Taming your tummy
If your tummy is larger than your waist line, you have a higher chance of reducing the size of your brain and developing a heart disease. Rita Ohai writes.
ALTHOUGH it is common knowledge that Nigerians are generally susceptible to a pot belly due to their high-carbohydrate and fatty diet, very few know the potential risks they expose themselves to when they relish heavy meals like pounded yam and egusi at odd intervals.
Due to the festive lifestyle of the average Nigerian, most people with large stomachs run the risk of having significantly smaller brains by the time they reach their 50s than their flat-belly counterparts.
Dr. Florence Ibeh, a resident doctor explains, “Having a ‘pot belly’ in middle age raises the risk of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia (forgetfulness or memory loss) because abdominal fat is more ‘metabolically active’ and is recognized as the most dangerous, hidden type of fat which can block the blood vessel going to the brain and limit oxygen supply.”
Ibeh believes the dangerous effects of abdominal obesity on the brain may start long before the signs of dementia appear.
In line with applying caution when matters of the waist are concerned, researchers state that even if your belt buckled somewhere between flat and semi-fat, you were not home-free.
They found that adding a few inches to the waist increased the risk of damage in the arteries, even if body weight remained within the normal range.
Nutritionist and health consultant, Boye Ajibade enlightens, “People who are overweight or obese have an increased risk of developing heart disease. The risks are even higher when fat is mainly concentrated around the abdomen.
“What’s important is that people consider their body shape as well as their weight. Controlling both by eating less and being more active is an effective way to reduce your risk of heart and circulatory disease.”
Tamasic and rajastic India ! Obesity ! / मोटापा / ಸ್ಥೂಲಕಾಯತೆ (Photo credit: artist in doing nothing)
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Weight Loss and Fitness Tips
HOW MUCH SHOULD I WEIGH FOR MY HEIGHT
First of all, you might want to try checking your BMI or Body Mass Index. You can search up the Internet for a BMI calculator and all you need to input is your weight and height. This tells you if you are well within the normal range of weight for people with your height. From this you will know if you really needed weight loss and how much do you need to exercise for health and fitness.
CHECK YOUR BASAL METABOLIC RATE
You must also check your BMR or the Basal Metabolic Rate which tells how much calories you should take in a day. This is the necessary number of calorie so that you would have enough energy to function. This information is important because it would tell you when to stop eating or how much do you need to moderate when it comes to food. In this way, you could eat pretty much anything you want given that it is within the required number of calories for you in a day.
HOW MANY CALORIES DO I BURN?
From this, you could now compute many calories you burn in a day, depending on your lifestyle and the type of workout you do, using the Harris Benedict Formula. If you still have not started working out and even if you do not do anything in the day aside from surfing the internet, do not worry because you still burn a little more than the required number of calories you take in a day.
Upon calculation, you will now know how you could adjust to your caloric needs. Your fitness and weight training every day shall revolve around these numbers.
Українська: Індекс маси тіла людини (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
THE IMPORTANCE OF EATING HEALTHY
For your diet plan, you would have to work with your caloric needs. As mentioned earlier, your caloric intake must not exceed the amount you normally burn. This is because any excess would then be converted and stored energy into fats, which is not good for your health and your figure. So, all you have to do is to eat food in moderation. This does not mean that you have to deprive yourself of the nutrition you enjoy eating but just make sure that you eat fresh foods. Make sure that you consume more fruits and vegetables and drink lots of water to avoid dehydration. Check out my new ebook “Eat Healthy to Lose Pounds”. It’s all about healthy eating guidelines without giving up your favorite foods or starving yourself.
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