Obesity is a syndrome caused by an excessive amount of body fat. This disorder can increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure; it can also limit mobility and impoverish health conditions in general. Although there is no cure, reducing fat mass through diet and lifestyle changes allows for weight loss; it is also possible to intervene with slimming drugs or by contacting the doctor to find surgical treatments.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Change the Power
Step 1. Set realistic goals
Before you start making dietary changes, you need to set goals that are realistic and that you know you can achieve so that you can sustain a healthy eating plan and stick to it over the long term.
- Obese adults are expected to lose 5 to 10% of their current weight within six months. Slowly losing weight by losing 0.5-1 kg per week is considered a safe and sustainable progression; If you lose 10% of your body weight and manage to maintain that for six months, but are still overweight, you need to find other weight loss programs.
- Overweight children and adolescents should maintain their current weight, focusing instead on proper nutrition and a healthy lifestyle. It is also necessary to contact the pediatrician to find ways to lose weight and reach a normal weight during the growth phase towards adulthood.
Step 2. Set up a beneficial diet plan
This is one of the best ways to reduce body fat, as a healthy eating plan helps you lose weight and treat obesity. You can make your own or consult a nutritionist; write it down on paper and have it include three meals a day for several months or a year. Healthy eating means a balanced combination of the following foods:
- Protein-rich foods, such as lean meats, fish, chicken, beans, and peas
- Whole grains, such as wholemeal bread, oats, and brown rice this group also includes other types of cereals, such as those for breakfast, wholemeal pasta, tortillas, couscous and quinoa;
- Fresh and frozen fruit;
- Fresh and frozen vegetables;
- Olive oil, walnuts and almonds, which enrich the diet with healthy fats and make you feel full for a long time.
- Start gradually and set short-term food goals, such as eating right for a month or having two healthy meals a day. Setting goals in the short term helps you develop self-confidence and lose weight in a healthy and sustainable way.
Step 3. Reduce your daily calorie intake
This is also a way to lose weight and stick to a proper diet. First, you need to calculate your current daily calorie intake and figure out how many calories you need to lose to lose weight. On average, women consume 1200-1500 calories per day, while men between 1500 and 1800.
Your daily calorie requirement depends on your age, body weight and the physical activity you do daily. Obese people should begin to gradually reduce the calories they eat and limit themselves to "cutting" 500 per week. Either way, the exact amount depends on your fitness goals; to be successful, you should eat fewer calories and at the same time follow a healthy diet, as well as a regimen of physical activity
Step 4. Make a commitment to prepare meals yourself
Eating in restaurants can be expensive, plus it increases the waistline. When you eat away from home, you don't have much control over the contents of the food and it can be difficult to make healthy choices. Try to make yourself at least two meals a day at home, sticking to a proper meal plan.
- When cooking meals, choose a healthy oil for seasoning, such as canola, olive, or coconut oil; Search online for healthy recipes so you can fit all food groups into your diet plan.
- If you bring lunch to work every day, prepare it the night before with good ingredients; avoid having dinner or lunch at the restaurant every day.
- If you still eat away from home, choose your dishes carefully, such as a green leaf salad with grilled fish or chicken; ask for the dressing to be set aside or replace it with plain olive oil and vinegar.
Step 5. Limit foods high in saturated and trans fats
These raise the concentration of cholesterol in the blood and are high in calories, increasing the risk of heart disease. Try to reduce or completely eliminate the following foods containing saturated and trans fats:
- Minced meat, sausages and processed meat such as bologna sausage, hot dogs and cold cuts in general;
- Chicken with skin, like fried chicken; choose skinless cuts instead, such as chest;
- High-fat dairy products, such as whole milk cheese, whole milk, cream, butter and ice cream
- Industrially processed foods, especially those containing lard and palm oil; you should also avoid packaged products and baked goods, such as cookies, donuts, and bread.
- Foods containing hydrogenated oils, such as margarine or dietary fats
- Eggs, which are high in cholesterol, and shrimp, which are also high in cholesterol, as well as sodium.
