America is obsessed with being skinny, so it is kind of ironic that it is the most obese nation in the world. According to the Get America Fit Foundation, obesity is the number two preventable cause of death in America.
There are a lot of reasons why America is the most obese nation. A lot of it has to do with our lifestyles, including our love for fast food, soda, and television. Think of all the money we spend on fast food every year since it’s convenient. There is not a single week that goes by that I don’t eat out at some fast food restaurant.
I noticed this began when I started working full time and didn’t have time, or was too tired to cook. Planning out your meals and making one trip to the store each week to get all of the ingredients (including perishables) for your meals will help prompt you to stop eating out, and will save you money.
As Americans, if we ever do anything, we do it all the way, including eating, fighting wars, and spending money. Luckily enough, we also live in a world of information, including the knowledge of what obesity is and some tips on how to beat it.
Obesity is simply defined as being overweight, normally in context to your Body Mass Index (BMI). Finding your BMI is difficult. Not. In order to calculate your BMI, you simply need to know how tall you are and how much you weigh.
I am 5’3 and weigh 130 lbs. (I’m a girl and I’m more than comfortable telling a bunch of strangers my weight). According to the BMI, I’m in the normal weight range with a BMI of 23. There are four ranges altogether: underweight, normal, overweight, and obese. One is classified as obese when their BMI reaches 30.
The BMI isn’t perfect and can’t tell you exactly where you should be at for your body mass since everyone is different, but it’s fantastic to know what range you’re in so if you want a change, you can find a target BMI.
One big factor in the road to successful weight loss is to stop drinking carbonated and sugary drinks. Try replacing them with something that you still enjoy tasting, but is zero calories. When I was trying to quit Mountain Dew, I replaced it with grape Gatorade and slowly worked to just plain old water. When you think you’re hungry, try drinking a glass of water first. The brain gets confused sometimes when it is trying to send you signals that it is thirsty.
When watching television, try to do some form of exercise during commercials or opening/closing credits. The most typical exercises like sit-ups and push-ups are the most popular for a reason. They work the best.
Finally, the best tip I can give anyone is that everyone has to start somewhere. Don’t get frustrated, get motivated. If Jennifer Aniston ate and exercised like I do, she would have my body too. The moral of this story is to get your BMI and to start the exercise routine somewhere.
