Counting Calories
The number of calories consumed and the number used as energy determine weight. If more calories are consumed than burned, the result is weight gain. To maintain your weight, you must consume the same number of calories you burn but to lose weight, you must consume fewer calories than you burn.
Simply controlling grams of fat consumed, which was popular nutrition advice in the past, does not necessarily result in a reduction in calories.
If you have not count how many calories you are eating or you only count portions it could be you are eating more than you realize. Or you might take in fewer calories than you should, which causes your metabolism to shut down and go into starvation mode and save those calories.
So you need to balance practical and realistic expectations with a nutrition program that gets results. Create a daily menu including calories, protein, carbohydrates and fats. After you have your menu, print it, stick it on your daily planner so you can have an eating objective for the day, with a calorie target.
Fiber
Fiber has little nutritional value, but prevents constipation and reduces intestinal disorders such as diverticulitis. A High-fiber diet may lower cancer rates and lower levels of cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood. Almost all fiber comes from plants, mainly legumes, whole fruits, green leafy vegetables, whole grains, and bran.
More of these types of foods can be eaten without consuming lots of calories, and should be included in the diet where possible. The sensation of filling is because fiber absorbs water as it moves through the digestive tract. Low calorie fiber rich snacks include: rice cakes, carrots, air-popped popcorn, apples and other fresh fruits.
A well-balanced, varied diet is recommended for a healthy lifestyle. For information on how to increase the fiber in your diet contact a specialist dietitian or your doctor.
If you want to remain healthy, some of the choices you can eliminate from your diet include:
These foods contain empty calories without adding any nutritional value.
Healthy Food Alternatives:
OVERWEIGHT
In some people, obesity seems to be a genetic characteristic, and typically become progressively and severely overweight even before adolescence.
The definition of obesity is a chronic condition defined by an excess amount of body fat. The normal amount of body fat that is necessary for storing energy, heat insulation, shock absorption, and other functions is between 25-30% in women and 18-23% in men. Women and men with over 30% and 25% body fat respectively are considered obese.
Being overweight is a risk factor of many disorders, including hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, diabetes mellitus, and, in women, endometrial carcinoma and can lead to potentially fatal cardiopulmonary disease. Obesity has diverse factors, such as excessive eating, genetic predisposition, social class norms, nutrient availability and density, basal and exercise-dependent energy expenditure, and, occasionally, underlying medical, neurological, or psychiatric disorders. In general, the more severe the weight abnormality and the earlier it manifests, the more likely genetic or medical factors are involved. Binge-eating disorders present in approximately 25% of obese individuals.
