With the holidays behind us and swimsuit season fast approaching our minds and attention go to weight loss. The focus of losing weight should mean being healthy not being skinny. Being overweight puts you at risk for heart disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer and back problems.
You want to stop thinking about dieting and start thinking about being healthy. You need to eat to be healthy, not "diet" to be thin. Beware of any diet that is very low in calories and omits a whole food group promising quick weight loss, which is illusionary with the first 5 lbs. coming from water loss... this is surly a "fad diet." So if you are on a "fad diet" ask yourself if you can do this forever. Most likely your answer is no. So start eating to be healthy. The idea of a "diet" has a beginning and an end. You have to start thinking about your life style and that you need to eat healthier forever.
Body weight is about energy balance, and calorie is another word for energy. So to maintain your weight calories in must equal calories out. To lose weight, calories in must be less than calories out, which eating less and exercising more can do.
We get calories from the food that we eat in the form of proteins, fats and carbohydrates. Fat gives us the most calories; therefore if we cut the fats we will be taking in fewer calories. Saturated fats, which are solid at room temperature, are directly related to heart disease and raise the artery clogging bad cholesterol, LDL. Therefore avoid butter, bacon, sour cream and whipped cream, fat in red meat, whole milk. Instead focus on monounsaturated fats like olive oil, canola oil, avocados and most nuts, which lower LDL cholesterol.
Portion control is another way to reduce calories. How much are you eating? Too much of a good thing will also make you gain body fat. Twelve almonds are 100 calories and your average bagel is equivalent to six slices of bread. So portion size is key.
Exercise is how we burn those calories going out. It is recommended that you exercise five times a week for a minimum of 30 min. Aerobic exercise like running, swimming and walking burns fat but only after 20 minutes in your target heart rate zone. Anaerobic exercise like weight training builds muscles, which increase your metabolism. Therefore it is important to do a combination of both types of exercise.
If you eat to be healthy, the bonus is you will be thinner.
To learn more on how to eat to be healthier and lose weight join "Transformations," an eight-week weight loss program at Norwalk Hospital. New classes start Tuesday, March 13 at 12 p.m. and Thursday, March 15 at 5:30 p.m.. Call Cindy Allen at 203-855-3548, or 203-852-2178 to register.
Schmidt is a nutrition lifestyle specialist at Norwalk Hospital.
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Hospital's weight loss program begins in March
