Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Healthy Eating Means Cutting the Fat

Your road to a healthier New Year travels right through your stomach. Achieving the proper caloric intake will help you lose weight and then assist you in keeping it off.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends a diet of about 2000 calories a day for the average American; their dietary guidelines are reviewed and updated every five years.
The latest dietary guidelines from the USDA contain tips for weight management. It says, "To maintain body weight in a healthy range, balance calories from foods and beverages with calories expended. To prevent gradual weight gain over time, make small decreases in calories and increase physical activity." It also recommends that you consume a "variety of nutrient-dense foods and beverages while limiting the intake of saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, added sugars, salt and alcohol."
The USDA report gives suggestions for the types of nutrient rich foods you should be eating: two cups of fruit and two and a half cups of vegetables each day. It advises that you limit total fat intake to between 20 and 35% of the total calories that you consume; when selecting meat always chose the leanest cut. Alcohol beverages should be limited to one drink per day for women and two for men.
A healthy diet needs to be balanced with increased physical activity to achieve the maximum benefits according to the USDA. The report recommends at least 30 minutes of moderately paced physical activity per day to maintain a proper weight and up to 60 minutes if you are trying to lose weight. The more hours that you spend exercising the more fat that you will burn.
To lose one pound per week you must either reduce your caloric intake by 3500 or you must burn that many calories exercising. The USDA recommends a balanced approach to shed the pounds; reducing your caloric intake by 250 calories each day and exercising for a half hour will give you the net daily gain necessary to reach that goal. If you stick to it for an entire year, you will end up losing over 50 pounds.

No comments:

Post a Comment