Since excess weight puts you at risk for many health problems, you may need to set some weight loss plans to help avoid those risks and prevent disease.
But what should be your long-term goal? And what short-term goals should you set to help you get there? You have a better chance of attaining your goals if you make sure that the weight loss plans that you will use are sensible and reasonable right at the beginning.
Here are some guidelines from the experts in choosing weight loss plans and goals.
1. Be realistic
Most people’s long-term weight loss plans are more ambitious than they have to be.
For example, if you weigh 170 pounds and your long-term plan is to weigh 120, even if you have not weighed 120 since you were 16 and now you are 45, that is not a realistic weight loss goal.
Your body mass index or BMI is a good indicator of whether or not you need to shed of pounds. The ideal BMI range, according to the national Institutes of Health, is between 19 and 24.9. If your BMI is between 25 and 29.9, you are considered overweight. Any number above 30 is in the obesity range.
From this point of view, you will need a sensible weight loss plan that will correspond to the required BMI based on your height, because this is the primary factor that will affect your BMI.
2. Set appropriate objectives
Using a weight loss plan just for vanity’s sake is psychologically less helpful than losing weight to improve health.
You have made a big step forward if you decide to undergo a weight loss plan that includes exercise and eating right so that you will feel better and have more energy to do something positive in your life.
3. Focus on doing, not losing
Rather than saying that you are going to lose a pound this week, say how much you are going to exercise this week. This would definitely make up of a sensible weight loss plan.
Keep in mind that your weight within a span of a week is not completely in your control, but your behavior is.
4. Build bit by bit
Short-term weight loss plans should not be “pie-in-the-sky.” This means that when you have never exercised at all, your best weight loss plan for this week should be based on finding three different one-mile routes that you can walk next week.
5. Keep up the self-encouragement
An all-or-nothing attitude only sets you up to fail. Learn to evaluate your efforts fairly and objectively. If you fall short of some goals, just look ahead to next week. You do not need to have a perfect record.
After all, self-encouragement should definitely be a part of your weight loss plans. Otherwise, you will just fail in the end.
6. Use measurable measures
Saying that you are going to be more positive this week or that you are going to really get serious this week is not a goal that you can measure and should not be a part of your weight loss plan.
This is another reason why you should incorporate exercise on your weight loss plan and focus on it. You should be able to count up the minutes of exercise in order to be successful in your plan.
The bottom line is, people should make weight loss plans that will only remain as it is, just a plan. They have to put it into action by incorporating goals that will motivate them to succeed.
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Tuesday, 2 June 2009
Program your Weight Loss in as Easy as a Week
The idea of the program is to be able for you to develop a consistent approach to weight loss as well as a healthy endurance when exercising. The program’s objective is to get rid of the excesses in your body, the excess fat. Not the healthy and lean muscle tissues and body fluids.
The program first requires your focus and dedication, so therefore you need to be prepared in both mind and – of course – body. It is highly advised that you first visit your doctor for a check-up before embarking on any weight loss program.
It is important that when starting on any weight loss program, one should be positive enough to work for the results. Some people get impatient easily but long term effects are assured as long as one sticks to the weight loss plan at hand.
Stretch, stretch and stretch some more. Before actually doing those exercises and working out those muscles, a little stretching is needed in order to avoid any injury or soreness in your body.
It is also not advisable for anyone to try too hard. Everything should be done in moderation. Find the level of exercise and training that suits you. It should be enough for you to be comfortable in but not too convenient that it will not be much of a challenge.
The first week
The first day of the program involves a long and steady walk in a little over twenty minutes. After the walk, follow it up with a good stretch. This takes so little of your time for the first day. In less than an hour you have taken that first step to a weight loss program that could work to your advantage.
By the second day, it is good to focus on an upper body workout. This maintains your strength to be able to go through the whole program for the week. On the third day, a brisk walk or jog for ten minutes is in order. For beginners, a lower body workout should be done in the evening.
In the fourth day, a good rest is in order, as well as a good stretch. This lag time should be used wisely though to sort out any negatives in your mindset. The fifth day starts with a good ten minute walk. Exercise the lower body in four sessions of workouts, follow this up with another ten minute walk, and another four sessions of lower body workout.
