Diet and Exercise - Secrets Of Good Health

A balanced diet and physical activity are the two time-tested secrets of good health. If you are overweight and want to shed some pounds, regular exercise has repeatedly proven itself as the most effective way to achieve permanent weight loss. Though dieting can often help you reach your weight loss goals quicker and more drastically, you will eventually gain back all of the weight lost during your diets once you get back into your old eating habits. Rather than entering the cycle of yo-yo dieting and rapid gains and losses, it is much more sensible and healthy to gradually change your eating habits, and to embark on a fun and consistent exercise program.

For years, a low-fat or low-calorie diet was considered the only cure for obesity. However, these diets tended to increase your appetite. Now, it's been determined that a low-carb diet is more practical and effective. Low-carb diets are low in carbohydrates and higher in proteins, fats and oils. You appetite remains under control because fatty foods satisfy the cravings most people have. By eating a diet higher in fat actually increases weight loss faster than if you were fasting. You should avoid trans-fats and only eat fats such as olive oil and flax seed oil

A low-carb diet is primarily a high fat diet and an adequate protein diet. It should be accompanied with adequate physical activity, which does not necessarily mean tiring yourself with workouts your body cannot take for long. On the contrary, simple physical activity is sufficient, especially if you are leading a sedentary

Always consult with your physician before starting any exercise program. This will ensure your body can take the strain of exercise. Your doctor will want to know how much exercise you plan on doing and for how long.

If you have never embarked on an exercise program before, you might consider joining a gym or hiring a personal trainer. Most health clubs offer a wide variety of free classes to their members, ranging from the more traditional aerobics and stair-stepping classes to more specialized classes like yoga and kickboxing. You can hire a private trainer, or you can enlist the help of a health club employee.

It is important to remember when exercising that you should focus on getting healthy more than the numbers on your scale. Many people gain a little weight when they first begin an exercise program because they are building muscle. As a rule, muscle weighs more than fat. As you gain muscle you'll start burning more calories and fat. So even if you choose not to diet and only exercise, you can still loose weight. It is also important to eat well balanced healthy meals to sustain you through your workout sessions.

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Perdita Del Peso is the proprietor of Which is a premier resource for Weight Loss information. For questions or comments, go to: http://www.weight-loss-zone.com