Tue Mar 9 2010

Five Steps to Weight Loss

• The basic fact of weight loss is when you use 3500 calories more than you take in, you loose one pound. There are tons of fancy programs, workouts and supplements that promise something more. Most of these cost a lot of money. At the end of the day, you need to burn more calories than you take in. Here are five steps you can do to increase the calorie burn and decrease the calorie intake.

Step 1 - Knowing your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is a key component to losing weight . You use energy no matter what you’re doing, even when sleeping. Your BMR is the number of calories you would burn if you stayed in bed all day.

Your BMR decreases as you age. Depriving yourself of food in hopes of losing weight also decreases your BMR. A regular routine of exercise can increase your BMR, improving your health and fitness when your body’s ability to burn energy gradually slows down.

Step 2 - Increase your activity. Just from the BMR, a petite woman of 45 burns around 1200 calories a day. A large man in his mid thirties burns 2200. Most of us are in the middle. This is just for existing and breathing. You want to burn a few more calories with some activity. Whether this is running, walking or mowing the lawn, you are doing good by adding more. There are plenty of fun activities that burn a few hundred calories in one hour.

The goal is to be active. Moving your body and mind burns calories. Not all activities are the same. One can quickly burn an extra 500 calories a day with little effort. In one week that is a pound if you do nothing else.

Step 3 - Eat Less / Eat More. We want to eat less at each sitting. We also want to eat more often. Eating more often keeps your hunger at bay. Eating smaller amounts is simply putting less in you. Focus on fruits, vegetables, whole grains and other non-processed foods. These can keep you filled longer and give you the energy you need.

A great goal is to have 3 meals a day not to exceed 500 calories each and 3 snacks a day not to exceed 250 calories each. An average active male can burn 3000 calories a day between BMR, one decent workout and everything else one does in a normal day. If that same person stuck with the meal plan, he would consume 2250 calories. A net difference of 750 calories. That is 6.5 pounds a month before exercise.

Step 4 Create a Food Log - We have a bad habit of underestimating how many calories we eat. A little bite here or just a taste there, it all counts. A single triscuit has ten calories. Eating from carton of ice cream is a good way to consume 3 or 4 servings and 500 calories.

The best way to keep yourself honest is to create a food log. Writing down everything you eat is a great way to not go over a calorie limit for the day. On days you eat great, it will be hard to keep it under 2000 calories. On days you are bad, you will see it grow to over 4000 calories.

Step 5 Set Realistic Expectations - Losing weight is not easy. It took you a long time to pack it on. It will take a while to get it off. It can come off faster than it goes on though. It takes work and discipline. The benefit is you live longer and live better.

• Expect ups and downs to come. Plateaus will be there also. A big secret to get past these times is to change the diet or exercise routine. You can essentially confuse you body.

 

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Posted by dream