The sixth day should be spent on a low impact exercise such as swimming. To avoid boredom, do not be afraid to try something new. The last day of the week is a time to solicit the support of the people you care about. Spend time with them or get them to be with you in your long walk. Again, follow up your walk with a light upper body workout.
This is just the beginning though. If by this first week you are able to stick to the program, you have a great chance to further boost your weight loss and stay with the plan until you achieve your desired result. Try as much as possible to be unlike the people who give up easily just because they could not see the result they want at the time they want – like this moment, today, now! Patience is a virtue. The same way it took your body time to gain all that weight, think about it as the time your body will have to exert just to get rid of it.
The program first requires your focus and dedication, so therefore you need to be prepared in both mind and – of course – body. It is highly advised that you first visit your doctor for a check-up before embarking on any weight loss program.
It is important that when starting on any weight loss program, one should be positive enough to work for the results. Some people get impatient easily but long term effects are assured as long as one sticks to the weight loss plan at hand.
Stretch, stretch and stretch some more. Before actually doing those exercises and working out those muscles, a little stretching is needed in order to avoid any injury or soreness in your body.
It is also not advisable for anyone to try too hard. Everything should be done in moderation. Find the level of exercise and training that suits you. It should be enough for you to be comfortable in but not too convenient that it will not be much of a challenge.
The first week
The first day of the program involves a long and steady walk in a little over twenty minutes. After the walk, follow it up with a good stretch. This takes so little of your time for the first day. In less than an hour you have taken that first step to a weight loss program that could work to your advantage.
By the second day, it is good to focus on an upper body workout. This maintains your strength to be able to go through the whole program for the week. On the third day, a brisk walk or jog for ten minutes is in order. For beginners, a lower body workout should be done in the evening.
In the fourth day, a good rest is in order, as well as a good stretch. This lag time should be used wisely though to sort out any negatives in your mindset. The fifth day starts with a good ten minute walk. Exercise the lower body in four sessions of workouts, follow this up with another ten minute walk, and another four sessions of lower body workout.
The sixth day should be spent on a low impact exercise such as swimming. To avoid boredom, do not be afraid to try something new. The last day of the week is a time to solicit the support of the people you care about. Spend time with them or get them to be with you in your long walk. Again, follow up your walk with a light upper body workout.
This is just the beginning though. If by this first week you are able to stick to the program, you have a great chance to further boost your weight loss and stay with the plan until you achieve your desired result. Try as much as possible to be unlike the people who give up easily just because they could not see the result they want at the time they want – like this moment, today, now! Patience is a virtue. The same way it took your body time to gain all that weight, think about it as the time your body will have to exert just to get rid of it.
Monday, 1 June 2009
Weight Loss - It's in Your Head
Weight Loss - It's in Your Head
By Helene Haber
When you truly consider the weight-loss process, the battle waged is mostly in your mind. “Should I eat the corn muffin with butter or would it be better for me to have margarine or better yet, have jelly? What am I doing eating this muffin anyway? It’s so caloric and filled with saturated fat. I’m such a pig. I have absolutely zero willpower.” It’s no wonder you’ll eat that muffin with the butter and slather jelly on top to quiet that negative self-talk.
What you need more than a diet is a way to shift those negative self-defeating thoughts to more adaptive, positive self-statements. As with most things worth doing, this requires a bit of practice. First, become aware when you’re using a negative statement, then determine what about that thought is faulty and finally, replace it with a self-defense response or coping thought.
In the corn muffin example, instead of listening to “I’m such a pig” which clearly mislabels who you are, respond with “Pigs are animals and I am human. I don’t have to be perfect.”
Many people cannot change their eating habits until they change their thoughts about food, eating and drinking. By shedding “distorted” thoughts and replacing them with productive ones, eating habits can be changed. It is possible to rid yourself from many self-critical thoughts, but like any ingrained habit, it takes vigor and vigilance to change. Here are some other thinking distortions to challenge:
Shoulds. Should statements are more about other people’s values, not ones chosen by the person who wants to lose weight. Additionally, should statements reflect an attempt by the dieter to motivate herself without really believing in the value. Better to determine what works for you. “I will eat up to two Hershey kisses daily and thoroughly enjoy them.”
