Updated – Extreme Slimming

September 13, 2009 by Scott Edwards

Our BMI, or Body Mass Index is an indication of whether we are overweight or not. Our reading should come in somewhere in the region of top teens to mid-twenties. We have weight management problems if our figure is any higher than that. A BMI of more than 30 is considered obese. It becomes morbidly obese when the index goes over 40.

To work out your own index – Use a metric rule to measure your height. Then record your weight in kilograms. Your height should be multiplied by itself, then divide that figure by your weight.

For example if your height is 1.6 metres and your weight is 78 kilos, your BMI is 30.47 (1.6 x 1.6 = 2.56 then 78 / 2.56 = 30.47). As a BMI of more than thirty has been classified as obese, action would definitely be required in the above example.

If we persist with eating fatty and sugary calorie-laden food, we’ll never get a grip on our weight management. We can lower our fat reserves (and therefore our weight) if we trim down our portion sizes and stick to more natural foodstuffs.

You should avoid crash diets which usually end up with you either feeling ill or giving up in desperation. Crash diets are those that limit your intake to below a thousand calories for women and fifteen hundred calories for men. Programs like this tend to have a yo-yo effect on weight – it comes off quickly, then goes straight back on again when you inevitably stop.

Long-term weight reduction takes time. But if you just knocked 500 cals off your current daily intake, the results would start to show over time. So not the un-realistic promises fed to you from the instant remedy brigade, but a real solution to help you stay out of the danger zones.

It’s well understood that foods saturated in fat contain the highest calories. Therefore keeping fat to a minimum will significantly reduce your calories. Substitute fat with whole grains, vegetables and fruit. It’s amazing how quickly you’ll start to notice improvements in your health.

It may seem like a good idea to skip a meal, but it isn’t. Over the day as a whole, you’re likely to consume more in snacks to compensate for your hunger. On the contrary, you should eat several small meals a day to prevent getting too hungry. On-going hunger essentially slows the weight loss process down. Regular, healthy eating allows your body to metabolise more efficiently, which makes weight loss much easier.

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