Rimonabant Obesity

Get fit and stay fit

It's never too late to make changes in eating and exercise habits to control weight. Those changes don't have to be as big as we usually think. If you or someone you know is obese or overweight, this article can give you information and tips for dealing with the problem by adopting a healthier lifestyle. Being overweight and being obese and are not exactly the same thing. An obese person has a large amount of extra body fat, not just a few extra pounds. Obese people are at risk for serious health problems. People gain weight when the body takes in more calories than it burns off and those extra calories are stored in our body as fat. People who are obese have usually been getting more calories than they need for years.

Sometimes emotions can fuel obesity as well. People tend to eat more when they are upset, anxious, sad, stressed out, or even bored. Then after they eat too much, they may feel bad about it and eat more to deal with those bad feelings, creating a tough cycle to break.

One of the most important factors in weight gain is a sedentary lifestyle. People are much less active today than they used to be, with televisions, computers, and video games filling their spare time. There is less time to cook healthy meals, so more and more people eat at restaurants or buy quick foods at the grocery store or food market to heat up at home. All of these can contain lots more fat and calories than meals prepared at home.

How Can You Avoid Becoming Overweight or Obese?

The best way to maintain a healthy weight are regular exercise and good eating habits.

It is important to be active, try to exercise 30 to 60 minutes every day. Your exercise doesn't have to be hard core. These activities, waliking, swimming and stretching will burn calories and help you stay fit. Involve the following halpful habits in your everyday life to stay fit.

• Go outside for a walk.
• Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
• Walk or bike to places instead of driving.
• If you drive somewhere park farther away than you need to and walk the extra distance.
• Alternate activities so you don't get bored
• Limit your time watching TV or playing video games; even reading a book burns more energy.
• Go dancing - it can burn more than 300 calories an hour!

Instead of strict diet try to make healthy choices every day:

• Soft drinks, fruit juices, and sports drinks are loaded with sugar; drink fat-free or low-fat milk or water instead.
• Eat at least five servings of fruit and vegetables a day.
• Avoid fast-food restaurants. If you can't, try to pick healthier choices like grilled chicken or salads
• If you want a snack, try carrot sticks, a piece of fruit, or a piece of whole-grain toast instead of processed foods like chips and crackers, which can be loaded with fat and calories.
• Eat when you're hungry, not when you're bored or because you can't think of anything else to do.
• Eat a healthy breakfast every day.
• Don't eat meals or snacks while watching TV because you'll probably end up eating more than you intend to.
• Pay attention to the portion sizes of what you eat.

How Can Obesity Affect Your Health?

Obesity is bad for both body and mind. It makes a person feel tired and uncomfortable, it can wear down joints and put extra stress on other parts of the body. When a person is carrying extra weight, it's harder to keep up with friends, play sports or live normal everyday life. Often, it is associated with breathing problems such as asthma and sleep apnea and problems with hips and knee joints.

Obesity can cause illnesses that once were thought to be problems only for adults, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, liver disease, and type 2 diabetes. As they get older, people who are obese are more likely to develop heart disease, congestive heart failure, bladder problems, and, in women, problems with the reproductive system. Obesity also can lead to stroke, greater risk for certain cancers such as breast or colon cancer, and even death.

In addition to other potential problems, people who are obese can have tendency to be depressed. That can start a vicious cycle: when people are overweight, they may feel sad or even angry and eat to make themselves feel better. Then they feel worse for eating again.

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