- You can indulge in this type of food every now and then, so as not to feel deprived of tasty things, but remember that moderation is the key to losing weight and staying healthy.
Step 6. Read the labels of the foods you buy at the supermarket
You must always shop by respecting a list and reading the contents of the products before buying them. Check for artificial or refined ingredients, such as corn syrup, rich in fructose or other added flavorings; these ingredients do nothing but fill you with calories devoid of any nutritional value.
Avoid junk food, packaged sweets, canned fruit, and sugary drinks such as sodas in general. A good rule of thumb is to read the ingredients of the product you buy: if the first four on the list are high in fat or sugar, leave it on the shelf
Step 7. Pay attention to the portion sizes
By portion we mean a certain amount of food that you decide to eat as a meal or as a snack and you must understand it differently from the recommended portion that is compulsorily reported on the nutritional tables of the product labels. Cutting down on portions at each meal helps you eat fewer calories and have control over the amount of food you eat.
- You can also take advantage of the concept of energy density to feel full without ingesting too many calories. This method consists of paying particular attention to foods that have a low energy density, which you can therefore consume in larger quantities because they contain few calories. Fruit and vegetables fall into this category; Instead, you should avoid foods with a high energy density, such as sweets, candies and industrially processed foods, because they have a high calorie content in relation to their volume.
- Eating large portions of low-energy-density foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and healthy sources of protein (skinless chicken, beans, tofu) can make you feel full without getting too many calories, plus fullness lasts longer. without the risk of suffering from hunger pangs.
Step 8. Limit your alcohol consumption
This kind of drink contains a large amount of calories and sugar. If you can, you should reduce the amount of alcohol you drink each week and instead increase your water intake, which helps your body stay well hydrated and healthy.
Step 9. Avoid drastically losing weight (crash diet)
You may be tempted to want to lose weight quickly or to follow a very strict diet plan, but be aware that you could run into other serious health problems without losing too much weight; in fact, once the crash diet is over, you will most likely regain the kilograms you got rid of. The only way to truly lose weight and maintain weight is to follow healthy eating habits and maintain them over the long term.
Method 2 of 4: Adopt a Healthy Lifestyle
Step 1. Exercise several times a week
To achieve significant weight loss, you need to commit to exercising four to five times a week, exercising for about five hours or more in total. You can start by doing about two hours of physical activity per week to avoid further weight gain, improve endurance and fitness; focus on exercises that get you moving, such as aerobics, Pilates, running, or interval training.
You can also join a gym and work with a personal trainer to find a workout plan that will help you lose weight and increase physical strength; however, you should only engage in weightlifting after you have reached a certain level of fitness
Step 2. Join a weight loss program
Look for a gym or fitness center in your area that offers weight loss classes; sign up for the course and commit to attending each lesson for several weeks or months. You can also find support from a friend, spouse, or family member who joins the program with you.
Often, weight loss programs are great ways to incorporate physical activity into your daily routine and improve your fitness consistently over time. Choose a course that doesn't seem overly difficult or "punishing", as you need to stay motivated and attend classes every week
Step 3. Walk or cycle instead of using the car
Keeping yourself physically active when you are obese can seem quite difficult or a real challenge, but making simple lifestyle changes, like giving up your car, can help you stay on the move and be more dynamic.
- If you take the bus to work, get off a few stops earlier and walk the rest of the way; take a walk during your lunch break and wear your pedometer to track the number of steps you take throughout the day.
- If you have to use your car to go to work, leave it in a parking lot further away so you can walk a bit at the beginning and end of the day.
Step 4. Look for a support group in your area
Losing weight can be a very difficult task when you are obese and a group of people like you who understand what you are going through could be a great help. Ask your doctor to refer you to any such group in your city or go to the hospital.
You can also find support groups online and join communities of other obese people; There are also support groups that join commercial weight loss programs, such as Weight Watchers
Step 5. Consider seeing a counselor or psychologist
Obesity is often related to compulsive behavior and emotional problems. You can analyze your compulsive need to eat with a therapist who is experienced in mental illness and eating disorders. A qualified psychologist can help you understand why you need to eat so much and can advise you on ways to manage the underlying problems that lead you to gain weight to the point of becoming obese.
