All who have tried over the years to lose weight can attest that it is easy to lose weight but difficult to keep it off, among them is our celebrated friend Oprah Winfrey. Let’s explore why this is the case, and how you can finally keep off the weight you lose.
For starters, being overweight is not a disease in itself, but it is the gateway to serious diseases such as: high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, esophageal cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer, kidney cancer, congestive heart failure, heart enlargement, stroke, pulmonary embolism, erectile dysfunction, gallbladder disease and the like.
Consequently, you need to treat overweight with the same seriousness as you would treat a heart attack or cancer, meaning you should immediately consult your doctor or dietitian once you learn that you are overweight. With less effort and expense you could solve the problem of overweight, and not have to worry constantly that you may have a heart attack or cancer at anytime.
If you are concerned that you might be overweight, the first thing to do is to confirm if you are actually overweight by measuring your body mass index (BMI) at a reputable website like www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi. The chart will show that below 18.5 you are underweight, 18.5 – 24.9 normal weight, 25.0 – 29.5 overweight, and 30 or greater, obese.
Once you determine that you are overweight call in the professionals because you cannot solve the problem on your own. The reason is this: the body has a memory. If you have lost 10 to 50 pounds before, you will have experienced the relentless effort the body makes to return to its previous size.
For instance, if you weighed 240 pounds before, and by physical exercise or a change in diet you lost 40 pounds; by some biochemical process the body knows exactly the type and quantity of food you ate that got you to 240 pounds, and it will inflict upon you splitting headaches and light-headedness to force you to return to that meal. As your weight begins moving toward 240 pounds the headaches and light-headedness will stop, which is a strong indicator that the body has a memory.
Still, you can keep off the weight that you lose by changing the memory of your body. Daily physical exercise, and/or a change in diet and lifestyle can help you to do that. We have a choice, either to make the change in our eating habits and lifestyle, or wait like sitting ducks until we get hit by heart attack, type 2 diabetes, cancer and God knows what else.
On examining how difficult it is to keep off the weight that we lose, it appears as though there is an ongoing conflict between the self and the body. The self is the essence of who we are and the expression of our personality. The body gives us our physical form and presence.
The self wants us to be happy and confident, look physically beautiful, be free to do the things we desire. On the other hand, the body simply wants to be fed, repair itself and grow in size.
Ideally, we want the self to be in charge of our personality, but when your body mass index consistently stays above your normal weight you are heading for trouble. If so, now is the time to exert control over your body, otherwise it will take control your life, move you toward obesity, take away your happiness, and put your life at risk.
Some helpful physical activities you could begin doing right away to exert control over your body are: jogging and walking, swimming, bicycling, tennis, dancing, triceps press, abdominal crunches and squats. You will find that some of these physical activities will produce better results when you go to the gym. If , however, the condition of your life does not allow you to do so, focus on light workout like walking and diet and lifestyle changes.
While the body mass index has been around since the 1850s, some argued that it does not actually measure the percentage of body fat. It merely arrives at a figure obtained by dividing an individual’s weight by the square of his height. But, when you combine your body mass index and the measurement of your waist circumference, the result is a good indicator of abdominal fat, and an effective predictor of the risk of heart and other diseases.
There is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution to every overweight problem. Consult your doctor or dietitian for a weight-loss program specifically designed for your health condition, body mass index and financial means.
Also bear in mind that there is no recovery time after a coolsculpting procedure so be careful in what you are planning to do and if you are capable of doing it
