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WEIGHT
LOSS
People who are overweight suffer from many health problems, including heart disease,
arthritis, diabetes, depression, limited exercise capacity, social discomfort, etc.
It is important to make sure you do not have a thyroid problem, or other disease that might make losing
weight difficult, so a checkup with your doctor is helpful.
There are some simple approaches to losing weight:
1. Admit you want to lose weight, look in the mirror, watch yourself grow thin.
2. Understand where your excess calories are coming from. Fats have 9 calories in a gram,
carbohydrates and proteins have 4. Men and women need about 13-18 cal/lb, depending on
exercise level, to maintain their current weight. 45-65% of calories should be as complex
carbohydrates (not simple sugars), 20-35% as fat, and 60 grams as protein. Olive, canola and
fish oils are healthy choices.
3. Excess calories are stored as fat.
4. Exercise is important, but eating less is the most important thing. Walking is easy, accessible,
can be done anytime almost anywhere, at any speed, and still be very effective. Build exercise
into your daily routines: do sit-ups before getting up from bed, walk stairs, stretch, bend, squat,
stand on tip-toes, do push-ups, etc.
5. Try to lose a half-pound per week, or 25 pounds in a year. Weigh yourself every Sunday.
6. Eating 100 calories less a day can result in a 10 pound loss in a year. This varies according to
your current weight.
7. Identify things you eat that can be replaced easily with better foods, such as soft drinks, candy,
and fats. For example, if you drink a quart of Pepsi a day, substitute Calistoga or Crystal
Geyser sparkling water. Sweeten it with a little fruit syrup, such as Italian soda syrup, or flavor
it with lime or lemon. Substitute non-fat or low-fat products for full fat foods. Bake instead of
fry. Use unsaturated or monosaturated fats such as corn, canola, safflower, or olive oil, and
avoid solid fats such as butter, bacon. Skip the butter on bread and popcorn, or the cream
cheese on the bagel, or the cream or whole milk in the coffee, and eat whole grain bread instead
of white bread. Try frozen ices or sorbet instead of ice cream. Pat the grease off pizza or
bacon with a napkin.
8. Eat breakfast, add oat bran or wheat germ to cereal, and try to eat some protein such as an egg,
non-fat milk or yogurt.
9. Drink 16 oz of liquids at breakfast, including tea or coffee, then drink another 4-6 glasses of
water during the day.
10. Eat an apple or pear daily, maybe one of each, they have fiber and are filling.
11. Have soups before dinner to fill you up. Drink lots of water before eating to fill you up.
12. Stop eating before you are full, take a walk, and in 10 minutes you will no longer be hungry.
NEVER EAT OR SNACK BEFORE BEDTIME, or, if you do, eat a carrot.
13. Join Weight Watchers, which is an effective, and social, way to help one another lose weight.