How Can We Lose Weight?

When you try to lose weight, what do you do? The first thing most people do is cut calories. Did you know that when you cut calories too low your body lowers your metabolism so that you can keep all your body fat?

It's a way that we would survive a famine, which is great, except most of us are trying to lose body fat, not hang on to it. Here in the United States most of us are not too likely to be the victims of a famine, rather the opposite. Restricting calories can also cause blood sugar problems, low energy, hunger and cravings for unhealthy snacks.

What can we do?

Most people would agree that the key to losing weight is eating a healthy diet and getting enough exercise. If it's that simple, then why is weight such a problem in the United States? Why don't we all eat healthy diets and why is it so hard to exercise? Why do some people who try to eat right and excercise still have too much body fat?

First of all, the food that we can buy in the store today is not as healthy for us as it was, say even 20 years ago. If the vitamins and minerals aren't in our food in the first place, then no matter what we try to do with our diet, it's going to have very little effect.

The second problem is that we are busy. We are trying to do more now than ever in the history of the world. We work, we take care of kids, we have houses and cars to care for, friends, spouses, hobbies and then some. Most of us don't have the time to prepare a healthy meal three times per day. Unfortunatly the quick alternatives are usually not only low in vitamins, but they are high in fat, cholesterol and carbohydrates.

The third problem is that eating less and exercising more doesn't work for everyone. When you cut your calories too low, your body will slow your metabolism down. When you exercise, your body needs fuel to build muscle. If you exercise without the proper fuel you aren't going to build your muscles or lose weight - your body is going to want to hang on to as much fat as it can, because it thinks you are starving.

What is the solution? A low calorie, low glycemic diet that is high in vitamins, minerals and protein, and easy to prepare. A plan that will help you to keep your energy and healthy fuel up, but empty calories low.

Today I read a news article that said the main reason for delays of the New York City subway is sick customers. Fainting dieters were on the top of the list according to one emergency medical technician. I think that is really sad because there is no need for it. Starving yourself is not actually the most effective way to lose weight. If a dieter feels faint or weak then they are doing something wrong.

Here are a few tips for healthy weightloss. You want to be sure that any weightloss program you follow has all of these ingredients for the best weightloss results and for the best health.

1. A weightloss program should not have you reduce your calories too much. For example, a woman of average height should not eat less than 1200 calories per day. What if you eat 1200 calories per day and you are having trouble losing weight? In that case, rather than lowering your calories, you should consider boosting your metabolism with a safe product designed for that purpose, increasing protein, or by increasing exercise.

2. On a weightloss program that is correctly balanced you should not be hungry all the time. If you are hungry while dieting you may need to increase your protein, improve the nutritional content of your food, drink more water, or increase your activity. You can increase your protein while keeping your calories reduced by the simple addition of a protein meal relacement shake.

3. You should not feel weak or faint while dieting. If you do feel weak or faint, then you may either have blood sugar problems, or be eating too few calories. (See number 1.) Blood sugar may be helped by nutritional supplements or by including a high protein snack every two or three hours. Be sure this snack is low in calories of course. If you have serious blood sugar problems, see a Doctor.

4. Your weightloss program should not have you cut back too drastically on fat. Cutting fat out of your diet can be dangerous. We all want to watch out for bad fats, but did you know that there are good fats and in fact our brain can't function properly without them? Too little good fat in your diet can cause anxiety, depression and many more symptoms. A good source of healthy fats are nuts, fish and of course the easiest way is to take a quality supplement.

The reason that just cutting down on your food doesn't work is because even if you do lose some weight, you are mostly losing muscle mass along with some fat. Then, as you go back to eating again, you will gain more fat, but you won't get all of your muscle mass back. So after a few times of dieting, your muscle mass is seriously low. Muscles BURN FAT! So you want to keep your muscles.

These are just a few tips to keep you healthy while meeting your new years resolution. If you are in doubt about whether you are following a healthy diet plan, go by how you feel. You should feel good, engergized and ready to face your day when you wake up. If you are dragging around by 2 then you might need some help.

The reason that just cutting down on your food alone doesn't always work is because even if you do lose some weight, you are mostly losing muscle mass along with some fat. Then, as you go back to eating again, you will gain more fat, but you won't get all of your muscle mass back. So after a few times of dieting, your muscle mass is seriously low. Muscles BURN FAT! So you want to keep your muscles. Take care of those muscles and they will take care of you.