All-or-Nothing. This kind of reasoning is the foundation for perfectionism. An all-or-nothing individual views the world as black or white. Since there is no allowance for gray areas, the behavior is either perfect or a failure. “I’ve ruined my diet by eating all that pizza. I can’t stay on a diet and I’ll just always be fat.” Maybe the problem does not arise from the behavior… maybe the problem is with the diet that does not allow for pizza. “I do not want to give pizza up for the rest of my life, so what I need is a way to include pizza in my diet without feeling like a failure. Let me try having a salad (dressing on the side) before the pizza to take the edge off my hunger.”
Good Foods/ Bad Foods. If the truth be told, foods do not misbehave. Foods are not good or bad. While it is true that some foods have more nutrients or are more fiber-dense than others, all foods can be enjoyed. How we think about food colors what we eat and how much we eat. If a food is labeled as bad (such as fries), then for many individuals that food is taboo. When one eventually succumbs to eating the forbidden, French fries, bingeing may result. Rather than continue with dichotomous thinking of good food/bad food, shift to allow space for all foods you like without judgement. Instead of “I ate those fries which are so bad for me” to “I really enjoyed that small portion of fries. They really satisfied me.”
Body Distortions. Rather than dwelling on how fat or thin you think your body is, it is extremely helpful to view your body in terms of what it can do for you. For example, when you look in the mirror, instead of zooming in on your stomach which “looks five months pregnant, although your last baby was nine years ago” tell yourself “my body has given life” or “my body enables me to go where I want to and allows me to have fun.”
The conversations that are going on inside your head cannot be stopped. However, what you can do is to be aware of negative self-talk and understand that it has little to do with actual reality. When you believe this, you can respond to the critical voice with a more objective, coping thought. Although negative thoughts may not be stopped entirely, they can be quieted by listening to your compassionate, caring voice. In much the same way you would sympathize and listen to a close friend, listen to yourself. Be your own best friend and chances are you’ll have greater weight loss success.
Helene Haber
Holistic Nutrition Coach
Helene Haber, HHC is a board certified health counselor. She designs personalized wellness solutions for women of all ages looking to enhance their lives, get their bodies back in shape and their health back on track. Email: TopCatHelene@aol.com.
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How to Lose 15 Pounds Fast - 9 Tips to Lose Fat From Your Thighs, Belly and Hips!
How to Lose 15 Pounds Fast - 9 Tips to Lose Fat From Your Thighs, Belly and Hips!
By Jim Dalton
Want to lose 15 pounds fast? By changing your eating habits you will be able to lose fat from your belly, thighs and hips and enjoy other benefits, like: increased longevity, less chances of getting cancer or heart disease and lower cholesterol levels.
Here are 9 tips for losing weight in less than 30 days:
- Eat more fiber: eating at least 25g of fiber per day will help you consume fewer calories because they make you feel full and less hungry. Examples of high-fiber foods are: broccoli, beans and cereal.
- Avoid high Glycemic Index foods, like honey, dried fruits, fruit juices and processed sugar.
- Consume more lean protein: foods such as cottage cheese, eggs, fish, turkey, chicken, low fat yogurt and soy products can help you maintain muscle mass and speed up the fat-burning process.
- Always eat breakfast: people that don't eat breakfast usually consume more calories throughout the day. Breakfast will help you avoid hunger pangs and will increase your metabolism.
- Drink more than 8 glasses of water daily to detoxify your body.
- Stop skipping meals: having small meals every few hours will boost your metabolism.
- Start small: completely eliminating your favorite food from your diet will only make you feel deprived and sabotage your weight loss efforts. For example, if you really like chocolate, you can continue to enjoy it, but just try to gradually decrease the quantity.
- Avoid processed foods, because they increase your sugar levels and make your body store fat.
- Stay motivated: find a thinner photo of yourself and post it in place where you can see it every day. This way you will have the incentive to stick to the plan and think about all the rewards you will enjoy after you complete your weight loss program.
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Fat Loss 4 Idiots - Finding the Right Diet Plan
Fat Loss 4 Idiots - Finding the Right Diet Plan
By Paul Matthew Moore
There are a number of different diets out there and many of them are valid. However, what might work for one person may not work for another person. This is because different people have different genetics, lifestyles, likes and dislikes. That is why it is important to explore diets that are more akin to your needs since this will increase the odds of success.
Now, some may be saying that all diets are fundamentally the same. That is, a person must cut back on their calories in order to drop weight. While this is fundamentally true, there will be certain differences among these many different diets. These differences must be understood because selecting the wrong diet plan for a particular lifestyle can undermine the benefits the diet can deliver.
