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Weight management is all about energy balance. Follow these tips to successfully manage your weight:
- You want to have an increase in energy expenditure and a decrease in energy (caloric) intake. You can never out-exercise a bad diet, so it has to be balanced. In other words, increase your physical activity, but also maintain a balanced nutrition plan.
- Increase your aerobic work. Aerobic exercises can include walking, swimming, treadmill use and, if you have healthy joints, running.
- Include weights in your workout to strengthen muscles, about two to three days per week. Make sure you are cleared by your physician to do these exercises before starting. Begin gradually, and then as you get stronger you can increase your time.
- Remember that you still need to exercise even after you've lost weight. Continue to follow a balanced diet and work out for 30 minutes five days a week for overall heart health and weight maintenance.
Whether your objective is weight loss, weight gain or maintaining your current weight, lifelong success in weight management depends on new ways of thinking:
- Make health, not appearance, your weight-management priority. Strive for your best weight for health. Remember this is not necessarily the lowest weight you could be or even what you may consider your ideal number.
- Set realistic, attainable goals. Start with where you currently are and set more manageable goals. A goal of losing five pounds in the near future is more attainable than losing 25 pounds over a year's time.
- Focus on a healthy lifestyle and not on dieting. Diets are too often short-term tactics that do not end with long-term results. Make changes to your overall lifestyle that are realistic and able to be carried out long-term.
- Cut yourself some slack. Allow for occasional slipups in your eating strategy. Also, plan for treats and splurges, allowing yourself to indulge every once in a while, making up for it at another time.
- Expect success. If you doubt yourself, you're more likely to fail. Positive self-talk and an enthusiastic approach to weight management can set you up for success.
Continue Learning about Weight Maintenance
Weight Maintenance
Losing the weight is only one step in the journey to better overall health. After the weight is gone, it's all about maintenance – adopting a lifestyle that incorporates healthy eating, daily exercise and continued goal setting. A...
nd there are lots of different ways to maintain your weight that help make the lifestyle switch easier: eat breakfast daily, load up on fruits and veggies and establish manageable weight loss habits like walking once a day. All of these can be easily incorporated in your healthy weight maintenance plan and keep you from putting the pounds back on.
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Important: This content reflects information from various individuals and organizations and may offer alternative or opposing points of view. It should not be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. As always, you should consult with your healthcare provider about your specific health needs.