by Michelle Wilkinson

Created on: April 22, 2009

Deciding to lose weight when you are overweight or obese is a positive step and has many advantages associated with it. Losing weight will help reduce the health risks associated with being overweight, whilst incorporating more physical activity into your lifestyle will increase your fitness levels. Plus, your self-esteem will receive a boost as you start to recognise exactly what you have achieved through commitment and hard work. Trying to lose weight if you are carrying excess pounds is therefore essentially a good thing. However, problems can arise when people decide to lose weight in an unhealthy way by following fad diets and embarking on extreme exercise programmes which their bodies just aren't ready for.

Rather than thinking about long-term health and fitness goals people often concentrate on the very narrow goal of getting down to a certain weight or size, and so fail to consider the bigger picture of what weight loss actually means. Losing 10 per cent of your current weight can help to increase your energy levels, lower your cholesterol levels, reduce your blood pressure, reduce aches and pains, improve your mobility and breathing, prevent you from developing type 2 diabetes and improve your blood sugar levels, as well as preventing angina and reducing your risk of sudden death from heart disease or stroke.

These are the advantages of losing weight that people should really focus on, but instead most people have a goal that they want to reach within a very limited time. Perhaps they are getting married or going on holiday and want to look their best. They therefore make poor decisions, deciding to cut their calories excessively for a relatively short period of time, rather than embracing smaller lifestyle changes with the intention of following them even when they have lost the excess weight. Consequently they generally gain the weight back once their diet' has served its purpose. After their wedding or holiday they tend to slip back into old habits, and therefore any benefits they gained from carrying fewer excess pounds dissipate. They might also develop negative feelings about themselves for having allowed themselves to regain the weight.

If you want to lose weight you need to approach it sensibly, and not just rush in. You need to consider what you are eating and how much, and make changes so that you end up consuming few enough calories to lose weight, but not so few that you feel weak and end up craving junk food. You also need to incorporate exercise into your weight-loss plan, but shouldn't expect to be able cycle 100 miles straightaway if you are unfit and haven't yet built up enough stamina or strength to do so. It takes time to lose weight and tone up your body, so you should try to remain patient, as you will begin to notice a difference eventually.

Anyone who has decided to tackle their weight deserves to be applauded, so long as they decide to lose weight sensibly as doing so will ultimately improve their chances of success.

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