Weight

Obesity and behavior

Being overweight does not have to be the result of a certain behavior but can be largely or even completely the result of a genetic predisposition, metabolic or hormonal factors. Overweight people can have a healthy lifestyle. The relationship between weight and health is certainly not clear-cut.

Obesity and inflammation

Adipose tissue is not passive tissue but plays an active role, especially in the field of the immune system. Being overweight is often associated with low-grade inflammation in the body. Losing weight can therefore be a sensible action to improve health and reduce pain complaints.

Food as comfort

When a baby cries, the parents' first reaction is often to hold the child and then feed it. This is regardless of the reason for crying. As babies we learn that an unpleasant feeling is answered with food. That may be one of the causes of emotional eating. Recognizing what may be the underlying cause of the desire to eat can be an important factor if you want to lose weight.

Practical tips and links:

The 4 pillars of effective weight loss:

(can do without a gym)

1. No addictive foods

Sweets lead to hunger and the desire for more sweets. Just stop and the desire will quickly diminish. This also applies to sweeteners and light products. All products that are designed in such a way that you want more and more of them, or again and again (candy, soft drinks, chips, alcohol, pizzas, cookies, etc.) are high in calories and nutritionally poor. 'If man makes it, don't eat it' says John Bergman. Vegetables fill the stomach and give a feeling of satiety while containing few calories and many useful nutrients. A natural diet does not have to be low in fat. Fats from avocados, olive oil, nuts, meat and dairy products are powerful sources of energy. These fats ensure that your food is digested more slowly so that you feel full for longer. Real butter and whole milk or yogurt are fine.

2. Walking

Buy a (good) pedometer/wearable. Build up to at least 10,000 steps every day (more is better). Walking activates fat burning hormones and these remain active for 12 hours. So if you walk in the morning and evening, these hormones remain active all day long. Walking is better than running. Running is harder and actually activates stress hormones (cortisol) that ensure that fat is retained. You can also keep running longer. Be sure to walk briskly ('power walking'). For more information[click here].

If you do a number of strength exercises for a short time just before you go for a walk, it will all be even more effective. The body stores sugars in the muscles for emergency situations. If you just go for a walk, these sugars are used up first and you only switch to fat burning after 20-30 minutes of walking. If you first do strength training, especially the large leg muscle groups, then those sugars are used up and you immediately switch to fat burning. If you have (accidentally) eaten heavier than intended, go for a walk after the meal so that you prevent a spike in your blood sugar and the carbohydrates eaten are burned immediately.

3. Intermittent fasting

Limit the period in which you eat to 8 hours, for example from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. [link]

4. Strength Training and High Intensity Training (H.I.T.)

Muscles are the big fat burners. The more muscle you have, the higher your metabolism, even when you sleep. Muscle strength training is super effective for losing weight. With 15 minutes 2 or 3 times a week you can go a long way. Pay particular attention to the large buttocks and leg muscles. We will soon record a video of this and post it here on the site.

High Intensity Training has other special advantages:

You burn all the sugars stored in your muscles in a very short time (1.5 minutes), so you quickly switch to fat burning.
Your body becomes more sensitive to insulin, so you produce less insulin when you ingest sugars. Insulin converts sugars into fat. Less insulin therefore means less fat storage.

Additional tips:

Make sure you are always sufficiently hydrated. A lack of water slows down metabolism. Also see:water
What can you do if you suddenly get a strong craving:
- Ask yourself if you are really hungry or if there is another reason why you are not feeling well.
- Drink water first. Thirst can 'disguise' itself as hunger.
- Do (short-term) strength training / H.I.T. this inhibits the feeling of hunger.
- Observe the feeling, is it really that annoying? Breathe calmly. See if you can accept it as just another sensation, it is often a wave that also subsides. Find some distraction.
- Brush your teeth and then the cravings will often disappear.
Put on mindful eating
Eat until you are 80% full.
Satiety is stronger with more proteins (in combination with water) than carbohydrates. Choose whole grain products, vegetables, fruit, legumes, nuts, meat, meat substitutes, dairy, dairy substitutes, fish, eggs, beans.
Drink 2 glasses of water half an hour before you eat (save 2.5 kg in 3 months).
Exchanging an hour of television for an hour of sleep yields 7 kg per year.
Goodsleep also ensures that you are more resistant to temptations.
Sitting does not stimulate your metabolism. Let yourself go several times a day

Increase your heart rate, for example, by cycling extra fast, doing 20 knee bends

to make something or to jump rope.

Work with the 4 zone system. Suppose you are 1.68 meters tall. then your optimal weight is 68 kg.

Then the green zone is up to 68 kg, the yellow zone from 68-71 kg, the orange zone from 71-74 kg.

If you are in the red zone, adhere to the above 4 actions very closely, if you are in the orange

zone you can agree with yourself that you can occasionally 'smuggle' something, in the yellow zone

can you do that more often, etc. If you reach a zone higher again, you can pull the strings again

tighten a little. Be kind to yourself, guilt makes you eat more. Look ahead to see how

you can avoid pitfalls in the future.