For Life

• The main goal of weight management should be

Good Health!• Focusing on thinness can leave many discouraged.

• If your weight doesn’t interfere with your life or pose any health risks, you probably are fine the way you are.

If your weight remains constant, you are probably taking in the same amount of calories you burn each day.

If you're slowly gaining weight over time, it is likely that your caloric intake is greater than the number of calories you burn through your daily activities.

Energy is measured in calories.

There are 3500 calories in a pound. Our weight is determined by the amount of energy that we take in as food, and the amount of energy we expend in the activities of our day.

So To lose one pound, you need an expenditure of approximately 3500 calories.

* Cut back on food intake * Increase physical activity* A combination of both

• If you consume 500 extra calories per day for one week without changing your activity level, you will gain one pound in weight

• 7 days multiplied by 500 calories equals 3500 calories, or the number of calories resulting in a one-pound weight gain.

Likewise, if you eat 500 fewer calories each day for a week or burn 500 calories per day through exercise for one week, you will lose one pound.

A. Figure Total Calories B. Calculate # of days C. Divide Total calories by total of days

= calories per day

• Input is simply what we eat.• Output is what we burn each day and includes…

*our level of physical activity. *our basal metabolic rate

(BMR)

• Genetic factors (BMR)• Hormonal factors• Body type • Thyroid activity• Lifestyle/Career• Amount of sedentary time (can lower metabolism)

A safe, healthy rate of weight loss is:

½ to 2 pounds per week.

• Rapid weight loss can lead to hunger pangs, bouts of hypoglycemia, headaches, and mood changes . These symptoms can result in binge eating and weight gain.

Since a highly restrictive diet is almost impossible to maintain for a long time, people who lose weight too quickly…

often start to gain weight again when they stop dieting.

When weight loss is too quick, the body begins to adapt to this state of poor nutrition by slowing down its metabolic rate. This leads to more weight gain due to the lowered metabolism, which leads to more dieting, which leads to an even more metabolism, etc… this is known as “Yo-Yo” dieting or weight cycling.

Weight cycling is the repeated loss and regain of body weight.

* When you dramatically reduce your calories, your body assumes the worst (there is a famine).

* Your body responds by going into red alert mode, frantically trying to conserve as many food energy as possible.

1. First it slows down metabolism.2. Then rather than burning fat, the

body goes for the richer fuel and burns muscle.

3. A loss of energy hungry muscle = an additional reduction in the metabolic rate.

4. When muscle is burned, water is lost too and then quickly regained.

So with a slower metabolism and less active muscle tissue, your body needs less to keep it going. And your body may to continue to operate at a slower metabolism when you stop dieting. This means you will gain back all of the weight you lost on the diet … plus possibly more!

Maintain/build muscle tissue by weight lifting and resistance training (more muscle = higher BMR)

Burn off fat with aerobic exercise

Lose weight at a slower pace.

• A good diet is one that you can stick with.

• A good diet is one that works for you.• A good diet is one that fits with your

lifestyle• A good diet is one that involves a

permanent change in eating habits.• A good diet won’t trigger weight

cycling.

The most successful weight loss comes from dietary changes and healthy food choices that will stay with you over time, not from diets that leave you feeling deprived or result in binge eating episodes.

Many people prefer to have a set of rules to follow when dieting.

Others may crave the emotional support from attending counseling sessions or meetings.

Diet products, books, and services have become a billion-dollar industry, so there are obviously many people looking for help with weight control.

Before you jump on the latest diet bandwagon, remember that organized diet plans and programs can only result in weight loss if you burn more calories than you consume. No dietary supplements, exercise devices, combinations of foods, or specific patterns of eating will change this fact.

• Some examples of popular diet plans include the Atkins diet, the South Beach Diet, Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, Body for Life, Dr. Andrew Weil's diet plan, and The Ornish Diet. All of these diets have their proponents, and all of them have been successful for some people. Because eating habits and preferences vary widely among individuals, before you decide on a diet plan, ask yourself if the plan sounds realistic to you.

All of these diets have their proponents, and all of them have been successful for some people. Because eating habits and preferences vary widely among individuals, before you decide on a diet plan, ask yourself if the plan sounds realistic to you.

• If the plan involves rigorous measuring of portions and calorie counting, are you up to the task?

• If you're forbidden to eat certain foods, will you develop cravings for them?

• Do you feel that you will feel comfortable adhering to the diet guidelines?

• Will the diet's requirements fit easily into your daily schedule?

