Being healthy. And a rant.

 What do people first think when I talk about "losing weight"? Eating less, yes? Going on a "diet"? What if I told you that eating more (healthy foods) can help you lose weight?

The healthy range of calorie deficiency is about 500 calories per day. That means, if your maintenance level is 2200 calories, you can afford to eat as little as 1700 calories. And get this-- you lose ONLY 1 pound (0.46kg) of body fat per 3500 calories lost. Less than that and your body might go into shock and you'll go into energy conservation mode. Eg. Fatigued, irritable, etc.

But do you know what's so bad about having a calorie restricted diet? Nutrition. It's almost impossible to get our daily nutrient requirements with 1700 calories of food. Unless you eat only boiled vegetables and meat in exorbitant amounts. And even then it's still difficult. Besides, it's not so practical, and not to mention difficult to make the limited food intake a part of your life.

What did I mean when I said that eating more can actually help you lose weight? Of course, that must be paired with exercise. If you raise your metabolism by exercise (either through interval training, with weights or without weights, as long as you move and get your heart rate elevated), you can easily raise your maintenance level to about 2500-2700 calories, and possibly even more. Michael Phelps was said to have a calorie requirement of 10000 calories a day. (citation needed)

Back to the point, with exercise and some strength training, you can easily meet your daily nutrient requirements due to the higher calorie output by eating as much or even more! And still lose fat! All you have to do, really, is set aside about half an hour, three to four times a week, to exercise. Running, skipping rope, pushups, squats, jumping, anything! It's really that easy.

*** Rant starts here***

Of course, this article is directed at people who are new to fitness and didn't pay attention during PJK class. It's just that I feel that every 'body' deserves to be treated well and it irks me a little when I see people mistreating themselves by going on crash diets, liquid diets or whatever crazy thing they decided on doing without doing some research or talking with their doctors, failing, and then stuffing themselves crazy with junk food when they finally reach breaking point, feeling guilty about it and repeating the cycle over and over again until the point where they feel that there's no point in being healthy anymore and give up altogether, packing on the pounds of blubber around their bellies, arms, and thighs (most obvious places). It's so sad that I actually know a few people like that and they don't seem to see what harm they're doing to themselves. And the saddest part is that I can't do anything to help them help themselves, because they don't want to anymore. It's even a little painful.

I wrote this in hopes that people will understand that you don't have to spend hours in the gym to be fit and slim and toned or whatever, and to encourage everyone (thin and fat alike) to try and live healthier. I guess it's ultimately a matter of weighing the pros and cons of what you're doing and BY YOURSELF deciding that you WANT TO FINALLY BE HEALTHY. Be healthy, and STAY HEALTHY.

-Terence

After some reflection on my life, I realize that I've become one of those people who can seem to scarf down lots of food and don't seem to put on weight. I was pretty fat last time (about 65kg when I was schooling). I'm now about 56kg and 170cm. Losing weight was never really a concern for me. I am an advocate of living a healthy life. I don't really care how much I weigh or even how much I eat. I do, however, care about WHAT I eat and the things I do to stay healthy.
When you've read and understood just how bad some foods are for you, you just don't have the appetite to eat them anymore. And suddenly you realize it's not that hard to skip the fast food, or soft drinks, cakes... stuff like that. It's really not that hard.