BMI

This site explains weight loss methods used in medical weight loss centers.

Posted on by blogger

An individual with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 is considered obese. Diets and exercises can fail to achieve the desired weight loss and it is therefore advisable to seek medical weight loss centers to assist in weight loss for such individuals as they are at a high risk of developing heart diseases and diabetes. Well, let us discuss the weight loss programs that these centers offer.

Very low calorie diets offered in medical weight loss centers are commercial formulas that provide an individual with no more than 800 calories per day and they completely replace an individuals normal food intake. Common side effects of using these formulas include dizziness, mood swings, headaches and confusion.

The use of obesity drugs is another method used in medical weight loss centers. Meridia and Xenical are FDA approved drugs and they help decrease the body weight by up to 10%. Meridia reduces hunger by altering the brain chemistry while Xenical stops fats absorption in the stomach and intestines. Common side effects of these drugs include headache, insomnia, frequent bowel movement and rapid heartbeat.

Gastric bypass surgery is another method widely used in medical weight loss centers. The medical procedure shrinks the stomach by creating a small stomach pouch on top of the main stomach. The small intestine is then attached to the small pouch and the procedure forces the food digestion and travel to happen only through the upper pouch and the small intestines thus limiting the amount of food an individual can take at a time. Weight loss through this method can achieve results of up to 68% within the first year.

Biliopancreatic diversion (BPD) is a procedure carried out in medical weight loss centers where part of the stomach is removed. The intact stomach is then attached to the small intestines. In this method theres rapid weight loss as most food travels too fast through the small intestines and there is therefore no absorption of most nutrients and calories. BPD causes more weight loss than gastric bypass however it has more severe side effects like nausea, sweating, dumping syndrome, diarrhea right after eating and anemia. With this method, an individual can lose up to 80%.

Ensure that you consult your doctor before choosing any of these methods; they are irreversible and require one to have a life-long commitment of lifestyle change.

The Number One Secret to Weight Loss

Posted on by blogger

The diets on the market would not work if they didn’t make you lose weight. The truth is, these diets must eventually be explained to everybody that the number one formula these diets must live by is eating less calories than you burn. If you don’t follow this formula, then all these carbohydrate reducing, fat loss, low glycemic eating programs won’t do anything towards you. This is why many experts are going back to the basic retreat of calories counting.

There is a science to this so called calorie counting algorithm, if you forgot what you learned back in high school, it wont take long to refresh your memory. This will also help you make better decisions about the foods you eat, and how to maximize your calorie resources.

First off what is a calorie?

A calorie is a measurement of certain potential energy in what we eat, we call this food. One calorie can raise the temperature of a single gram of water by one degree Celsius. In a way you can compare calories to gasoline. Gasoline is needed to fuel are cars, and make them “active”. Calories fuel our body, and make us “active”.

Now that we know what a calorie is, how exactly does are body convert these calories into energy?

The enzymes in are body located in the digestive system break down certain chemical bonds that store food molecules as one. The digestive system then discharges the energy in the bonds, which activates it for use.

What does you body do with the energy?

Like mentioned earlier as gas fuels a car, the calorie fuels everything in your body. It can range from breathing, meditating, growing nails, hair, or running a marathon. When you don’t use the calories you consume however, these calories get transported to the liver. The liver restores your glycogen. This is your body’s reserve fuel, and is easily accessible. When the liver is full of glycogen, it is then passed to the muscles, for temporary storage. This type of storage will help get you through your exercises. The liver and muscles together carry about 350 calories worth of energy. Think of these calorie storages as accounts, when you consume more, you can save your calories in here until they are converted to fat and spread out through the body.

How many calories do you have to lose in order to lose a full pound of body weight?

The answer is about 3500 calories; you can either eat fewer calories, and burn these off that way, or do some exercises for quicker results. Remember though even if your working out everyday, the calorie rule still applies. If you consume more calories then you burn off, you are going to gain weight. That’s the science.

If you want to know how many calories you need to maintain your weight throughout the day, look for a calorie calculator somewhere on the internet; you can also take a BMI test to see what your body mass should be. It has to do a lot with your weight and height.

What is the best way to keep track of your calories?

Sleep and Weight Loss

Posted on by blogger

Even if you’re eating right and exercising regularly, you may not be able to achieve weight loss just yet. Achieving weight loss isn’t easy. But it can be harder to achieve it if you have unhealthy sleeping patterns.

Recent studies reveal that there is a strong relationship between sleep deprivation and weight gain. However, it is still unknown why it actually occur. One of the things that have been found is that people who sleep less than six hours each night experience an increase in their BMI and in their weight than those people that get seven to eight hours of sleep per night. Getting enough sleep is crucial to your weight loss efforts.

Sleep vs. Weight Loss

Our bodies run on a 24-hour cycle, which is called a circadian rhythm. Our circadian rhythm regulates our temperature, hormone secretion, and brain chemistry production. When our circadian rhythm is out of whack, so are the hormones that regulate whether we feel full or hungry. All of our normal cues for eating are altered. When we are tired or extra fatigued, we don’t always make the healthiest food choices. We might decide to have a bowl of ice cream right before bed in order to relax. We might decide to have a candy bar in the middle of the day because we are feeling sleepy and want a quick snack to get a rush of energy. These unhealthy choices can really destroy our weight loss efforts.

Alleviate your stress!

