What to watch out for

What to watch out for in a weight reducing dietWeight loss is individual. A diet that works for some people does not work for others. The solution is to find the approach that best suits you . For some people this may be joining a group or a club such as Weight Watchers or Scottish Slimmers. Some people prefer one-to-one contact, while many people succeed on their own with the help of books and magazines. Which ever approach you prefer, the key to long-term success is a slow steady weight loss. This is why, from experience, the most successful diets are usually the ones making small permanent changes to your normal eating habits . Beware of 'gimmick' diets which may help in the short term to promote weight loss but after a few weeks become dull and repetitive causing old habits to return. It is usually necessary to deal with the problems that caused the weight gain to keep weight off in the long term. Thus, unfortunately for those who are looking for a miracle cure or a magic bullet, the best approach to weight loss is sensible, regular healthy eating with a calorie intake which is less than your requirements (500 calories a day less than requirements leads to a 1 lb weight loss a week).What if the weight reducing diet is not followed ?Being overweight puts you more at risk of developing heart disease or diabetes. This is especially true if you tend to carry weight around the waist (truncal obesity) rather than around the hips. Men should aim to maintain a waistline less than 94 cm (37 inches): more than 102 cm (40 inches) is definitely bad news. In women the ideal waistline is less than 80 cm (32 inches): more than 88 cm (35 inches) really means that you must lose! Make day-to-day activities less of an effort, stop feeling guilty, lose weight and have fun!