Obesity and Weight Loss

There is a direct relationship between obesity and increased risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes and even some cancers. As serious as these illnesses are, obesity also limits mobility, impairs physical activities and reduces quality of life.

As much as 65% of Americans are overweight, with a growing percentage of these people becoming obese. In 2005, The World Health Organization called the current obesity epidemic the “number one health risk in the western world.”

To illuminate this problem further, here is a simple example of how easily obesity can creep up on you:

One pound of body fat is equal to 3,500 calories. Assume you eat an extra 500 calories a day. That’s just a brownie, a few cookies, a big bag of chips or a large bowl of ice cream.
Now multiply those 500 daily calories by 7 days and you get an extra 3500 calories, one pound of body fat. Assume you did this every single week for a year. That’s a gain of 52 pounds. Using this equation, it’s easy to understand how a few bad choices can lead to obesity.

The best place to avoid this problem is the grocery store. If you don’t buy it, you can’t eat it. We are our shopping carts. Picture the body of a person whose cart contains lean meat, fish, fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Now picture the body of a person whose cart contains cup cakes, soda and frozen pizza. It’s pretty easy to imagine which person is ‘the picture of health,’ isn’t it?

That said, eating healthy does not mean you have to give up every indulgence you enjoy. It does mean you have to incorporate more healthy foods into your diet. As the saying goes, eating healthy feels better than any junk food tastes!

Add some good food choices into your daily diet, coupled with a comprehensive exercise program designed exclusively for you and you can improve your health. It’s not strictly about body weight or waist size. It’s about your health and it’s time to make some changes.

You didn’t gain your extra weight overnight, and you’re not going to lose it overnight. Losing weight takes time and commitment, but it’s not out of your reach. Start an exercise and nutrition program, stick with it, think long term and in one year you can reduce or eliminate many of the health risks you currently face.

Calories LESS per day	Days to lose 5lbs	Months to lose 5lbs	Days to lose 10lbs	Months to lose 10lbs	Days to lose 20lbs	Months to lose 20lbs
100	175	6	350	12	700	23
200	87	3	175	6	350	12
300	58	2	116	4	232	8
500	35	1	70	2	140	5