Weight loss should include not only a healthy diet, but also aerobic exercise (like walking, swimming, biking) and weight training. Diet controls how many calories enter your body, and physical activity determines how many calories are burned.
Here are essential things you should know about healthy weight loss.
3500 calories is the equivalent of one pound of fat. To lose one pound in one week, you would need to create a caloric deficit of 500 calories each day of the week. (500 calories x 7 days = 3500 calories). A healthy caloric deficit for achieving weight loss is about 300 calories a day from food, combined with 200 calories burned per day from physical activity.
1. Lose no more than one or two pounds (or one percent of your total body weight) per week. More weight loss than that is considered unhealthy. Fast weight loss will lower your metabolic rate and is usually regained. Small eating habits add up to a lot over time. For example, if you ate one 500 calorie muffin every day on the way to work, that would equal 3500 calories a week, which represents one pound of fat.
2. Eat like a king at breakfast, a queen at lunch, and a pauper at dinner. Breakfast–the most important meal–should be your biggest meal of the day because it speeds up your metabolism and gives your body energy to burn fat during the day. Dinner should be your smallest meal and one you should eat no less than two hours before bedtime. Eating close to your bedtime puts your body into a fat storing mode.
3. Avoid long periods without food. Eating five small meals during the day is better than eating three larger meals. Large meals on an empty stomach cause big increases in blood sugar and insulin, which put your body into a fat storing mode.
4. Eat fresh, clean and unprocessed nutritious foods. Eat slowly because it takes 20 minutes for your stomach to tell your brain that it’s full.
5. Watch what you drink because soda pop, some sweet juices or lattes have a lot of calories. For example, a 20 ounce Mountain Dew® has 300 calories; a can of Coke® contains a quarter cup of white sugar.
6. Drink 6-8 glasses of water a day. Add a small amount of fruit juice if you want more flavor.
Healthy eating can be delicious, pleasurable and promote weight loss. Your diet is healthier if it consists of fresh fruits, vegetables, salads, whole grain breads and cereals, beans, fish, lean chicken and nuts.
If you’re in the dark as to what are wholesome and nutritious foods, visit the American Dietetic Association’s Eat Right website or the Nutrition Resources menu on my website.
