Managing Your Weight

Get rid of bad habits

Avoid eating foods that are high in fat, especially saturated fat. These foods add even more calories to your overall diet. Furthermore, most foods high in saturated fat can raise the level of cholesterol in your blood--which can lead to risk for heart disease.

Develop an eating plan for life

Most women can lose an average of one to two pounds a week by consuming 1200 to 1500 calories a day; most men can lose this amount by consuming 1500 to 1800 calories a day. One to two pounds a week is the ideal rate of weight loss.

Three different nutritionally complete diets are listed below. Your doctor, a registered dietitian or licensed nutritionist can tell you which of the three calorie levels is best for you.

	Total Daily Calories
	1200 Calories	1600 Calories	1800 Calories
Food	Amount	Amount	Amount
Lean meat,poultry or fish	6 oz. cooked	6 oz. cooked	6 oz. cooked
Eggs	3 a week	3 a week	3 a week
Vegetables	4 servings	4 servings	4 or more servings
Fruits	3 servings	3 servings	3 servings
Breads,cereals or starchy vegetables	3 servings	4 servings	6 servings
Skim milk	2 cups	3 cups	3 cups
Margarine or oil	3 tsp.	4 tsp.	5 tsp.
Optional foods		2	2

The daily food plans listed above include the essentials of a nutritious, well-balanced diet containing a variety of foods. To find the food pattern suited to you, calculate your caloric level using the following formula:

To maintain your body weight, multiply the number of pounds you weigh now by 15 calories. This number represents the average number of calories used up in one day by a moderately active person of your weight. If you're sedentary or get very little exercise, multiply your weight by 13 instead of 15. Less-active people burn fewer calories.

To lose one pound, you need to burn 3500 calories more than you take in. In other words, you need to run a calorie deficit. To do this, reduce your caloric intake by 500 calories per day. (Seven days times 500 calories equals 3500 calories--one pound.)

To maintain your ideal weight, weigh yourself once a week. When you're three to five pounds more than what you should be, start eating less or exercising more (or both) until your weight is back down where you want it.

If you lose too much weight, increase your caloric intake primarily by eating foods lower in fat such as grains, vegetables, fruits and dairy products with skim milk. Try to stay within five pounds of your best weight.

To get all the nutrients your body needs, carefully follow the food plan you selected.

Other helpful hints include:

* Plan the kinds of food you'll eat and the number of meals and snacks you'll have.

* Don't skip whole categories of food.

* Vary your diet by eating different foods within each group. (Eating a variety of foods is essential to get all the nutrients you need.)

* Try to enjoy your food with less salt. Salt is about half sodium, and eating too much sodium causes an elevation in blood pressure in some people. The American Heart Association recommends that a person's daily sodium intake should be no more than 3000 mg. To maintain this level, season foods with herbs and spices instead of salt, read food labels to help track your sodium intake and limit your consumption of salty foods.

Engage in physical activity as a way of life

To manage your weight, you must use up more calories (energy) than you consume. You can do this in three different ways:

* Eat less (take in fewer calories).

* Increase the calories you burn up (for instance, by increasing the amount you exercise).

* Eat less and exercise more.

Check with your doctor first if you are middle-aged or older, have a medical condition, have not been physically active, and plan a relatively vigorous exercise program. Your doctor will help you find a program suited to your needs and physical condition. It's good to take an exercise tolerance test to determine your present capabilities and identify potential hazards. Besides weight control, exercise may help relieve tension and help control cigarette smoking, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol and diabetes.