• Finally, consider that once you've lost the weight, you may regain the weight if you return to your previous eating habits, so any weight loss plan should be something you can live with for a long time.

Maintenance of a healthy body weight is important for maintaining both physical and emotional well-being and preventing disease.

Both being overweight and having obesity are associated with an increased risk of numerous conditions, including:

• heart disease, • high blood pressure, • stroke, • diabetes, • osteoarthritis, • some types of cancers, • sleep apnea, and • elevated blood cholesterol

levels.

Many overweight people also report improved mood, increased in self-esteem and motivation, and feeling healthier in general after they have lost weight.

Lose Weight too quickly Lower basal metabolism (BMR) Too restrictive/Limit personal

choice Change eating patterns too

drastically Lack variety Lead to intense food cravings (=

cheating) Boring

Don’t focus on healthy eating habits for life

Once the diet is over, the dieter returns to their old eating habits.

Fad diets = promise rapid, easy weight loss

Fasting involved Crash = under 1220 calories Lead to weight cycling

Facts

New evidence that genetics plays a key role in obesity. The findings relate to the genetics of modern Pima Indians who have an unusually high rate of obesity and NIDDM. Their obesity is thought to be linked to a thrifty metabolism that allowed them to metabolize food more efficiently in times when little was available but causes problems when food is in abundance.

The Japanese have a great expression concerning healthy eating habits:

Hara hachi bu. Hara hachi bu means “Eat until 80%

full” (literally, stomach 80%). Stopping at 80% capacity is actually a

very good strategy to avoid obesity without going hungry because the stomach's stretch receptors take about 20 minutes to tell the body that how full it really is and 20 minutes after stopping you will really feel full

The single most powerful cue to consume extra calories is the simple fact that food is there. People find it almost impossible to resist the ready availability of food.

Potent eating cues include sounds, smells, activities or times of day we associate with eating, such as hearing the lunch-truck horn at work, as well as food ads and low food prices. And once we're prompted to partake, it's difficult to stop.,

In one study, people were served soup from a trick bowl that never became empty; it refilled itself from a reservoir hidden under the table. Everyone who ate from the bowl consumed more than their usual portion of soup. When told about the trick, some went back to their normal portions. But others just kept eating, unable to say no to food that was right in front of them.

We can be conscious of what we eat, but we may think very little about volume

You feel deprived of the foods which you enjoy and this leaves you craving for them even more. Unfortunately, because the foods being avoided are abundantly available, and food visibility and availability are powerful eating stimuli, the restrictor often breaks her "plan" and eats a forbidden food. Once this happens, overwhelming guilt followed by feelings of low self esteem motivate the individual to go on over consuming the avoided food in an attempt to numb these negative feelings.

One of the reason people are unable to over come eating triggers is the inability to accept their body due to the bombardment on our souls of absurd body ideals.

Check if your focus is on the things which you feel are wrong with your body.

Often, excessive eating, lack of physical activity and stress tips the scales of our otherwise balanced lifestyles. Many have found that overeating tends to occur in specific places and times, such as in the evening when you're at home and watching television.

When your energy level is low, you may look for food to pick you up. You are putting up with so much in your life that this is constantly draining your energy, leaving you feeling tired. Unfortunately, most of us reach for calorie-laden treats instead of an apple or banana.

The pressures of work, school and home tend to burn us out .We turn to food when we're really needing love and comfort. Lack of appreciation, discouraging remarks leave us sad and lonely, we then tend to turn towards food to find consolation.

You have got so much to do that you feel you must do, that you find it difficult to take the first step towards eating healthier (it is just one more demand on your life). Being overwhelmed leaves many feeling helpless and discouraged, without giving it a try.

Anxieties and emotions can also trigger the desire to eat. You turn to food when someone says or does something that feels upsetting or hurtful to you. Some people eat because they are sad or stressed out or even to celebrate when they are happy.

Your attitude is shaped by your thoughts, feelings, and actions. It's really easy to feel good when the going is good. The key to vibrant energy and a powerful attitude is to MAKE yourself feel good, ESPECIALLY when the going's tough, and you don't feel good, or you don't want to feel good. Willpower is one of the tools you need to employ in order resist the powerful cravings associated with food. The cravings will attempt to control you. It is your willpower, determination and self-discipline that you will use to fight back.

You eat when you're bored or do not have anything interesting to do or look forward to. TV is a favorite pass time especially when you are alone at home and bored. When food commercials are running 200 images per hour into our cerebral cortex it is difficult not to be draw towards the refrigerator. If food commercials are a trigger, watch nature shows or commercial-free TV.