Obesity - How to Lose It

Are you obese? At your last check up did your doctor tell you to lose weight?

Your doctor did? Please send him/her a thank you note and perhaps a gift.

The reason is that most doctors in America shy away from confronting their obese patients. Well at least the ones that are not excessively obese. Instead of meeting the problem head on, they will make mealy-mouthed suggestions like, eat fruits and vegetables, exercise more often, go for long walks, blah, blah, blah.

No wonder over a third, like 35.7% of Americans are obese. As a nation, we spend $148 billion each year for treating problems related to obesity.

So let us tackle the problem head on.

DEFINE OBESE

Medically, the following are the definition of normal and obese weight:

A Body Mass Index (BMI) from 18.5 to 24.9 is considered normal.

Adults with a BMI of 25 to 29.9 are considered overweight. There are exceptions. Some people in this group, such as athletes, may not have too much fat, and may not have an increased risk of health problems due to their weight.

Adults with a BMI of 30 to 39.9 are considered obese.

Adults with a BMI greater than or equal to 40 are considered extremely obese.

Anyone more than 100 pounds overweight is considered morbidly obese.

There are simple calculators to calculate BMI. So, a person who is 5.3" high and weighs 125 pounds has a BMI of 22.1, which is normal. A person who is 5.8" and weighs 175 pounds has a BMI of 27 and is considered overweight, not obese. Remember these are indexes for non-athletes.

HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT SIMPLY AND SUSTAIN WEIGHT LOSS

Here are some practical and common practices that will help you to lose weight without stress.

Have a thorough physical examination--blood, stools, urine and EKG. This will reveal any medical condition that may be causing weight gain such as thyroid or hormonal imbalances.

Intelligent snacking: Snack on healthy foods. Crunchy vegetables or slightly grilled meats are good because they contain nutrients and less fat. Get in the habit when you feel hungry, to drink water and munch on something healthy

Exercise. Get into the habit of regularly exercising. 

Even walking and brisk walking (see Resource guide for an excellent website) are good and less troubling to your knees. Exercise or walk routines should be changed often. Your body does have a tendency to "get lazy" if you exercise with predictable routines. So walk uphill one day and level another. Switch between cardio and lower ab, muscle resistance and stretching, push ups and jumps, etc. etc. In other words, trick your body to strain, but not overly so.

Reduce sugar, salt and alcohol use.

Stress less.

When cooking, use less oil, butter and other fats

Missing a meal once a week is good. E.g. one evening just drink milk and eat a fruit and skip dinner.

Eat a good breakfast, and a light lunch and dinner

Make sure you consume most of the carbohydrates before evening. Your body slows down its metabolism as the day progresses, which is why eating a good sumptuous breakfast in the morning is essential.

Leave at least 2 hours between your last meal for the day and sleep.

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