STRATEGIC WEIGHT LOSS

One of the first things that you'll do when you decide to lose weight is to set a goal weight. For most, that goal will be their 'ideal weight', but for many, that 'ideal weight' may be exactly the wrong weight for them to be aiming for.

Being overweight or dieting for years have the physiological effect of moving the body's concept of the 'ideal weight' from what is truly considered ideal. The 'set point' is the weight at which your body naturally feels most comfortable.

If you've been overweight for a very long time, your body may respond to your initial weight loss by lowering its metabolism because it believes that you are starving to death. This slowing leads to discouraging plateaus that often knock people off their diets entirely, and lead to regaining all or part of the lost weight.

Instead of aiming for an 'ideal weight' that calls for you to lose weight steadily for months or even years, many experts recommend aiming for shorter-term attainable goals. Since the bulk of diet research shows that most dieters lose weight steadily for about 12 weeks, then hit a plateau, that's the number that they suggest you aim for. The strategy that many have found works best for them is one of alternating periods of weight loss and maintenance, each lasting 8-12 weeks.

Choose a realistic amount of weight that you can lose in 8-12 weeks. Figuring that the most reasonable and healthiest weight loss rate is 1-2 pounds per week, 30 pounds in three months is not unreasonable. Diet until you reach that goal, or for 12 weeks, whichever comes first, and then switch to a maintenance diet.

Why switch to a maintenance diet at that point? In part, you're giving yourself a 'breather', a break from more restrictive eating. The other part, though, is that you're re-educating your body and letting it establish a new 'set point'. Once you've maintained your new weight for 8-12 weeks, set another weight loss goal, and move back into weight loss mode. By giving your body a break from 'starvation', you'll have overcome its resistance to losing more weight, and be back to dieting for 'the first two weeks' - the weeks that most people lose weight more rapidly.

You'll also be giving yourself a chance to 'practice' maintaining your new, healthier weight. Researchers have found that more than half of the dieters who take off significant amounts of weight do not maintain that weight loss once they go 'off' their diet. By practicing weight maintenance in stages, you'll be proving to yourself that you CAN do it, and removing a powerful negative psychological block.

This will work with any long-term weight loss diet, no matter the focus. You'll find it much easier to do if you choose a diet that has concrete 'phases', like the South Beach or the Atkins, since the weight loss and maintenance phases are clearly laid out for you to follow. Regardless of the diet you choose, though, by alternating between weight loss phases and maintenance phases, you'll teach yourself and your body how to maintain a healthy weight.

A Healthy Diet Starts With Exercise

Many people wonder how they can maintain a healthy weight without starving themselves. It is important for every would be dieter to understand that a healthy diet starts with exercise. Without a solid exercise plan, it will be almost impossible to maintain a weight loss over the long term.

That is because virtually any diet can help you lose weight over the short term. Simply cutting back on calories while maintaining your normal schedule will certainly allow you to lose weight, at least in the short term.

The Problem With Dieting

The problem with this approach, of course, is that it is difficult to maintain. Eventually you will grow tired of the same old restricted calorie diet, and when you stop eating that diet, the weight will quickly return. Worse yet, many yoyo dieters end up gaining more weight than they lost, making it than much more difficult to lose weight the next time. In addition, this type of up and down weight gain and loss has been found to be even more dangerous than being overweight.

The key thing to remember therefore is that a healthy diet starts with exercise. Exercise should be the cornerstone of any diet program, and without a solid exercise plan in place it will be virtually impossible to maintain any weight loss you do achieve through diet alone.

Fortunately, it is not necessary to exercise like a fiend to achieve a healthy weight loss. Studies have shown that you can gain significant health benefits simply by exercising a few times a week, for as little as 20 minutes each day. That means that simply taking a walk around your neighborhood three or four times a year can be remarkably effective.

Take It Easy

Of course more strenuous exercise is always an option, but it is important not to push yourself too soon. If you introduce strenuous exercise into your exercise plan too quickly you could risk an injury, and that could set your diet and exercise plan back further.

For those times when it is too hot, too cold or too rainy to enjoy a walk or a run in the great outdoors, there are a number of excellent pieces of exercise equipment on the market. There are a number of excellent pieces, including the good old exercise bike and treadmill to the newest elliptical trainers and similar equipment.

The most important thing to look for when purchasing exercise equipment is a piece of equipment that you will use. When shopping for such equipment, be sure to remember that a healthy diet starts with exercise, and buy your equipment accordingly. A piece of exercise equipment that is too difficult or too cumbersome to use will quickly become a clothes hanger, and you will not gain the benefits of regular exercise.

Whether you get your exercise through your exercise equipment, the old fashioned way of taking a walk or going for a run, or a combination of both approaches, the most important thing is that you get started and get started as soon as possible. The sooner you start your exercise program the sooner you will be able to reap the many rewards of such a program.