Gained Weight – Why American’s are Battling the Bulge
If you have recently gained weight and want to lose it, you will need to change your lifestyle. Americans eating the Standard American Diet are more prone to putting on pounds because of a high calorie intake and lack of exercise. That’s not the entire picture though. American’s are getting heavier for a many other reasons Just one look at the numbers, and you'll be quite impressed, really!
In 1960, 20% of American adults were overweight. By 1980, 40% were overweight. By 2007, 66% of all adult Americans were overweight, with 30% of them being categorized as Obese. The upward trend in gained weight is apparent, but why?
 Many medical experts debate the reasoning behind the progression but it seems to be an intersection of increased calories in foods, the addition of preservatives and additives injected into foods, and the lack of exercise to burn off the calories of the foods eaten. Why You've Gained WeightIt doesn't take a neurosurgeon to figure out the most basic reasons that people have gained weight. When you eat fatty foods, you get fat. Period! Preservatives in pre-cooked, ready-to-serve foods are full of toxic substances your body doesn't like. When toxins enter your body, they are surrounded by fat cells, and then deposited deep in the visceral fat that surrounds your organs. Belly fat is also the hardest fat to lose, once it's present. Fat=fat=fat! Entitlement is a large part of why people have gained weight too. Many people think they should be rewarded at the end of the day. They reason that because they work hard, they are entitled to eat more! Instead of eating one piece of chocolate cake, they eat three or four pieces. Getting pizza for dinner? Many Americans sit down and eat an entire pizza by themselves. People who aren't working, tend to sit at home and eat all day to make up for their lack of success in other areas. They end up eating more to compensate for inferior and inadequate feelings. It’s had a spiraling effect that showing up in waistlines from sea to shining sea! Stress is another part of gained weight. Right now, people are stressed! The more stress you feel, the more your body holds onto fat. The more fat your body holds onto, the more you pack on pounds. Emotional eating is responsible for tipping the scale to heavier people in general. That's why it's important to consider the importance of exercise in burning off calories. One pound of body weight is equivalent to 3500 calories. Walking briskly for 30 minutes might burn 150-200 calories. To burn off 3200 calories, (@ 200 calories per 30 minutes), and you’d have to walk 8 hours. In this day and age, how many people do you think walk for 8 hours a day? You simply cannot lose gained weight if you continue to eat fattening foods and don’t burn off calories!
Even recreational activities and chores have gotten much easier to do! Push lawn mowers have been replaced by ride on models, leaf blowers replaced good old-fashioned rakes, motorized boats replaced row boats, and 4 wheelers and golf carts have replaced walking. As a society, we have worked very hard to take exercise out of our daily lives and many of us are now paying the price! Statistics also show that if adults at home are overweight, then children are also more prone to be overweight. Children learn best by example. When Lars was a young child, I found a small quote in a magazine and clipped it out. It was fairly simple but held great meaning. It simply stated that 'your children are watching you'. I posted in on my frig and never forgot it. When adults are not physically active, children at home are far less likely to not be active either. Studies have confirmed that both good and bad eating habits are developed by examples set in the home. It is a combination of what adults allow their children to eat and what they serve their children which is contributing to our overweight crisis. Another reason people have gained weight is because of the excess of fattening foods and sugars in our diets. Super sized larger portions are expected, processed foods are consumed regularly, and less fruits and vegetables make it to the table. Add sweetened beverages which American’s consume at alarming rates, and you’ve got a sure fire recipe for excess fat! A single 12 ounce serving of soda for example, contains up to 150 calories and contributes no nutrients. Of course, most people don’t stop at 12 ounces of soda or sweetened tea. Many times twice or even three times that much are consumed regularly. Those extra calories quickly add up. If you replaced two 12 ounce soda’s a day, with water or other unsweetened beverages, by the end of the year you will have lost 20 pounds, just from liquids. Weight loss occurs only when you give up calories and/or burn them off regularly. There are expensive and detrimental side effects when you've gained weight. An Obese person is 40 times more likely to become diabetic. Diabetes can lead to kidney failure, blindness, and limb amputation. It also contributes to heart disease, certain types of Cancers, and osteoarthritis. Obesity patients cost health care insurers thousands of dollars more to care for than non-obese patients, and drive the costs of health care for everyone. GM, for example, has to pay $1500 per vehicle it makes, in health care coverage for it’s employees, which is more than the cost of the metal in one vehicle. This kills the competitiveness for car sales worldwide. America spends over $2 trillion on health care alone per year, which is close to the GDP in China! With Obesity and diabetes rates rising upward, health care costs can only further escalate. Part of the solution has to do with lifestyle choices. Choosing to eat less fattening foods more of the time, and more fattening foods less of the time is a start. In some instances, surgery may be required to achieve weight loss goals, especially for the morbidly Obese. Prevention is key for future generations. To be a normal weight and be healthy, Americans need to get back to basics and start moving more and eating less. Accessing more outdoors type activities in our communities is also a good avenue. Walking in parks, playing tennis and basketball, or simply riding a bike can all contribute to weight loss. When Obesity knocks at your door, will you open it or slam the door closed for good? A healthy lifestyle full of healthy choices is always the best way to lose gained weight. You will find that long term healthy goals will help you shed pounds and live as the healthy person you were meant to be!
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