Lifestyle Choices

Lean is supposed to be beautiful. As a result, some women spend most of their adult lives trying to get thin and stay that way. For, in our society, thinness has become a symbol of loveliness, success, self-control, and social acceptability—and being overweight the twentieth-century bete noire of womanhood. You know the kind of thing: “Lose that nasty twenty-five pounds with our super new slenderizing regimen and it will transform your life into a wonderful world of bliss.” Well, don’t believe it. (more…)

There are some general guidelines for eating that can help people interested in losing body fat.

• Restrict calories in moderate amounts per day rather than making large reductions in daily caloric intake.
• Choose foods from the four basic food groups (see Concept 20). This is the most healthy way to diet and is also most likely to be successful over a long period.
• 
• Eat less fat. Research shows that reduction in the fat in the diet not only results in fewer calories consumed (fats have more than twice the calories per gram as carbohydrates or proteins), but greater body fat kiss as well.
• Severely restrict empty calories. Foods with empty calories provide little nutrition and can account for an excessive amount of your daily calorie intake. Examples of these foods are candy (often high in simple sugar) and potato chips (often fried in saturated fat).
• Increase complex carbohydrates. Foods high in fiber such as fresh fruits and vegetables contain few calories for their volume. They are nutritious and filling, and are especially good foods for a fat loss program.
• Learn the difference between craving and hunger. Hunger is a physiological phenomenon that is a result of the body’s need to supply energy to sustain life. A craving is simply a desire to eat something; sometimes a food that is notparticularly liked. When you feel the urge to eat, you may want to ask yourself: is this real hunger or a craving? Hunger is accompanied by growling of the stomach and is most likely to occur after long periods without food. If you have the urge to eat soon after a meal, it is probably from craving, not hunger.