March 4 is World Obesity Day. On this day, extra attention is paid worldwide to raise awareness of this chronic disease and the measures needed to address and prevent it. It calls for a healthy living environment in which obesity as a health problem is paramount.
It is a good day to think about your health and weight yourself. Are you comfortable in your own skin and do you feel healthy? Or is it time for a change?
Figures from the Lifestyle Monitor show that approximately 50% of Dutch people aged 20 years and older are overweight. A third of these are even obese, which is quite a lot.
There are many factors that influence your weight. For one person maintaining a healthy weight turns out to be much more difficult than for another, this has to do with genetic predisposition as well as with the regulation systems in the brain. In addition, your environment and (unconscious) lifestyle also influence the maintenance of a healthy weight.
When is your weight so high that it affects your physical and mental health? And when is it really necessary to lose weight? How do we actually do that, maintain a healthy weight, when so many factors come into play? NewFysic, authority in the field of weight loss, is happy to help you in the battle against obesity.
Do I have a healthy weight?
Let's start by looking at how healthy your own weight actually is. That way you have a nice starting point from which to read the information in this blog. You can determine if you have a healthy weight in two ways: by calculating your Body Mass Index (BMI) and by measuring your waist circumference.
Your BMI shows whether your weight, relative to your height, is healthy. You calculate this by dividing your weight (in pounds) by the square of your height (in meters). A healthy BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9. You can also check out our handy BMI calculator gebruiken om je eigen BMI te berekenen. (Bij NewFysic werken we met een gecorrigeerd BMI, wat dat is? Dat bespreken we in de volgende blog.)
De tweede optie om te kijken of jouw gewicht gezond is, is door je taille-omvang op te meten. Lichaamsvet is niet overal op je lichaam gelijk verdeeld. Het kan vooral rondom je middel, heupen of bovenbenen zitten, wat invloed kan hebben op jouw gezondheid. Te veel vet rondom je taille is heel ongezond. Het meten van de taille-omvang geeft je daarom een goed inzicht in de gezondheidsrisico’s van eventueel overgewicht of obesitas. Met de taille-omvang wordt gekeken naar het visceraal vet. Visceraal vet zit diep in de kern van de buik en omringt en beschermt de vitale organen. Zelfs als je gewicht en lichaamsvet constant blijven, verandert de vetverdeling van jouw lichaam naarmate je ouder wordt en zal eerder naar het buikgebied verschuiven. Wanneer je een correct, gezond visceraal vetniveau hebt, neemt de kans op bepaalde aandoeningen af, zoals hartziekten en hoge bloeddruk, en kan het ontstaan van diabetes type 2 worden vertraagd.
Jouw taille-omvang meten, dat doe je als volgt:
- Leg een meetlint om je taille, halverwege tussen je onderste rib en de bovenkant van je bekken.
- Trek het meetlint aan, maar niet zo strak dat de huid wordt samengetrokken.
- Meet de omtrek nadat je hebt uitgeademd.
Voor vrouwen geldt: meet je een omtrek van minder dan 80 cm? Dan zit je goed! Meet je een omtrek van 88 cm of meer? Dan val je helaas in de ongezonde categorie, oftewel de gevarenzone. Voor mannen geldt: meet je een omtrek van 94? Dan zit je goed! Meet je een omtrek van 102 cm of meer? Dan val je helaas in de ongezonde categorie.
Wil je hulp bij het berekenen of jouw gewicht gezond is? Je kunt je BMI en je viscerale vetpercentage eenvoudig laten opmeten door één van onze coaches bij jouw dichtstbijzijnde vestiging. Click here for a consultation.
Help, the danger zone
Have you measured your BMI and waist circumference and both are in the healthy range? Congratulations! Then we hope you are living a healthy lifestyle and continue to do so.
Are you in the danger zone with your BMI and/or your waist circumference? Then it's good that you know about it now and then it's time to take action. It is important to get out of that danger zone as soon as possible, because losing weight once you are obese proves to be very difficult, according to research. And the consequences for your health are huge. For example, obesity leads to a loss of life expectancy of about 6 years. Obesity from a young age will reduce life expectancy even more.
Below we list the most common health risks of obesity for you, followed by tips and tricks to get out of that danger zone!
What do overweight and obesity mean for your health?
At risk, in addition to a shortened life expectancy, there are many risks to your health. You are much more likely to suffer from the following conditions if you are overweight:
- heart attack
- brain hemorrhage
- clogged blood vessels (thrombosis)
- type 2 diabetes
- certain types of cancer
- hypertension
- bad cholesterol levels, fatty liver, gallstones
- joint disorders
- varicose veins
Severe overweight (obesity) can additionally lead to:
- breathing problems
- sleep apnea (laboured breathing during sleep)
- gout
- spinal abnormalities
- infertility
- menstrual disorders
- birth defects
- psychological and social problems
- poorer functioning of the body
How do I keep my weight healthy?
So much for all the (creepy) information, time for practical tools! What can you do yourself to achieve and/or maintain a healthy weight?
Nutrition
- Make sure you eat enough throughout the day and make sure you don't skip meals. Especially when you create an energy deficit for your body earlier in the day, you tend to make up the deficit later in the day with perhaps unhealthy choices.
- Try to eat as many unprocessed foods as possible. When you eat processed foods, your body is encouraged to keep eating more. When you eat unprocessed foods, satiety occurs more easily and you will stop eating faster.
- Vegetables are very important for a healthy weight because they are low in calories and just high in good dietary fiber. Also, eating lots of vegetables is the best way to get enough nutrients. Try to get at least 200 grams of vegetables (4-5 scoops) daily for a healthy weight.
- Choose whole grain products. These contain a lot of fiber, these are good for bowel movements and they make you feel full (satiated). Furthermore, whole grain cereals are a healthy way to get carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.
- Nutrition with sufficient protein is important for a healthy weight. Protein stimulates fat burning while preserving calorie-burning muscle. Also, eating protein makes you feel full. Proteins are found, for example, in meat, chicken, fish, dairy products (such as cottage cheese and Skyr), eggs and soy beans.
- Drinking enough water is very important, even if you want to lose weight. This is because it makes you less likely to get hungry and it stimulates your fat burning.
- Try to eat two portions of fatty fish (or 100 g) per week. Not a fan of fatty fish? Then contact Omega 3&E supplement!
- Beperk alcohol inname zoveel mogelijk
- Tot slot: Eet langzaam en met aandacht. Maak tijd voor je maaltijden en zorg ervoor dat je niet afgeleid wordt door schermen.
Lifestyle
- Probeer minimaal 45 minuten per dag matig intensief te bewegen.
- Plan voldoende rustmomenten in. Probeer iedere dag minimaal 15 minuten te blokken om even te wandelen, lezen, mediteren, etc.
- Zorg voor voldoende nachtrust, min. 7-8 uur
- Stop met roken.
Start vandaag!
Heb je op dit moment overgewicht? Het is tijd om actie te ondernemen en de eerste stap te zetten naar een gezonder leven! Probeer vier weken lang 5 van de bovenstaande tips dagelijks toe te passen en merk zelf het verschil. Wil je ondersteuning bij het bereiken van jouw gezonde gewicht? NewFysic staat klaar om je te helpen! Neem us for a personal intake interview with one of our experienced coaches. Your healthy future starts now!
Curious about the best recipes, tips and tricks for a healthy lifestyle? Take a look at our recipes page.
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