WEIGHT LOSS TIPS FOR CANADIANS

As much as there are people who would actually do with some extra pounds, there are those of us who desperately need to shed off extra pounds. In Canada, obesity is growing to a major health concern. Only second to smoking as leading cause of avoidable mortality and morbidity. If the 2017 stats are anything to go by, then over 14m Canadians aged 18 and above are slightly overweight or obese. Yes, you read that right, over 14m people. Typically, this is nearly 45% of the total population. Something needs to be done.

As Canadians, where did we go wrong? What are we doing wrong to yield these disturbing results? If you are looking for answers read on.

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What causes weight gain?

Pregnancy

The major reasons why we have more over-weight women than men is simply due to the fact that women get pregnant. Naturally, after getting pregnant women add some extra weight. During this cycle of life most women become slightly over-weight but all for the right reasons. You can’t afford to starve your baby just because you want to retain your sexy shape. What makes most women get overweight and obese is simply due to the fact that they let themselves go after giving birth. After delivery, most women never go back to their routine exercise nor stick to a healthy. The obvious result will be that these women will put on extra weight.

Depression

It is so unfortunate that people as young as 12 years old are having depression. Hello, when I was that age the only thing that stressed me out was homework. Most anti-depressant tablets play a major role in weight gain. Also, there are some people who seek refuge to food whenever they are depressed. If you eat excessively and don’t exercise what do you expect?

Junk foods

Junk foods all over in Canada Basically, junk foods contain high sugar content and carbohydrates which are the major causes of weight gain. This explains why over 25% of teens in Canada are either overweight or obese. No rocket science is needed to figure out that most teenagers love junk foods.

Age

Naturally, as people age, they become less active. When you are inactive this means that you will burn fewer calories. If you don’t reduce the amount of food you take you will end up getting over-weight. The worst thing is, you won’t realize it until it is too late.

Eating amnesia

This is the act of eating just anything anywhere anytime. There are some people with a huge appetite and will munch huge junks of food without having second thoughts on whether what they are eating could cause them health problems. Irrespective of whether you are eating healthy foods or not, too much of something is poisonous, in this case, you will put on too much weight.

Inactive lifestyle

It’s not that I am against technology but the truth is, technology has made us lazy. Back in the 60s people rarely got over-weight. Reason being they had to do everything manually. Nowadays, after waking up you drive to work. Use an elevator to your office, spend the whole day seated. Back in the day’s people used to walk to work in the morning and use the stairs to get to the office. Even our kids have becomes slaves to technology, other than going outside and play with their peers, they prefer staying indoors and play with their peers online or through PS4. The obvious result will be putting on extra weight. It is so unfortunate that even kids these days are getting diabetes which was a disease initially associated with old age. I am not overlooking the benefits that technology has brought to our lives especially in the health sector. On the contrary, I am simply saying that we should not be slaves to technology

Menopause

When ladies hit menopause, their estrogen levels reduce drastically. With the reduction of estrogen levels, the body’s metabolic rate reduces significantly. In return, this means that the body will not be in a position to break down excess starch and sugars into energy causing weight gain which is mostly packed in the midsection.

Genes

If your family has a history of obesity, then there is a high chance that if you don’t lead a healthy life you will pack on some unwanted weight.

Consuming excess alcohol

It is recommended that once in while you should take a bottle of alcohol, actually make it two! However, as you do so always have in mind that consuming excess alcohol cause accumulation of fats in the body. Basically, after you consume alcohol it is broken down into sugar molecules. Without exercise, these sugar molecules are converted into fat.

Legit ways to lose weight for Canadians

1. Reduce your stress levels

Different people get stressed by different things. Whether it is a breakup, losing a loved one, failing in your exams or being broke. If you don’t want to lose weight you have to reduce your stress levels. You can do this by consulting a professional physiatrist or simply letting go what is stressing you. By reducing your stress levels you will avoid putting on extra weight and if you actually focus on improving yourself it will only be a matter of time before you get back in shape.

2. Not letting yourself go

Most youths aged between 18-25 yrs are in good shape. Reason being, they lead a healthy life after all this is the stage in life where we are all hyper-sexually active. However, after getting married most people let themselves go. They stop sticking to a healthy diet or even exercising. The immediate consequence is becoming over-weight. As a Canadian, if you want to lose weight and maintain that sexy shape you must never let yourself go. The good thing is, it is never too late to start leading a healthy life!

