How to sustain a healthy weight with minimal inputs in your lifestyle?
Don’t focus on weight loss focus on health.
In a 2019 survey, around 40% of the consumers in the U.S said that one of their New Year’s resolutions is to eat healthier. (src -
We all want to have a healthy and balanced diet meal plan in our fast-paced life. And most of the time people worry about losing some pounds. Sometimes we achieve healthy weight yet after a while we ended up gaining weight. The major reason why we fail to sustain the weight is due to our temporary planning. To have a healthy weight we need to put consistent efforts into our lifestyle.
We should also focus on what we are consuming in day-to-day life? Does it have any nutritional value? As the saying says, we are what we eat. The more healthy we eat, the more healthy we look. Food can also reveal a person or a group of people’s identity. The food choices tell about a community, families, tribes, their culture, ideologies, and more.
Nowadays, it’s not only adults but children too are getting obese due to lack of nutrition in food. This hinders their growth. With this in mind, it’s necessary to put some minimal inputs into our hectic lifestyle.
What is a healthy weight and when to start worrying about losing weight? If your BMI falls from 18.5 to 24.9. This will count as a normal or healthy weight range. But, if your BMI falls less than 18.5, it is underweight. And if your BMI is within the 25.0 to 29.9 range or higher, it comes under obese.
Source: Google
You can calculate your body mass index using your height and weight. BMI= person’s weight/person’s height
Ideal weight for men and women There is no such thing as ideal weight. Everyone has a different height and so their weight. You can not compare the weight of someone who is 4'11 and someone who is 5'11. Their weight will be different considering their heights. The focus should be on the body fat percentage if you ask for health. . Weight gain during pregnancy If you are underweight ( means BMI less than 18.5), gain 13–18 kg. If you are in the normal range (18.5–24.9 BMI), then put on 11–16kg. If you are overweight ( 25–29.9 BMI), put on around 7–11 kg.
Factors affecting your weight
- Diet: Strict diets are temporary. People often confuse a diet with less eating rather than the quality of the food. It is important to have a diet that provides all carbohydrates, proteins, fibers etc.
- Genes: Sometimes our genetic factors are the reasons for our gaining or losing weight. But, it is changeable if we follow a balanced diet and exercise.
- Workout: We all are living a sedentary lifestyle and don’t get enough time to do any physical activity. So, we need to ensure to add some light physical activity which refreshes our mind.
- Sleep: It is important to have at least 7–8 hours of sleep. Sleeping hours depends individual to individual some only need 6 hour, where some need 9 hour.
- Psychological factors: This affect when we are not satisfied with our weight.
Small inputs in our day to life for a healthy weight
1.Eat fresh and living By eating fresh means here that eat the food within 4–5 hours of its cooking. Try to eat more fruits and vegetables, those foods which we get directly from nature. If the food is living and fresh then we will more alive and active. Eat meat in small amounts, only twice a week. As meat is difficult to digest. There are many plant-based substitutes available like tofu, soy products, or black beans.
2. Intermittent fasting Now here, it’s not like regular fasting. Intermittent fasting is a lot easier to follow. You have to put a gap of 12–14 hours between your two meals. The best time is when you take your dinner. Suppose you eat your dinner around 7–8 pm, so your next meal should be around 9–10 am. In this long gap, you’ll spend most of your time sleeping. Hence, anyone can follow it. If you binge eat whole the day, then your doesn’t get enough time to heal yourself. This will give the body enough time to repair itself. Believe me, it’s the most effective way to lose weight.
3. Don’t skip breakfast The most common misconception people had is that skipping breakfast helps in weight loss. Let me tell you that it’s not true. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Having breakfast will help in improvement in concentration, high energy in the morning. Your breakfast should cover 3 areas in your diet plan: It should be high protein breakfast. Have some carbohydrates to give you energy for the day. And calcium-rich.
4. Have enough water or eat watery fruits A human adult body is 60% water. So we need to take enough water to balance the body need. A lot of us are unable to keep the track of our water intake. Have watery fruits like apples, watermelon, mango, blueberries, oranges, pineapple, and so on. It will give our body nutrition and water. Try to limit your consumption of wine, coffee, or tea. Instead, you can drink green tea as it helps in your metabolism regulation.
5. Eat small portions In ikigai: The Japanese secret to a long and happy life, it says that the way food serving is very important. In a Japanese restaurant, they serve food in 5 plates, 4 small ones for side dishes and a bigger for the main dish. Now, it will make you feel like are going to eat a lot but ended up eating limited portions. That’s the reason why foreigners in Japan turn out to lose weight in a small amount of time. Fill your stomach up to 80% only.
6. Be active Nowadays, most of our work keeps us attached to our desks. Be it a working professional or student. This long-hour desk work increases health issues like hypertension, obesity, osteoarthritis, and diabetes. Take a 30-minute walk or take your pet for a walk (it will help both of you), use stairs instead of an elevator. These small changes will add up in your regular physical movements.
7. Cut dairy products and sugar intake
The effect of dairy products depends from person to person. It doesn’t suit some as their lactose tolerability is not great. You can replace it with plant-based milk like almond milk, soy milk, coconut milk, etc. Excess sugar has a bad effect on health as it increases chances of weight gain, diabetes. Cut your intake, not more than 6 teaspoons per day.
Tip! A simple yoga exercise for 10 minutes will helps you in fast digestion. Vajrasana or thunderbolt pose (right after a meal) will increase digestion. As the blood flow in your legs reduce and increase in the stomach area. Remember keep your back straight.
Source: Google
Conclusion
Sustaining a healthy weight is good for your health. Try not to eat while using any electronic device or watching TV. Chew your food, and try to eat healthy snacks like nuts, roasted, chia pudding, etc. Your goal should be to get healthy. Eat clean and stay positive.
Article by
Priyanka Yadav
