Excess body weight can increase the risk of disease and reduce life expectancy. Being overweight increases the risk of diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, gall bladder disease, some cancers and reproductive disorders.

Reducing your body weight by even 5-10% can have positive effects on your general well-being. People who are considered a healthy weight tend to be more active, have more energy, better mobility and breathe easier.

What is the Body Mass Index?

Your Body Mass Index (BMI) is calculated as your weight in kg divided by your height in metres squared. Your BMI is used to give you an idea if you are underweight, ideal weight or overweight or obese for your height.

A normal healthy weight is defined as having a BMI between 18.5 to 25, overweight from 25 to 30, and obese over 30. If you are over 65 years the healthy weight range is between 22-27. The BMI may not be a suitable indicator of health for all people such as athletes with higher muscle mass.

Why do people gain weight?

Weight gain is usually the result of eating more than the body needs and not doing enough physical activity over a long period of time. Our sedentary lifestyles often see us taking in more energy than our body burns up and the result is excess energy stored as fat.

Time to start a new diet?

There are an endless array of new diets and weight loss methods all claiming to be the latest miracle cure. Unfortunately most diets and weight loss products offer a quick fix and are useless for permanent weight control.

Fast weight loss which occurs with fad diets is mainly a loss of water and lean muscle tissue. Once you stop the diet, the lost water soon returns and the lean muscle tissue does not come back unless you exercise.

So how do I lose weight?

The only way to lose excess fat is by taking it slowly. Fat on the body doesn’t appear overnight and certainly doesn’t disappear quickly. To lose fat and keep it off, you need to change the eating and exercise habits which caused the fat to accumulate in the first place. Starving or skipping meals is NOT effective. Without food, your body will think it needs to conserve everything you do put into it, storing energy and burning less calories.

By following a sensible, long term healthy eating and activity plan developed with the guidance of a qualified Dietitian you can successfully lose weight and keep it off!

How much weight should I lose?

A weight loss of no more than ½-1kg per week is recommended. A loss of 1 kg per month is a good goal for many. Slow, steady weight loss is more likely to be sustained. Losing 1 kg per month may seem small but if you keep doing it for 2 years you will lose 20-25kg which will have massive health benefits.

Body weight can fluctuate substantially, depending on the time of day, temporary fluid retention or increasing muscle mass with exercise. You should not weigh yourself more than once per week using the same scales at the same time of the day.

Here are a few tips to get you started...

Consume appropriate portion sizes and consume regular meals.

Drink at least 6-8 glasses of water per day

Try to eat less fat, especially saturated fats.

Limit intake of foods and drinks containing added sugar.

Avoid feeling hungry by including plenty of high fibre foods such as plant foods.

Be physically active everyday.

Practice Mindful Eating Patterns