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Remedies for Weight Control

Maintaining a healthy weight reduces your risk for weight-related diseases such as diabetes, arthritis, heart disease and some cancers. Your blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure is easier to control if your are at a healthy weight. Avoiding undesired weight gain or weight loss can be achieved by incorporating measures that help control your weight.

  1. Eating A Healthy Diet

    • Providing your body with healthy, nutrient-rich foods, can help control your weight. Your diet should contain a combination of carbohydrates, protein, fat and fiber. Simple carbohydrates such as white bread and white rice should ideally be replaced with complex carbohydrates such as fiber-rich, whole-grain bread and brown rice. Complex carbohydrates don't cause blood sugar spikes and digest slowly, therefore providing long-term energy. Protein, your body's building blocks, should come from lean animal sources such as chicken, fish and turkey, and from plant sources such as beans and legumes. Fat, which promotes vitamin absorption and cell membrane functioning, should come from unsaturated sources such as olive and canola oils. Trans fats and saturated fats, which are present in cookies, cakes, butter and coconut oil, should be avoided.

    Exercise

    • Maintain a healthy weight by getting regular exercise. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that adults get at least 150 minutes of cardiovascular exercise per week. The Center also states that full-body, strength training exercises should be done twice a week. Cardiovascular exercise such as running, walking, swimming and biking burn calories, while strength training exercises such as pushups, lunges, biceps curls and bench presses create muscle tissue and increase your resting metabolic rate all day long.

    Portion Control

    • Eating healthy foods is not going to maintain your weight if your portion sizes are too large or too small. Webmd.com states that a single serving of chicken breast should be no larger than a deck of cards. A baked potato should be the size of a computer mouse and 1 tbsp. of butter, margarine or salad dressing should be no larger than a poker chip. Restaurant portions are bigger than ever, and may need to be halved or quartered to make standard-size portions.

    Stress Management

    • Managing your stress levels helps control your weight. According to the Natural Health Website for Women, high stress levels stimulate the release of cortisol in your body. Cortisol is a stress hormone that triggers cravings for fatty, unhealthy foods, which results in weight gain primarily around your middle. Fat settles around your waist because it's located near your liver, which can rapidly use it to convert it to energy if needed. Stress can be managed by practicing Yoga, delegating responsibilities and tasks at work and taking time to breathe deeply.

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