Ended soon
Losing weight is one of the most important and common issues in our lives and determination for losing weight in 2012 is the key factor and this determination span over long period of time. From words of a fitness expert “changing long-held behaviors is a skill in itself”.
Dr. Jessica Bartfield, an internal medicine and medical weight-loss specialist at Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, part of the Loyola University Health System, talking to Loyola news expressing her expert opinion on determination for losing weight in New Year she said that losing the weight is not an easy job, people need to be ready to face hard and keep on trying.
“People need a motivation to lose weight and the New Year is an opportunity to start fresh,” Bartfield said. She also divert the attention on the behavior and said, “Behavior change is the cornerstone of healthy, successful weight loss and it takes about three months to establish a new behavior,”
She explained that, When you learn to ride a bike, you expect that you will fall down a couple times and are prepared to try again and get back on; you need to have the same expectation with weight loss and to plan accordingly.
She also focus on statistics that only 20 percent of Americans who’ve tried to lose weight will keep the weight off after one year, issued by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Bartfield delivered following tips to help people achieve their weight-loss goals:
Don’t skip breakfast. “Eating within one hour of awakening can boost your metabolism up to 20 percent for the rest of the day,” Bartfield said. “Eating something is better than eating nothing, but ideally try to incorporate protein for longer-lasting fuel.”
Exercise for one hour every day. “Snow shoveling, vacuuming, taking the stairs you don’t have to run like a hamster on a wheel for 60 minutes. Take three 20-minute brisk walks, or compile the one hour based on a series of activities,” she advised.
Keep track of calories. Do not underestimate how many calories you consume at each meal.
Have a weekly weight check. “Monitoring your weight on a weekly basis provides a fairly accurate weight trend and, more importantly, an early detection of any weight regain, which allows you to adjust behaviors accordingly,” Bartfield said.
Be consistent. “Eat at regular intervals seven days per week,” Bartfield advised. “Being ‘good’ on the weekdays and then splurging on the weekend creates a harmful cycle that discourages weight loss.”
Keep track of your physical activity. “Park your car farther away, take the stairs, manually change TV channels — these are all simple ways to get more physical activity and you need to write them down as they are performed to keep yourself honest,” Bartfield said. “Also wearing a pedometer can help accurately document and track your progress.”
Plan for setbacks. “When you learn to drive, or learn a sport or musical instrument, you make mistakes and you have an experienced instructor — maybe even several — to help correct the mistakes and prevent repeats. Enlist a trusted friend, or enroll in a program to learn and master the rules of weight loss,” Bartfield said.
Limit TV to fewer than 10 hours each week. “Many argue they don’t have time to exercise, but when I ask them to count the hours they spend watching TV or surfing the Net, they are able to find the time for activities where they are moving instead of sitting,” Bartfield said.
Set clear, realistic goals. Avoid setting vague goals. Objectives need to be specific and attainable. People can start by trying to lose 10 percent of their body weight, Bartfield recommended.
She also focused on teenagers, “Treating child and adolescent obesity needs to be a family effort; families need to change behaviors, research shows that families and even couples who change behavior together are the most successful.”
