Far and away, the most common cause for obesity is unhealthy eating habits combined with an overall lack of any type of physical activity. If the food that you consume results in intaking more calories than you burn, you body opens up the ol' store room and puts it away as fat.
Very basic, simplified concept... but that's the bottom line.Bad eating habits are by far the number one reason why people head down the path to
obesity. With today's emphasis on time and convenience when it comes to eating and planning one's meals it is no wonder at all that obesity is propagating throughout the entire world. And that's just the diet side of the equation throw in the fact that with all of today's other conveniences, people get less and less activity in their daily routine and you've got a world wide health issue developing.
When it comes to genetics; you can be more naturally susceptible to obesity and being overweight if it runs in the family. But having said this, it is still up to you to control your eating habits and your lifestyle in order to effectively keep obesity at bay.
As I mentioned just a bit early, personal time and convenience combined together more often than not add up to junk food. If you find that you are eating out more than you should, you should start looking at what you are about to eat. For instance, fast food and restaurant food's portioning are usually way more than your body needs not to mention the type of food. A single burger in and of itself is a complete meal as far as your body is concerned because of the fat and calories involved. The problem is your stomach will not 'feel' full after consuming but one singe burger so it cries out for more regardless of the fact that your body is at it's maximum. If you want more volume eat healthier foods to begin with.
Changing your eating habits is a much better mind set to get into than 'dieting'. The problem with the 'dieting' mentality is that most people will tend to lose a few pounds on their latest 'diet' but return to their old destructive eating habits once they get bored or constantly inconvenienced with the diet. Then to add another layer of difficulty, once you go from diet to diet restricting your body from nutrients; your body will go into a defensive mode storing everything that it possibly can and make it even more difficult for you to lose weight.
Any successful 'diet' is actually a successful 'lifestyle' change which by the way includes exercise. Forbidding yourself from certain foods that you enjoy immensely just makes them all the more attractive to you.
So, think lifestyle and not so much diet. Work to eat healthier, and keep those 'forbidden' foods moderated and proportioned and get some regular exercise. Not only does exercise withdraw those calories from your body's storage bank; but you'll feel better, reduce your boredom, your stress level, and those cravings.
By Jeff Foster
