There is a trend that’s sweeping the nation and it isn’t a good one. Obesity is an increasingly prevalent health problem in the developing nations, the United States in particular. And thus, diet pills seem to be all the rage.
But do they really work? Obesity puts a person at risk for all kinds of dangerous, sometimes deadly, health problems – like cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and even cancer. Not to mention, it can virtually ruin a person’s self-esteem as the image of a significantly overweight person is mocked in the media while the image of an ultra-thin, even underweight, model is idealized in today’s culture. So certainly if you have one too many extra pounds, it’s advisable to get rid of them. But diet pills may not be the best solution. Here’s why.
Often, doctors will prescribe anti-obesity drugs to patients who are in dire need of them. Because medications like these drastically change a person’s bodily functions, they should be approached with caution. A diet pill may accomplish one or all of the following tasks: suppressing appetite, increasing metabolism, and/or blocking the absorption of certain fats.
Probably one of the most notorious diet pills is Fen-phen, which was taken off the market because it caused heart disease and hypertension in women. But even the diet pills that the Food and Drug Administration approve of can have serious side effects, some that may even be life-threatening. These side effects include high blood pressure, stomach pain, drug addiction, glaucoma, and insomnia. Hence, only those who are suffering from severe obesity are good candidates for such treatment. In other words, when the risks of obesity are deemed greater than the risk of side effects from medication, diet pills can be a useful tool.
Still, a major concern about diet pills is that there is simply not enough research to determine how safe or helpful they really are. As science progresses, the market for diet pills might be a lot easier to navigate but as of now, it’s not recommendable to shop around for them casually.
So, if your doctor doesn’t recommend diet pills, then what are your options for losing weight and losing it fast? Fortunately, you have a variety of natural, safe options and soon enough, you can be on the road to rapid weight loss. But before you take the steps to a healthier lifestyle, don’t begin your journey with unrealistic expectations. Many folks expect to shed their extra pounds instantly and that kind of weight loss can never have long-term benefits. Instead, it’s better to make permanent lifestyle changes that will mean you keep the weight off forever, but it won’t mean you are instantly thin. You will still lose a good deal of pounds right from the get-go; it just won’t happen overnight.
In order to learn how to lose weight, you must fully understand how it is you gain weight in the first place. And it’s really quite simple. Basically, you must burn more calories that you consume in order to see a decrease in your weight. If you consume more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. And similarly, if you consume the exact same amount of calories that you burn, you will see no weight change at all. The key is to understand this process and learn how to take in fewer calories without sacrificing your health and how to then efficiently burn those calories.
So here are some tips to weight loss that don’t require diet pills, starvation, or overexertion. You really can take control over your weight. You don’t have to be another obesity statistic.
1. You are what you eat – so make sure you know what it is you’re eating!
Once you learn how many calories are in various foods, it will be pretty easy to avoid high-calorie foods! Before buying that bag of potato chips at the store, take a look at the calories per serving listed on the package. Similarly, keep in mind that a standard fast food meal has at least 1,000 calories in it! That’s about half of what your daily intake should be. You may think that by eating less food, you are eating fewer calories, but that’s hardly the case. One slice of cake can have the same amount of calories as a full entrée. Educating yourself may be a shocking experience at first, but the more you know, the more likely you are to want to eat healthy and where there’s a will, there’s a way.
2. Now, decrease your calorie intake
Stop eating fast food. Stop stalking up on unhealthy junk food. Simply remove the temptation to overeat. It may take up more time, and even cost more money, to make a home-cooked meal – but it will be worth it in the long-run. You can cook up a flavorful, filling meal that’s also very nutritious instead of downing a burger and fries that have twice as many calories and won’t even satisfy your appetite. Fried foods and the like can be very addictive, so the key is to keep them out of sight and smell. If potato chips are your weakness, don’t buy them at all. You’ll likely just finish a whole bag in two days! But if the temptation is not there to begin with, you can save yourself a lot of calories.
If you don’t trust yourself to monitor your calorie intake, make a meal plan for the week. Plot out what you will eat and have a friend or family member keep you accountable for it. Planning ahead can make a big difference and prevent you from making that spontaneous run to the local fast food joint.
3. Increase your metabolism
Since your weight is dependent upon the calories you take in versus the calories you burn, it’s important to find out how you can increase the rate at which you burn calories – i.e. your metabolism! There are some nifty tricks to improving your metabolism. For example, having a regular diet of spicy foods and drinking lots of water is a great way to increase your metabolism. As well, instead of eating three big meals a day, eat six small meals. It would seem that snacking is a bad habit, but it’s really quite beneficial. The more your metabolism is put to work, the stronger and faster it becomes. Your metabolism is like a muscle! So spreading your calorie intake throughout the day is actually better than eating very few calories but only during one dinner time meal.
The next tip is about developing a daily regimen of physical activity. But not only will exercise enable you to burn calories, it will also help to increase your metabolism so you can burn those calories efficiently.
4. Incorporate physical activity into your daily routine
A lot of people, especially those struggling with weight problems and obesity, are intimidated by the gym. And while conventional exercise, which may include jogging or lifting weights or doing push-ups, is greatly conducive to a healthy lifestyle, it is not the only option. For those who consider the gym the last place they’d go, there are still ways to be physically active.
For example, everyday activities, like cleaning the bathroom and cooking dinner, burn lots of calories! Do you have a dog? Why not take him or her for a walk every day? Do you have children? Why not play ball with them in the yard? Also, consider joining a local sports team or engaging in hobbies like gardening. You will find that you are burning calories without even realizing it.
The Surgeon General suggests that decreasing your daily calorie intake by merely 150 and increasing your physical activity only by a moderate amount can equal a weight loss of ten pounds in six months, or twenty pounds in one year. Moderate physical activity, according to the General, include washing a car for forty five to sixty minutes, raking leaves for thirty minutes, and gardening for thirty to forty five minutes.
Similarly, there are some ways you can be physically active that you may not have considered before. For instance, when you drive somewhere, park far away from your destination. Urban sprawl is indeed one of the reasons obesity has increased in the United States, as Americans are forced to drive everywhere, but if you can’t bike or walk to the store, etc, then you can at least park at the end of the lot.
Learn what activities burn calories. Even thinking does – you are actually burning calories as you read this article! You don’t have to run for miles every day or do intensive aerobics to lose weight. In fact, it may be completely impossible to engage in such activities if you have a full-time job and/or a family to take care of. And even if you did find the time to work out, such a schedule can be difficult to maintain. Instead, find ways to be physically active on a regular basis. (For instance, if you have an office job, try to take frequent breaks by walking around the office.) Keep in mind, though, that the more intensive the physical activity is, the more calories you will burn, and the faster you will lose weight.
If you find you’re still lured to a sedentary lifestyle, you may need to take more overt steps to get yourself off the couch. Maybe you should cancel your cable subscription so you’re not glued to the tube. It may seem like a big sacrifice at first, but if it forces you to engage in outdoor leisure activity and thus improve your mental and physical wellbeing, it can be the best sacrifice you ever made.