop the extra pounds while still maintaining your muscle mass. What constitutes healthy weight loss, and what tools are available to help you achieve your ideal weight?
One aspect of healthy weight loss is that you take the weight off slowly. Although there are some health conditions in which a doctor might recommend rapid weight loss, this is a task to only be completed under a doctor's supervision. If you are not in this category, doctors often recommend losing no more than two pounds at the most per week.
Simple changes in your lifestyle can have an impact over time on your weight. Simply by eating more fruits and vegetables, along with whole grains, and cutting back a bit on portion sizes can help tremendously. Adding physical exercise to your daily schedule also makes a dramatic difference in not only your wellbeing but also your weight. Walking is often recommended because it is easy to do, does not require special equipment, and can be done anywhere.
The Mayo Clinic recommends controlling the portion sizes of foods to help with weight loss. They advise eating more fruits and vegetables and reducing the portion size on high-calorie foods will not only help you feel full but will reduce the number of calories you are eating and help you reach your weight loss goals.
Others find that a small reduction in your daily calories can make for significant weight loss if it is done on a consistent basis over time. Dropping 300 to 500 calories per day alone can result in a weight loss of one to two pounds per week. This is roughly equivalent to three chocolate chip cookies to one average slice of pecan pie.
Many who have been successful at losing weight and keeping it off rely on a calorie calculator and an exercise journal to help them achieve healthy weight loss. An online food diary can help you analyze quickly and easily the food you eat, and help you make healthy choices. An online exercise log can help you plan your workout schedule so that it includes cardio, strength and flexibility training, along with appropriate rest, so that your fitness level will improve, and will also result in healthy weight loss.
Have you ever wondered why there are so many diets out there on the marketplace these days? With new diets popping up on the Internet and in health and wellness journals all of the time, the phrase 'yo-yo dieting' says it all. If the South Beach Diet doesn't work, there is always the Beverly Hills Diet, or the Cabbage Soup Diet...or...the list seems endless! If you are a serial dieter then you literally have no end to the options you can pick and choose from.
What you really need to know though, is that it is not the diet that controls the weight loss, it is the person behind the diet. If you have not yet come to understand what, if any, importance food weighs in your life, and you are bouncing from one diet plan to the next diet pill, to the next gym membership then you need to realize that it isn't the diet that is failing you, but rather it is you failing the diet.
So what are some of the key things you can do to stay on track for a healthy lifestyle that involves a long term weight loss plan? Try these options:
1. Don't follow a diet plan, but instead count your calories - You can buy a calorie chart at any bookstore and keep track for yourself how many calories you are consuming daily.
2. Stay away from fatty fast foods - Fast food restaurants may be fast and easy, but they serve up high calorie food that isn't nutritious in the long run.
3. Make water your best friend - Water is an essential part of life. Everyone needs water because it helps to lubricate our joints. There are minerals in water that our body needs and our metabolism needs water in order to help us break down the protein in our body to supply energy. A person needs to drink at least 2 liters of water daily!
4. Stay away from alcohol - Alcohol dehydrates you. If you want some proof, remember your last hangover? After you came away with the sluggish, headachy feeling, were you craving a big glass of water?
5. Don't skip meals - People mistakenly believe that if they skip meals they will lose weight? Skipping meals will just make your hungrier in the long-run and you will eat MORE food.
6. Stay active - Discipline yourself to be physically active. Don't overdo it (and check with your doctor first). Create a program that you can work with. Set realistic goals and look around your environment for ways that will increase your physical activity without interrupting your day. Take advantage of any stairs you might have at home or in the office. Don't take the elevator or escalator, take the stairs!
7. Gather support - Talk to your family members and loved ones. Involve them in your new healthy lifestyle. Plan family outings where there is a good amount of walking. Plan vacations with activities in mind that will involve the entire family. The commitment to lose weight is within yourself.
Strengthen your resolve and keep your goals small and attainable.
Both Susan Slobac & Lana Hampton are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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