About Weight Control

by A Couse

Here is an article on weight control. I hope you find the information useful!

Stated simply, weight gain occurs when the calories consumed exceed the calories expended or burned up. The exact cause of a person’s caloric imbalance can be difficult to determine

Studies have shown that genetics does play a role in being overweight, but you have to agree that a family’s lifestyle and eating habits are also a major contributing factor. Families tend to eat the same foods and adopt the same lifestyle. Obviously, if meal time consists of fast foods, high fat snacks, or just a high fat diet, that family will all have the tendency to become overweight. A very active family with good proper balanced nutrition will continue with this lifestyle and beat the odds of becoming overweight. Technology advancements such as the Computers, TV, electronic games, and automobiles, have all contributed to the cause of a significant decrease in our physical activity.

Many people notice that as they grow older that it seems impossible to maintain their normal weight and in turn we call it the “middle age spread”. The reason for this is because as people age, the amount of body muscle begins to decrease. A decrease in muscle results in a decrease in your metabolism (the rate your body burns calories) and physical activity. If you decrease your physical activity, muscle mass and metabolism decreases. So if you are consuming the same amount of calories as you usually do, you will gain weight. In most cases, people tend to stick to their same old eating patterns, not decreasing their calories or adding any physical activity and thus our weight gain sneaks up on us.

To take control of our weight we must keep in mind the caloric intake as well as our physical activity. If we have little physical activity and very little muscle mass we are sure to be setting ourselves up for being overweight. Start today to become aware of your calories versus you physical activity and you can help control your weight.

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