For example, there are a number of low fat diets that are comprised of high carb and high protein content. Now, the number of calories in these diets is low but the excess carbs have the potential to store fat if not burned. As such, it becomes necessary to increase one's activity levels so as to burn off these excess carbs. Now, some individuals may find this a little too difficult. Their lifestyle is most sedentary and it may not even be of their choosing. A person that works a desk job simply can not move around enough to burn the carbs they ingest. For these individuals, a high fat, high protein, low carb diet may prove to be valuable. Granted, such a diet will be low in nutritional value which means taking vitamin supplements may be necessary when on such a diet.
As you can see, different diets are exactly that - different! Far too often, we are sold on the notion that there is a "super diet" out there that will deliver the long desired results we crave. Really, the best diet is the one that works for you. That means you need to play the trial and error game when seeking a diet that works.
For example, you may try a specific diet strategy and, after 6 weeks, you do not notice any obvious results. If this is the case, it may be beneficial to switch to a new diet. What would not be beneficial would be to declare "dieting" a failure and assume you cannot lose weight. Taking such an attitude is often self-defeating. That is why it is best avoided. If a diet does not work for you, simply look for a new diet that will yield better results.
Also, it is critical to avoid diets that make outrageous claims. Such "fad" diets usually deliver short term results and the eventually return of the lost weight in the near future. That's why it is best to avoid diets that promise that you can "Lose ten pounds while eating chocolate cake!" If this was the case, you would see a lot of professional bodybuilders eating slice after slice of chocolate cake. Again, stick with legit diets and avoid the fad diets that clutter the picture. This will yield far greater gains in the long term.
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Your Motivation to Lose Weight
Your Motivation to Lose Weight
By Paul Matthew Moore
The weight loss market, as a niche market, is huge and growing ever bigger. You would assume that, with the amount of advice freely abounding, people would be able to follow instructions and lose their excess weight. In the majority of cases, however, this simply does not happen. But, why? What makes it so difficult to lose weight? After all, you would assume that, if a person wants to lose weight that much, then they would be able to set their minds to it, follow the rules and watch the scales creep down along with the clothes sizes. When you consider how much carrying around excess weight affects a person, apart from physically, reducing a person's self-esteem so dramatically, you would assume that losing weight would be - well, not so much a doddle, but fairly straightforward. So, why isn't it?
There really is no single answer. It could be an unrealistic weight loss plan, or it could be unrealistic expectations. I suspect fewer people suffer from lack of willpower than actually claim to. So what is the problem? Is losing weight too difficult? Or is it because most weight loss plans are too slow? How do we put an effective weight loss plan into action? Basically, a person who wants to lose weight needs to know what to eat and how to eat it, how to increase their activity level and how to change their behavior. One of the most important parts of any weight loss plan is attitude. Attitude over-rides everything else. You can have an excellent weight loss plan and exercise regime but, without the correct cognitive attitude, success will be as far away as ever.
However, assuming you have the correct mindset and everything else is hunky-dory, where do you start? Are you going to follow a red day or a green day and then discuss sins with everybody you meet, or join one of the other diet classes where you get a pep-talk once a week and, for the rest of the week you struggle? Or supplement your weight loss plan with a bit of help from diet supplement such as Adios, or MyAlli, or 4RX- or one of the other many aids on the market? From my own experience, the most difficult part of a weight loss plan is starting it and getting used to what you are allowed to eat and what is best avoided.
First of all, you need a diet that is easy to follow which is why I am not a particularly great fan of the red/green revolution. I found it so complicated that it was just easier to stop dieting! You also need to pick a weight loss plan that is realistic. There is no point in going out with the family for the day and blowing your diet because there is nothing suitable for you to eat - or, come to that, going out to a restaurant and having to pick your way through a rather sad and boring salad because there is nothing else suitable on the menu. You are going to be living with your weight loss plan every single day for quite a few months: you need to be able to carry on with your everyday life while you are following your weight loss plan.
There are many different weight loss diets that can be found at this Fat Loss 4 Idiots review page. Many of these diets has successfully shed the weight off dieters when followed correctly. How many diets can say the same thing? So, if you want more information, then check out this Fat Loss For Idiots review page.
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