I’M neither a fitness buff nor a health expert but my advancing age and some medical issues gave me the motivation to improve my well-being. Just to be clear, this piece is not medical advice as each of us has different health conditions. Because you had read something on this page, is not a reason for you to disregard professional medical advice.
Life, they say begins at 40. Yeah, sure and if we overindulge, the road to 40 pounds more also begins. There is a need to balance eating (energy in) and sweating (energy out). The tilt in the balance decides if we gain or lose weight. Sweating less and eating more results in weight gain. As we get older, we tend to gain pounds naturally as we become less active. On the flip side, we may start to lose our appetites because of some medical conditions which can drop the pounds.
Athletes can lose up to 10 percent of their body weights after a single workout, mostly in sweat. For us ordinary beings, it might not be that drastic but dropping up to two pounds is not unusual. A quart of water weighs about two pounds and if we just drink it and not sweat it out, it shows on the scale. But water, in the long run, can help us lose weight as it suppresses hunger.
Because 55 percent to 75 percent of our body is water, the lack of it makes us dizzy, can give us headaches, low blood pressure, dry skin, dry mouth, and mucous membranes. We can’t think straight if we’re dehydrated.
High-calorie, high-fat, and sugary drinks can tip the scales. Aside from plain water, coffee can help us maintain or lose weight. Studies showed caffeine may help squash our appetite. The keyword here is “may” as some of us can’t tolerate caffeine in our system.
Aside from being healthy, a colorful diet keeps our weight in check. Red foods are for cardiovascular and blood health, and support joint function. Orange foods reduce the risk of heart disease and help prevent cancer. Yellow foods are good for the skin and eyes, improves immune function and digestion. White foods also support our immune and circulatory system, as well as reduce cancer risk. Green foods are for detoxification and bone health. Blue and purple foods absorb minerals and help brain and memory function.
But no matter how many rainbows we ate if there’s too much salt on it, it can be bad for us. A high-sodium diet invites several health issues and it causes us to retain water in our body, thus raising our weight. We tend to eat more processed and junk foods which are loaded with fats and calories if we’re used to a salty diet.
Sleep or the lack of it also plays a role in our weight. We feel hungrier after several sleepless nights thus the extra baggage. Experts said the best time of the day to weigh is in the morning where the most accurate reading can be had. We had a good sleep and haven’t had anything to eat or drink yet. As the day goes on, expect to see changes especially if we had a heavy meal.
The numbers on the scale could be different every time. It is also dependent on the floor where the scale sits, the way we stand on it, the clothes we wear, or the lack of it. They say digital scales are more accurate but whatever kind we use, let’s zero it out before we hop on to it.
Let’s enjoy life while we’re still blessed with it by managing our weight and diet./PN
