Abhirupa Purkayastha – Simplifying content

Losing weight is more about health than looking good. Shedding some extra pounds can improve your health in many ways. Weight loss helps in:

• Reducing aches and joint pains
• Increasing energy level
• Lowering cholesterol level
• Reducing blood pressure
• Improving blood sugar level and it also helps you to sleep better and wake up with oodles of energy.

Everyday we are bombarded with emails and messages regarding ways to lose weight. However, most of them are unhealthy ways to shed weight and can cause serious medical problems. While it may be tempting to find the quick fix to shed those extra pounds but the truth is these ways are not successful and efficient at long-term weight control. Often we see that people opting for faster ways to weight loss like “miracle diets”, diet pills and other gimmicks lose weight but then watch the pounds creeping back. If you want to keep your weight off for a long term then do things the right way. There is no short cut here, slow and steady really does win the race!

To assist you on your road to removing extra pounds and stay healthy, I have jotted down 5 healthy ways to lose weight.

1. Do regular physical activities: To lose weight, a person should maintain a difference between the amount of calories consumed everyday and the amount of calories burned through physical activities and metabolism. Studies show that an hour of moderately intense physical activity everyday is quite efficient to maintain weight loss. These activities include walking, gardening, aerobics and swimming. Well, you can also try brooming and cleaning your house to lose weight!

Shorter sessions of vigouros activities such as fast walking, cycling or stair-climbing are also helpful for losing weight. However, these activities should not be done excessively, or else your risk of injury increases.

2. Eat healthy food and snacks: Please don’t stop eating to lose weight. In the long run it does not help, in fact it adversely affects your health. People starving themselves suffer from medical risks like

• Mineral loss
• Low body temperature
• Irregular heartbeat
• Development of osteoporosis
• Failure of normal growth permanently

In order to lose weight in a healthy way focus on low-calorie but nutrient- rich foods. But that does not mean you eat your breakfast and skip other meals. Eat your meals at regular intervals and spread them evenly throughout the day. Eat a proper balanced diet that offers all the nutrients you need. Eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, legumes, lentils and whole grains and drink lots of water. Avoid foods that contain saturated fat and trans fats. Avoid alcohol completely and limit your sugar intake. Well, you can eat small amounts of high-calorie and high-fat foods on occasion but the main thing is you should know when to stop!

3. Monitor your weight on a regular basis: In order to keep off the pounds it’s important to keep a track of your weight regularly. Weigh yourself at least once a week. It is important as it tells you if you’re making progress and it can help you detect small weight gains before the problem gets larger. For those who are particular about weighing themselves everyday (though doctors don’t recommend it) remember that your body weight changes throughout the day depending on whether you have taken meals or fluids at particular times. So, PLEASE make sure that you weigh yourself at the same time everyday and under the same conditions. Do not weigh yourself before taking breakfast on the first day and after taking lunch on the second day. You will definitely panic on seeing the weight difference on the second day!

4. Good night’s sleep: Your body requires at least seven to eight hours’ sleep at night to be an efficient fat-burning machine. If you think that you will lose weight fast by sleeping less, then you’re WRONG. Give your body enough time to rest itself, both physically and mentally.

5. Stick to your weight-losing  plan: Adhere to your weight – loss plan during the entire week, on the weekends and amidst holidays and family vacations.