Many people confuse weight loss with fat loss. When you lose weight you do lose a certain amount of fat - but if you lose weight too quickly you lose more muscle than you do fat. That is why it is important to lose weight slowly so you burn off the fat and keep the important muscle weight.
Losing all the fat in your body is also not healthy. Fat is stored in the body as “emergency” energy in the event you cannot eat for a long period of time. A little fat on the body is not only healthy, but necessary.
However, there is a difference between a little fat and being considered obese. Today, 60% of the population is categorized as obese - a startling number compared to 20 years ago. By health standards, a man is considered obese if his body fat level is over 25% and a woman is considered obese if her body fat level is over 30%. Carrying too much fat is a strain on your legs, knees and hips as well as your heart and other body organs. Even losing 5% of this weight can help you live a healthier life.
The Best Way to Lose the Weight
The best way to lose weight is slowly, eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly. That doesn't mean you have to starve yourself or exercise strenuously. In reality, drastically depriving yourself of food can cause the opposite effect of weight loss. When you starve your body it begins to go into starvation mode and will hold onto the fat cells, so all you end up losing is muscle weight. Eating a healthy diet will actually speed up the loss of fat, especially when you add exercise.
What is a healthy diet? A healthy diet consists of small portions of all of the food groups. Foods containing protein and carbohydrates shouldn't be eliminated just because the also contain fat. There are good fats and bad fats, so it is important to include a few of the good fats while you are losing weight.
Good fat comes from healthy natural foods such as red meat, lean chicken or salmon. They also come from essential dairy products such as eggs, milk and yogurt. Bad fats come from high sugar foods like candy, cookies and cakes.
The same is true with carbohydrates. While foods rich in carbohydrates tend to also have high fat content some are more health than others. The body needs a certain amount of carbohydrates to convert into energy. Carbs are also a natural hunger-suppressant as they fill you up for a long period of time. The best sources of carbs for your diet are beans, fruits, vegetables and whole-grains.
What About Exercise?
The type of exercise you choose should be determined by your current health and weight level. If you haven't exercised in a long time you should start out slowly by walking up to 30 minutes at a time, 3 times a week. Once you begin to lose weight you can increase your walking time or begin to add other exercise such as weight lifting. Biking, swimming and jogging are also great ways to exercise. Any exercise that raises your heart rate will not only keep you heart healthy but also increase the rate of weight loss. Always check with your doctor before beginning an exercise routine.
What About Weight Loss Products?
There are some products on the market that can help you speed up your weight loss by helping to burn fat faster. Do your research before trying these products to make sure they are healthy for your body and your heart. Many work by using high amounts of caffeine to suppress your appetite and this could be dangerous if you have high-blood pressure or any other type of heart condition. Some products, like fat binding proctucts, can be helpful if you need that little extra help losing extra fat.
Fat is a necessary part of a healthy diet as long as you are careful about how much you eat. With a combination of a balanced, healthy diet and exercise you are sure to see results in only a few short weeks.