We live in a very hectic world with many responsibilities. Trying to juggle work, family, chores, school and recreation, it’s no wonder that so many of us don’t make sleep a priority. There is always so much to do that we tend to put off sleeping to do other things. We also live in stressful times and often our mental stress prevents sleep, even when we do manage to set aside seven to eight hours. This can be detrimental to our weight loss efforts. Try doing yoga or other relaxation exercises to reduce your stress level. Exercise is an amazing stress reliever and if weight loss is your goal, you should be exercising regularly anyway.

Get more sleep.

Here are some steps you can take to help regain some control and minimize the likelihood that lack of sleep will sabotage your weight loss efforts. Try to set a regular sleep schedule. Aim for seven hours of sleep each night, and make sleep a priority. Eat regularly; at least three to four times each day. Instead of using food to wake you up when you’re feeling sleepy, take a power nap of about 20 minutes. If you feel like you need an energy boost, eat a piece of fresh fruit or half of a sandwich made with lean protein.

Scientific Weight Loss Using Weight Loss Calculators

Posted on by blogger

A weight loss calculator can serve a variety of purposes. The most basic type will ask for a few personal details about your age, sex, height and current weight and then calculate your Body Mass Index a number usually between15 and 50. The ideal number is between 18.5 and 25, if you are above 25 then you need to consider losing some weight by a combination of exercise and a healthy diet. If you are bordering on 25 then it’s recommended to go on a light diet or increase your exercise to shed a few pounds.

One word of warning about the BMI calculators though, they should be used as a rough guideline only. The BMI calculation is known to be somewhat inaccurate and will often judge fit and healthy athletes as being morbidly obese! Your doctor can give a more accurate assessment of your current body status and tell you how urgently you need to start losing weight.

The Internet has also given us access to a whole range of new weight loss calculators which can work out everything from a healthy weight loss rate to how much exercise you need to do to ensure you have a calorie deficit (eg. You are burning more calories than you take in so your body tries to compensate by using your body fat storage for fuel).

These calculators can help with your diet planning in all sorts of ways, from creating a work out regime to finding out if you are on course with your weight loss plan. A quick word of warning though: all the figures given are rough averages only, everyone will be different but it does give some numbers to aim for.

Weight loss calculators can cover every aspect of the weight loss cycle. For example, you use one calculator to find out how many calories your body needs to maintain your current lifestyle, then you use a BMI calculator to find out your ideal weight and then another weight loss calculator informs you that you need to be eating 300 less calories per day to get to a specific weight by a specific time. Reducing your calorie intake may not be an option, but then you can use an exercise calculator to find out how much exercise you need to do to burn up those 300 calories.

Another calculator which will comes in handy is a calorie counter where you can select the type of food you are eating and it can make rough estimate on how many calories it contains. You can even get iPhone apps where you can log all the food you eat and it tells you approximately how many calories you’ve eaten for the day. This is particularly useful if you need to reduce your calorie.

By using a combination of these calculators you can not only get a rough idea of how much weight you need to lose but also how many calories you need to reduce and how much exercise you need to do to speed up the weight loss process.

Weight loss workout program

Posted on by blogger

There are several weight loss workout programs available in the weight loss industry today. So much so, that if you are new to the entire “weight loss” thing then you might feel like a kid in the candy store when it comes to choosing one for your specific needs.

A good weight loss workout program will essentially involve an optimum combination of regular exercise and a healthy diet plan. Exercise is perhaps one of the best hobbies which one can ever develop since it is so essential for the regular upkeep of the entire health. Several diseases will never come within a one mile radius of your body if you just keep pumping iron on a regular basis. This in no way means that you have to go for extremely strenuous exercises for the regular upkeep of your health. There are several combinations of exercises which can be utilized without stressing your physique.

Regular exercise regime reduces the possibility of type 2 diabetes and coronary diseases in addition to lowering your blood pressure and maintaining your body weight. Several studies have concluded that people involved in regular exercise are less prone to stress and are able to handle adversity far better. Even simple home workouts like a treadmill workout can boost our energy levels to magnificent limits and you will feel the difference all day long.

A good weight loss workout program will inevitably cater to your personal needs and weight loss goals. There is no such thing as a “One size fit all” solution when it comes to losing weight in a natural manner. Every individual is different with different health history and hence you must approach the trainer provided by your weight loss workout program. There is no need to hide anything related to your health history, from your trainer. Do tell him about your past weight loss attempts no matter whether you failed or succeeded while pursuing them. In case you failed then do tell him the reason you feel might be the culprit for the same. All this information is invaluable for him so as to give you a clear cut weight loss plan to follow.

Most of the excellent weight loss workout program also gives you an important measurement known as the Body Mass Index or BMI. This index is basically a ratio of your weight (In pounds) to your Height (In Inches). For a healthy person the BMI is between 18 and 25. In case your BMI is between 25 and 30, then you can consider yourself to be overweight. Most people joining a weight loss program for the first time usually fall into this category. In case your body mass index is between 30 and 40 then you are suffering from obesity, which is a medical condition. For an obese person, it will be better to consult a doctor before coming to gym. This is because; a doctor will be in a better position to asses your condition and hence will recommend you appropriate exercises before you think about coming to gym. In case your BMI is over 40 then youre an extreme case of Obesity known as Morbid Obesity. If this is your condition then you are in urgent need of professional help and you must get it at once.

If youre just overweight and are mentally prepared to come to gym then you can also add a few strength training exercises to your schedule. This is particularly helpful for developing fit muscles and leaner body. This kind of workout also increases your metabolism which in turn leads to better digestion of your food even after you have left the gym for long durations. Your trainer from the weight loss workout program will be in a better position to guide you in this regard.