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5 Bad Habits of Overweight People
Most people who are overweight got to where they are today by practicing poor lifestyle habits. Knowing what these habits are may help those of us that want to lose weight any bad lifestyle habits we practice and help us reverse them.
Here is a list of the 5 most common of these habits and some suggestions about How to change them.
Habit 1. Being inactive.
Weight gain, weight maintenance and weight loss are all based on a very simple principle. If you consume more calories than you need over the long term you'll put on weight (approximately ½ kilogram per extra 3,500 calories). If you consume the same amount of calories than your body needs to function and perform the activity you do each day, you'll maintain the same weight. And if you consume fewer calories that your body burns to function and perform the activities you do each day, you'll lose weight. Simple isn't it. So if it's so simple, why are so many of us overweight and don't know why or what to do about it? It just doesn't make sense. If you are overweight and you are largely inactive and practice one or more of the other 5 habits below, get serious about exercise. And it doesn't matter what you do, just that you do something. Anything!
If the thought of exercise scares you, start off simply by walking around your block each day and when you can do that, walk around 2 blocks, then 3, then 4,then 5 and so on until you're walking for at least 30 minutes per day. If you do this and you're careful not to eat more than you currently are always be aware that our body wants to maintain its current weight or status -known scientifically as homeostasis - and because you'll be burning extra calories your body will tell you that it needs more food) I promise you will start to lose weight (slowly but surely) and you'll feel great.
In fact, once your self-esteem and enthusiasm for life starts to return, chances are you'll find yourself being more adventurous with the activities you try than you ever imagined and you'll give bike riding, jogging or working out at your local gym a go.
Habit 2. They miss less obvious calorie burning opportunities.
Why is it that the spaces in car parks closest to the front door of shops always fill up first? Or that we get upset if we misplace the remote control for the TV? Simply because none of us wants to walk any further than is absolutely necessary or exert any more energy than it absolutely necessary.If you are trying to lose weight, you have to adopt a different outlook and approach, you need to start looking for and creating opportunities to walk more and exert as much energy during your day as possible.
Instead of watching TV, try:
1.1 Washing the car.
1.2 Walking the dog.
1.3 Mowing the law doing the dishes.
1.4 Walking to the shops or a friends place take the stairs instead of the escalators or lift.
1.5 If you work in an office: go for a 10, 20 or 30 minute walk at lunch conduct the odd meeting walking around the block instead of in a stuffy meeting room walk to the shops for lunch instead of driving.
1.6 catch the bus or train to work once or twice a week instead of driving.
Habit 3. They are typically emotional eaters.
Emotional eaters use food to help regulate their mood.
The typical emotional eater:
1.1 eats when they're not hungry
1.2 uses food as a personal reward
1.3 eats when they are upset
1.4 bottles up their emotions, particularly negative ones
1.5 continues eating until uncomfortably full
1.6 has low self esteem
To help overcome this problem, people who emotionally eat should:
1.1 try to become more aware of their motives for eating
1.2 change their reward system (go to the movies or for a walk)
1.3 be honest with themselves and others and express any negative emotions
1.4 eats more slowly and considers the portion control suggestions above
1.5 learn to love themselves for who they are
Habit 4. They skip breakfast.
It is amazing how many overweight people skip meals, particularly breakfast. Now you think that this would help them lose rather than gain weight wouldn’t you? Well it doesn't and there are many research studies that prove this very fact. You see, when you skip meals, there are again two evils at work.
1. Your body thinks it is starving and it slows your metabolism down.
2. When you do finally eat, you make up for the missed meal and then some do you really want to lose weight? If the answer is yes: start eating small meals more often (every two hours or so) and never, ever skip breakfast.
Habit 5: They use denial and excuses.
Recently I've seen some people who have lost a significant amount of weight all about their success and state when shown images of how they used to look that "I had no idea I looked that bad”. I find this very interesting, and while I'm certainly not a trained psychologist, it looks to me to be a full blown case of utter denial. These threats are real! How many of us are in denial about how big and unhealthy we really are? When we see photos of ourselves we can certainly see it, but we don't look at our own photos everyday to remind us.
When our doctor tells us that we are heading into dangerous territory, do we really believe them? For our health's sake, in both instances, we should. In addition to living a life in denial, may overweight people use excuses instead of action to protect their self esteem from further damage and to provide themselves with permission to refrain from taking action. If this sounds like you, maybe it's time for you to stop looking for excuses and start looking for solutions to what in some cases is a life-threatening problem.
Conclusion:
Most people who are overweight got to where they are today by practicing poor lifestyle habits. The list above of the 5 most common of these habits and the accompanying suggestions about how to change them have been written to help those who are overweight identify and reverse the unhealthy lifestyle habits most relevant to them. remember, you can become happier and healthier if you really want to. |
 
 
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