As a woman who has recently fallen victim to the pandemic of obesity, I can assure you that losing weight isn’t as easy as it seems. Truth to be told, there are many aspects to consider before you can start your weight loss journey. From learning how to eat healthy to understanding your metabolism, here are the things you need to know.
How To Eat Healthy
If you’re looking to shed those unwanted pounds, it’s a good idea to focus on eating healthier instead of relying on fad diets or starving yourself. After all, you can’t lose weight if you’re not consuming enough calories to sustain the body’s processes. This is where knowing how much you need to eat for weight loss comes in handy. There are basically 2 ways to gain weight: consuming more calories than you expend or storing fat in your body. If you don’t know how many calories you need to consume to lose weight, you’re setting yourself up for failure. That’s a lot of pressure for someone already feeling insecure about their body. Knowing how many calories you need to consume means you can have healthy meals that will assist you in your weight loss efforts, without worrying about deviating from your diet too much. If you’re not used to eating healthy and don’t want to change your ways, this could be a stumbling block. However, by introducing small changes such as swapping out foods with healthier alternatives, you can start losing weight without feeling deprived.
What is My Metabolism?
Your metabolism is the basic rate at which your body converts food into energy. Some people are fortunate enough to have fast metabolisms, which permit them to lose weight quickly. If you’re not familiar, your metabolism can be determined by taking your body’s natural temperature after waking up. Typically, as your body temperature returns to normal after going to sleep, it shows how fast your metabolism is functioning. For people with slow metabolisms, weight loss can be a gradual process.
Knowing your metabolism type is important for a couple of reasons. First of all, some people with slow metabolisms find it easier to maintain a healthy diet than people with fast metabolisms. The second reason why knowing your metabolism type is important is that some individuals require more calories to maintain their current weight than others. For example, those with slow metabolisms need fewer calories to maintain their weight than those with fast metabolisms. This means that if you’re looking to shed some pounds, you might have to adjust your diet a little bit to make sure you’re not consuming too many calories.
How Much Should I Eat?
As stated above, you can’t lose weight if you’re not consuming enough calories to sustain the body. This means that you’ll need to eat more than you need to meet the daily requirements for survival. In general, it’s a good idea to follow the 80/20 rule: consume 80% of the calories you need from healthy food and avoid consuming the rest. This way, you’ll be feeding your body with the nutrients it needs while also helping it shed those unwanted pounds. There are varying opinions as to how much you should eat to lose weight; however, this is mostly dependent on your own body’s measurements. For example, if you’re 5’5″ and want to lose a couple of inches, you might need to eat between 1600 and 1800 calories per day to see the results you’re looking for. Some experts even recommend increasing your daily calories by 400 to 500 calories if you’re experiencing extreme body aches and pains.
What Is Exercise?
Just because you’re not eating enough calories to maintain your weight does not mean you need to cut back on exercise. On the contrary, you should be doing your body some favors by keeping it moving. Research has shown that exercise is crucial for weight loss because it helps boost your body’s natural metabolism. If you want to lose weight and are not sure how much exercise is suitable for you, start small. For example, if you’re new to exercise, try for five to ten minutes a day. As you get fitter, increase your exercise time until you find an activity that you enjoy and stick with it. Remember, everyone is different and what works for one person may not work for another. What’s important is that you’re doing something for yourself that makes you feel good.
Hopefully, this post gave you some good ideas on how to start your weight loss journey successfully. Whether you’re looking to lose a few pounds or are trying to hit the genetic jackpot and are blessed with excellent genes that permit you to lose tons of weight, every bit helps. Remember to take it easy at first and don’t push yourself too hard; after all, you’re starting a new lifestyle change and there will be lots of ups and downs. Also, don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t lose weight because you’re female; believe in yourself and you’ll be able to lift that extra pound off your stomach.