Women can be active at any size by bringing about modifications
in their daily lifestyle. Being overweight, obese or even
extremely obese in no way should interfere in your determination
towards achieving health & fitness goals. To begin with you need
to do away with the fact that losing fat or achieving healthy
weight is beyond your reach.
I always recommend my clients to focus more on what needs to be
done, how it should be done instead of focusing on quick
results. Always remember even a slightest effort put in by you
towards adopting a regular workout routine or consuming healthy
diet will do a 100% good to your physical, mental, emotional and
social well-being.
Recommendations for Healthy women :
With a BMI within the range of 19.9-24.9 you seem to possess
healthy weight. This calls for action to guard falling out of
the healthy weight range, by adopting a regular exercise routine
composed of cardiovascular workout and strength training
combined with a healthy balanced diet. Your Cardiovascular
workout should last for at least 30-45 min done 3-5 times a
week,coupled with a personalised strength training program to
maintain muscle strength & also prevent muscle loss bound to
take place with ageing.
Check your BMR to calculate the total number of calories your
body will require for normal bodily functions (excluding
activity factors). BMR may vary dramatically from person to
person depending on genetic factors. If you know someone who
claims they can eat anything they want and never gain an ounce
of fat, they have inherited a naturally high BMR. One way to
increase your BMR is to engage in weight training in order to
increase and/or maintain lean body mass. In this manner it could
be said that weight training helps you lose body fat, albeit
indirectly.
To keep your weight at its current level, you should remain at
your daily caloric maintenance level. To lose weight, you need
to create a calorie deficit by reducing your calories slightly
below your maintenance level (or keeping your calories the same
and increasing your activity above your current level). To gain
weight you need to increase your calories above your maintenance
level. The only difference between weight gain programs and
weight loss programs is the total number of calories required.
Recommendation For overweight Women :
If your BMI lies within the range of 25-29.9 you are bound to be
overweight. Being overweight is an alarm signal for you to start
taking action before things seem to go out of control. Genetics
does clearly play a role in your health and appearance, but it
certainly does not determine what you are going to have for
dinner or how often you exercise. Even if you are born with a
genetic predisposition to being overweight or weak, the way you
live is what will ultimately determine whether you become fit
and strong or fat and week.
If you follow the WF Strength Training, Cardiovascular, and
Nutrition / Weight Management programs you will decrease body
fat, increase muscle and strength, condition your heart and
lungs, improve nutrition and ultimately improve your health,
even though the scale may indicate that you have gained a pound
or two.
Aerobic cross-training will be appropriate for you if you have
any experience with a cardiovascular routine. It refers to using
two to three different types of aerobic exercise during an
exercise session. For example, if you plan to exercise for 60
minutes, you might start with 20 minutes of walking or jogging,
followed by 20 minutes of biking, and finish with 20 minutes of
rowing.
Calories not only count, they are the bottom line when it comes
to fat loss. If you are eating more calories than you expend,
you simply will not lose fat, no matter what type of foods or
food combinations you eat. Some foods do get stored as fat more
easily than others, but always bear in mind that too much of
anything, even "healthy food," will get stored as fat. You
cannot override the laws of thermodynamics and energy balance.
You must be in a calorie deficit to burn fat. This will force
your body to use stored body fat to make up for the energy
deficit. There are 3500 calories in a pound of stored body fat.
If you create a 3500-calorie deficit in a week through diet,
exercise or a combination of both, you will definitely lose one
pound.
Recommendations for Obese Women :
Any woman possessing a BMI within the range of 30-39.9 is
categorized as being Obese with a high risk for cardiovascular
disease and class II obesity.
Very large women face special challenges in trying to be active.
You may not be able to bend or move in the same way that other
people can. It may be hard to find clothes and equipment for
exercising. You may feel self-conscious being active around
other people. Facing these challenges is hard—but it can be done!
You don’t have to push yourself to benefit from physical
activity. Thirty minutes of gentle activity (like walking) can
be just as healthy as 15 minutes of intense activity (like fast
dancing). You can choose between weightbearing and
non-weightbearing activities as either will prove beneficial.
Weightbearing activities, like walking, bowling, and golfing
involve lifting or pushing your own body weight.
Non-weightbearing activities, like swimming and cycling put less
stress on your joints because you don’t have to lift or push
your own weight. If your feet or joints hurt when you stand,
non-weightbearing activities may be best for you.
Your activities do not have to be planned. You can even make
small day-to-day changes to improve your health. For example,
Take 2- to 3-minute walking breaks at work a few times a day.
Put away the TV remote control—get up to change the channel.
March in place during TV commercials.
Sit in a rocking chair and push off the floor with your feet.
Walk the dog.
Walk while you talk on a cordless phone.
Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
Doing chores like lawn mowing, leaf raking, gardening, and
housework can also improve your health.
Dietary modifications to facilitate fat loss needs to be closely
monitored to prevent any lapses towards achieving healthy
weight. The option of adopting Low energy Diets needs to be
discussed with a registered dietician. Sample of low Energy diet
can be viewed as :
SAMPLE MENUS /1200 CALORIES This reducing diet is suitable for
non pregnant women. The amount of weight you'll loose depends on
the difference between your previous calories intake and the
diet.
SAMPLE MENUS /1800 CALORIES This menu is suitable for many
mature women. each days menu illustrates four principles of low
fat eating.
select lower fat milk products
Select lean, lower fat meat: Removes skin from poultry and trim
excess fat from meat.
Use low fat food preparation methods.
Reduce the amounts of fats added at the table.
For a detailed insight into exercise & diet guidelines for obese
women log on to: http://www.womenfitness.net/obesity.htm.
Recommendations for extremely obese women :
Evidence indicates that women with a BMI of 40 or more have a
substantially increased risk for death, and not uncommonly, are
not only at risk for illness but are already ill. Additional
medical conditions are particularly associated with those who
are extremely obese like diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and ischemic
heart disease.
The first step involves encouraging avoidance of further weight
gain. Such a strategy can limit the accumulation of additional
medical risks associated with increased weight gain.
Health-related behaviors, such as healthful eating and physical
activity, can be highlighted as a means to improve health,
independent of weight loss.
Although extremely obese patients may be reluctant to engage in
physical activity because of discomfort or embarrassment, they
should be encouraged to adopt slow, gradual increases in
physical activity (e.g., walking with a friend for 10 minutes a
day, parking the car farther away in the parking lot). They will
need to take up a diet which prevent weight gain and promotes
healthy weight loss. Specially designed low-calorie diets (1,200
calories per day) will provide adequate nutrients and prove
effective for moderate weight loss. Equally important, is that
they include enough food to keep you from feeling starved--and
to keep your body's metabolic rate from falling. With very
low-calorie--or "starvation"--diets, the rate at which the body
burns calories while at rest (its resting metabolic rate) drops
significantly, which means weight loss slows, too. Consult your
doctor or dietitian for a diet that's right for you.
Try to create an attitude of persistence during times that you
reach a weight plateau.
Remember: This information is not intended as a substitute for
medical treatment. Before starting an exercise program, consult
a physician.
About the author:
She is C.E.O. of www.womenfitness.net. A qualified fitness
trainer fron IFA.
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