You can choose to participate in individual, group sessions or to join a more intensive program to overcome your obesity
Method 3 of 4: Take Weight Loss Medications
Step 1. Talk to your doctor about weight loss medications
Usually, your doctor can only prescribe them when you have tried other methods and you meet the following criteria:
- You have a body mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 30;
- Your BMI is greater than 27 and you suffer from other complications due to obesity, such as diabetes, sleep apnea or hypertension.
- Your doctor may also want to know your medical history and find out if you have other conditions that may conflict with weight loss medications. He can prescribe medicines such as orlistat (Xenical), lorcaserin (Belviq), phentermine and topiramate (Qsymia), buproprion and naltrexone (Mysimba) or liraglutide (Saxenda).
- Ask your doctor about the side effects of these pills, as they can be serious. you must act very carefully, to avoid possible complications with other diseases or other drugs while following this treatment.
Step 2. Take weight loss pills while making other dietary and lifestyle changes
Keep in mind that the effects of these medications may wear off over time and you may return to regaining the pounds you lost during medication once it was stopped. For this reason, it is important to associate it with dietary and lifestyle changes to treat obesity in the long run; do not rely solely on these pills, as they should not be taken for too long.
Step 3. Visit your doctor regularly to monitor your pharmacological weight loss course
Because of the side effects, you need to schedule regular checkups; also pay attention to any adverse reactions that occur during therapy and, if so, contact your doctor immediately.
Method 4 of 4: Slimming Surgical Treatments
Step 1. Evaluate whether surgery is a suitable solution for your specific case
The procedure is invasive and is often only performed for overly obese people who have not been successful with other weight loss methods and have not been able to lose pounds. Doctors only recommend surgery if at least one of the following features is present:
- Your current weight exceeds the recommended weight for your age and height by at least 50 kg;
- You have a body mass index equal to or greater than 40;
- You suffer from some life-threatening illness due to obesity, such as severe sleep apnea, heart disease or severe type 2 diabetes.
- Before entering the operating room, you must complete the preparatory process by undergoing a medical and psychological evaluation, during which you are presented with the tasks that await you after the surgery, the treatments you must follow and the post-operative recovery process. This step is important for you to understand the heavy commitment in diet, physical activity and medical procedures that you will have to undergo to make sure the surgery is effective.
Step 2. Ask the doctor what the different surgical options are; should show you the various alternatives and procedures of each of these
Several surgeries are performed to treat obesity, including:
- Gastric band: in this case, the surgeon uses rubber bands or staples to create a small pocket in the upper part of the stomach, in order to limit the amount of food and liquids it can contain; to make sure the procedure is successful, you need to cut back on the food you eat.
- Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass: A small pouch is created in the stomach through a bypass around a part of the small intestine, where most of the calories are absorbed. This procedure limits food intake and at the same time reduces the calories absorbed by the body; however, it causes severe side effects, including nausea, bloating, diarrhea, and weakness. You should also take several multivitamin and mineral supplements to prevent possible nutritional deficiencies.
- Biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch: during surgery the surgeon eliminates a large part of the stomach and leaves the small valve that allows food to enter the small intestine; then it removes the central section of the intestine, directly connecting the terminal part to the large one.
- Gastric pouch: In this procedure, part of the stomach is removed, creating a smaller "container" for food; it is a less complex procedure than gastric bypass or biliopancreatic diversion.
Step 3. Maintain a healthy lifestyle and diet after surgery is complete
This surgery is not an easy or quick way to resolve or treat obesity; in fact, if you want the operation, once completed, to be successful in the long term, you have to work very hard to change your eating habits and life as a whole. If after surgery you do not respect a healthy lifestyle and a balanced diet (which also includes nutritional supplements), you can return to regain all the weight lost, suffer from nutritional deficiencies or have even more serious health problems than those you suffered. before entering the operating room.
