How Can I Lose Weight?

 Today I want to tackle the question I get most often, “How can I lose weight?” This is like solving a puzzle because everyone has a unique problem that has a different solution. But for 90% of the overweight population, we can generalize. Processed foods cause most of the overweight problems.

But just the words “processed foods” take in more than you think. If you take all processed foods out of supermarkets, you would be left with a produce market and a seafood and meat market. Everything in this new store would be fresh, nothing frozen. Frozen or canned products have preservatives. Things like bread, crackers, cookies, and cakes are all processed foods. Anything in a can or box is processed food. Even most dairy products are processed.

So, what’s wrong with processed foods? Manufacturers have to add preservatives to add shelf life and also add other things to give the product better taste. Most of these food additives are chemical. You can tell by the ingredient list on the label. It’s these chemicals that change your metabolism and affect  the way you burn body fat.

So now we learned that some foods will speed up your metabolism so you burn more fat and some foods actually slows down your metabolism, so you burn less fat. And that’s important because our diets are full of fat and your body will only burn a small number of grams a day. The rest is stored in fat cells and adds to your weight. When you consume more fats and carbs than your body can process that excess is stored in fat cells.

So what can you eat, that’s the question. Let’s look at the diet of a small region in Japan where a higher percentage of people live over100 years than anywhere else on Earth. Okinawa is a small island at the southernmost part of Japan. Most of the people are farmers and fisherman. Their diet consists of mostly fish, chicken, rice, eggs, and home-grown vegetables, tea and water.

I think the key to a long, healthy life might be to simplify your diet. Eat some basic foods, only a small variety of different items and stay with it. I believe the body has to get use to the foods your eating. If you’re constantly changing your menu everyday the body has to learn how to digest those new foods, but by that time you’ve changed your menu and it has to get use to another new menu.

I remember a post I read from WebMD that said you shouldn’t be discouraged if you don’t lose weight at the beginning of a new diet. Your body has to get use to this new way of eating. Sometimes this might take more than one week. A successful program might mean you’ll lose one pound a week. After about two months you might have lost 10 pounds and then you might hit a wall and stop losing. This is normal, I’ll explain. You start a diet weighing 170 and you are allowed 1500 calories a day. You lose 10 pounds so now you weigh 160 and you stop losing so what’s the problem.

The problem is that as you lose weight you have to reduce your calorie intake because you’re 160 so you might have to drop your intake to 1400 calories and continue on the same plan. After you stop losing you need to adjust again to continue losing weight. What’s right for the 170-pound body isn’t always right for the 160- or 150-pound body.

I’m not a believer in just cutting back on the same foods that you ate in the past. The foods you have been eating has put a lot of excess fat on your body. Cutting back on those same foods won’t help you lose weight. Eating smaller cheeseburgers and only half an order of fries, a small coke and small ice cream cone is not a good diet plan. The same foods in smaller amounts is just a way to starvation.

Learn to eat foods that are as close to their natural state as possible. Learn to eat your food with a little seasoning, no gravy or sauces and don’t drink calories. I do allow myself a glass of wine with dinner.

Food cravings are a big problem for dieters, but eating nutritious food will stop that. The first couple of week is the hardest until your body adjusts to your new way of eating. Don’t be afraid to fill your plate, when you eat healthy food you can fill up. I only eat two meals a day, noon and five p.m. Sometime I snack in the afternoon on a handful of mix nuts.

Losing body fat should be your goal. Read up on weight loss and losing body fat. It doesn’t cost money to lose weight. The internet is full of free information.

Follow me on Twitter @GertsRay70369

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You’ll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want to Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.