Ten Important Things You Should Know About Weight Loss

by Mary Leahy

1) Rather than try diet after diet, you need to understand your body and how it uses the food it is given. Know which foods cause weight gain and which ones help you lose weight. This may vary from person to person.

2) You need to know and understand your metabolism. Your metabolism plays a major role in weight gain or weight loss. Your metabolism is controlled by the different types of foods you give your body. Some foods will cause the metabolism to become sluggish or shut down completely leading to weight gain. You need to have a good understand on which foods to eat to speed up the metabolism in order to lose weight, and which ones that cause weight gain.

3) When following a specific diet or a fad diet, certain foods may be eliminated, but this can lead to weight gain rather than weight loss. Our body requires certain foods in order to work properly. Understanding and knowing which these foods are will help you towards losing weight.

4) Todays eating habits have gotten so out of control that it is not a wonder our bodies have gotten out of control. We have a tendency today to skip meals or even avoid foods that are necessary to maintain a healthy metabolism/body. But in doing so, for example, you skip meals or eat just once a day, then you risk putting your body's metabolism into "starvation mode". That means everything you eat goes to fat stores to be used later as your body does not understand food is available and it will be fed later.

5) Portion sizes have increased. With all the super sizing and bulk packages we now have we expect more. But by eating larger amounts at a time, our bodies can not use up all this extra food, which leads to ours bodies getting larger/fat. Getting back to eating smaller meals more often and eating the right combination of foods, should help you lose or control your weight.

6) Some diet programs require you to buy their products however, you will only achieve any weight loss while you consuming the product. This makes you dependent on their product. Wouldn't it better to control your weight naturally rather than depend on products, which can become costly? 7) Diet pills and diet shakes may contain caffeine or amphetamines, which will artificially speed up your metabolism. Over time this can be harmful to your health or may become addictive. Get proper weight control naturally, not artificially.

When we are trying to control our weight, eating the proper foods should not be difficult. Losing weight should not be a struggle nor should it be difficult to introduce good eating habits into your lifestyle. But first, you have to want to understand how certain foods affect your body and also how the body uses the food it is given.

8) Teach your children/family proper nutrition and good eating habits. It is better and also easier to introduce healthy eating habits when your family are young rather than try to change their eating habits later. If your family is eating healthy it will be easier to lose and control your weight.

9) If you follow a diet that stops you eating foods you enjoy and forces you to eat foods which you do not like you will feel cheated and will fall back into your bad eating habits. Follow a program that fits your schedule and your metabolic needs.

10) Exercise is also needed for weight loss. This does not mean getting a membership at your local gym and fitness centre or running a marathon. You need muscle in order to burn fat. If you have been overweight for a period of time you probably have lost your muscle tone. You will have to work on getting some of that back in order to lose weight.

A few simple changes will help get you started. Walk up and down stairs rather than taking the elevator or escalator. If you have a dog, take it for a walk a couple of times a day. Instead of jumping into the car to go to the local shop or dropping the kids off to school, walk if it is within a reasonable distance. If you work or attend classes make time for a walk or a little exercise during your lunch break. If you have to sit most of the day, make a point of getting up periodically and doing a brisk walk around. If you have to stand in one spot for long periods of time, do some jumping jacks or jog on the spot.

Once you start incorporating some exercise into your daily routine, you will find you have more energy and you will also find you will start shedding some of your weight.

Healthy eating habits, knowing what foods to eat, eating smaller portions, and understanding your body and its metabolism is the long term answer for losing weight and also how to keeping it off.

Mary Leahy is a registered nurse with many years experience in nutrition and understands the benefits of a healthier lifestyle. She had the opportunity to observe and study a variety of cultures and their eating habits. With the help of her husband they came up with a healthy eating program designed to help you understand food, lose weight and maintain a healthy lifestyle. http://www.mnb-weightlossprogram.com

tags: weight+loss | exercise | metabolism | food