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3. Exercise regularly

You can’t say you never saw this coming, can you? To most people when you mention the word exercise what comes to their mind is a big guy with gigantic muscles lifting 500 pounds. Hell no! There is more to exercise than gym junkies. Canada has an unemployment rate of 6.7% meaning that most people have real jobs and can’t find time to spend hours in the gym lifting weights. I have good news for you; you don’t have to go to the gym for you to lose weight. Start off by morning runs, I know morning sleep is something that no normal human being wants to part with but if you want to shed off extra pounds you have to be willing to make sacrifices.

Set your morning alarm 1 hour earlier and use this time to go for a morning jog or run. Running burns off calories and unhealthy fats in the body. After the run, go take a shower then go to work. Instead of using the lift hit the stairs. I know it’s tempting to take the easy way but like I said you have to make sacrifices. You can also enroll in yoga classes. Yoga helps burn off calories as well as reduces stress. It will be like hitting two birds with one stone.

On the weekends instead of going with your squad to watch football or have a few drinks, use this time and visit a gym. If you maintain this schedule for a month or two you shall get back in shape. I won’t promise you that it will be easy, but it is worth it.

4. Maintain a healthy diet

The easiest and fastest way to lose extra weight is sticking to a healthy diet. So, what is a healthy diet? If you want to shed off the extra weight you must reduce your intake of calories. This can be achieved if you keep track of your calories intake like the diabetic do. I know it is a tedious task but nothing good comes easy. Whenever you feel that you crave for something sweet instead of buying chocolate or ice-cream satisfy this urge by eating a fruit. An apple a day keeps the doctor away, remember? Reduce your intake of soda instead take a glass of water. After all, water has more health benefits.

With junk food being in almost every corner of the streets, at times it is hard to resist the temptation to grab that cheeseburger. But, if you want to lose weight you must be strong enough to resist this urge. Whenever you feel the urge to grab a snack opt for pudding instead. It is a hard choice but for the sake of getting back in shape, you have to be willing to make these hard decisions.

As part of a healthy diet include fiber in your meals. Fiber helps in the digestion of fats which would have rather accumulated in your body. Last but not the least always ensure that you include vegetables in every meal. There is a reason why vegetarians are healthier than those who take meat. This is simply because vegetables don’t contain unhealthy fats.

 NB- never skip a meal just because you are trying to lose weight. If you skip a meal you will be starving yourself and this can lead to major health issues.

5. Reduce alcohol consumption

Alcohol is a necessary evil and that’s why I wouldn’t advise you to totally refrain from it. Instead, reduce your consumption. Instead of taking 10 bottles try and reduce it at least 5 bottles and even then ensure that you exercise to burn off the calories.

6. Medications

Different people react differently to certain drugs. There are those who will put on weight after consuming certain drugs. If this happens to you, ensure that you visit your doctor and ask him/her if it the prescription can be changed. If not, let him advise you on how you can still continue taking the drugs and avoid gaining too much weight.

7. Get enough sleep

If you stay up late either playing PS4 or watching a movie, there is a high chance that you will get hungry and grab a midnight snack. If you are serious about losing weight you should ensure that you sleep approximately 7-8 hours every 24 hours. Biologically, if you get enough sleep you will have the recommended hormone balance. This means that the body will be in a position to burn off excess sugars and calories to energy more efficiently. In fact, the simplest way to manage your weight is through getting enough night sleep.

8. Don’t give up

I can promise you that it is going to be an easy task. You have to sacrifice a lot and at times you might feel like giving up especially when it takes too long before you start seeing concrete results. My advice to you is that you should never give up. Always have your eyes set on the target which is getting that sexy body again and don’t stop until you get there.

Do you still need motivation to start losing weight? Well here it is

Consequences of being overweight/obese

• Type 2 diabetes
• Cancer
• Heart diseases
• Depression
• Low-self esteem
• Stroke
• High blood pressure
• Joint problems
• Low-quality life

Conclusion

It is never too late to start losing weight. Adapt the methods highlighted above and in just a few months you will get that sexy body worth being admired by everybody.

Need more useful resources?

A healthy eating program to meet your individual weight loss goals.
A complete body transformation program and useful resources.