One Pound Away from Healthy
Obesity is a difficult concept to
actually grasp and comprehend, even for the most intelligent scientists. It is
a measure of an individual’s "body mass index (BMI) of 30 or above" to determine whether one
is at a healthy weight for their height (Obesity, sec. 2). This method is a
helpful tool in determining whether someone needs to lose a few pounds or even a
great deal of weight. If an individual is considered overweight or obese, a
doctor would most likely suggest dieting and exercising in order to start the
overall process. This is an approach that many people believe and many studies
have shown to help people lose weight effectively. However, many people do not
like these techniques. In fact, Americans think that this technique is too slow
of a process and does not help them to lose the weight they need in the time
allotted for them. People are more interested in the fad diets and quick weight-loss
solutions in order to get fit quickly. Are these diets and workouts truly
sufficient in helping with the long term process? It is possible that Americans
are uneducated about living a truly healthy lifestyle that instead of
researching, they turn to the popular trends that seem to work only on
celebrities. Obesity is dangerous and can kill people. It has become known as
one of the top epidemics that kills people because there are so many other
factors that come along with obesity, such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart
disease (Obesity In America 5). Unfortunately, "the prevalence of obesity in the U.S. has increased by over 50%, so that two of every three American adults are now overweight or obese" (Obesity In
America 5). Because society has given a false perspective on being healthy,
obesity is on the rise due to the fact that most exercise programs are designed
for people who are already fit and in shape, diets are created to help people
lose weight too quickly, and most people are actually uneducated about living a
truly healthy lifestyle.
“Do your best and forget the rest”
is a famous saying that the well-known athletic trainer Tony Horton constantly
blurts out in his popular exercise program called P90X. This weight-loss
program is designed for individuals who want to lose weight and achieve a
muscular beach body in as little as ninety days. The workouts consist of a
series of thirteen DVDs and a workout schedule that the buyers are supposed to
follow in order to achieve optimal results. These DVDs include workouts like
Plyometrics, Ab Ripper X, Core Cardio, Kempo X, yoga, and other workouts that
consist of heavy weight training and body weight training. The program also
comes with a nutrition plan to help guide the users by eating a healthy,
protein-rich diet with minimal carbohydrates and junk food. This program seems
as if it were the answer to an overweight or obese person’s problems. However,
rigorous programs like P90X require a strong amount of motivation and time.
First, each DVD is about an hour long and most people would admit that they do
not have that kind of time to spend. Second and most importantly, P90X is
designed for individuals who are already somewhat fit and in shape. This workout
is not created for those who are beginning to work out for the first time, but
for those who have been working out for a long period of time and are ready to
move on to something that will push them a little bit harder. P90X is a great
work out program for those who have a lot of time on their hands, but for most
people, this is not the case. Those who are extremely overweight or obese should
start out with easier activities such as doing the elliptical, biking, or
walking. It is very easy to lose motivation when starting a program that is
designed for those who are already fit. Starting out with easier exercises
prevents beginners from getting injured and will keep them motivated to move
forward. Working out too much can become a problem as well. The body needs
exercise to stay healthy, but it also needs rest to recover. Over-exercising
can cause the body to become weak and susceptible to broken bones or torn
ligaments. Weight training and cardio are the best workouts to lose weight and
become healthy (Obesity In America 7).
The Atkins Diet, NutriSystem, Weight
Watchers, Jenny Craig, Sensa, the South Beach Diet, the Mediterranean Diet, and
plant based diets are only a few of the most popular diets on the market in the
United States today. Many of these so-called “diets” are shown on television or
even plastered on billboards advertising their miraculous weight loss
solutions. Today, "American spend about $30 billion a year on weight-loss programs and products" (Rubin, par. 1). But do these popular
diets actually work for everyone? Is there one specific diet that actually
works for every individual? In reality, these eating programs are not healthy. Most
of the diets that are created cut out certain food groups that are crucial for
a well-balanced diet or they restrict an extreme amount of calories so that a
person is only eating under 1,200 calories a day. American society encourages
these “health” trends because they want people to keep trying new products so
they can keep making money. However, diets do not work. A healthy life style
does though. A healthy diet should consist of moderate amounts from each food
group, which includes starches, fruits, vegetables, dairy, lean meats, and
limited amounts of fat. The reason that Americans are gaining weight in today’s
culture is due to the fact that they eat a high amount of potato chips, red
meat, sugary beverages, and other higher fat foods rather than vegetables,
fruits, whole grains, nuts, and low-fat dairy (Obesity In America 7). Portion
is a key factor when trying to live a healthy lifestyle. A person can still eat
junk food, but eat in moderation. Instead of a heaping pile of pasta, try measuring
out a one cup serving. Portion sizes in America today are oversized, which
explains the surprising amount of weight that Americans have put on over the
years (Obesity In America 6). Though most people find this tedious, calorie
counting and slow weight loss are the best ways to beginning to live a healthy
lifestyle. Most diet plans are centered on losing a large amount of weight in a
short amount of time, which is very unhealthy. A weight loss of one to two
pounds per week is the ideal amount of weight to lose because it will most
likely be fat loss rather than water weight. Though it takes time, it is the
best and healthiest way to lose the weight and keep it off in the future.
Americans constantly crave the
newest trends, which include fashion, dating, diets, exercise, and much more.
Most of the time, these trends hit a high point in their popularity, but then
eventually get pushed aside by other popular trends that rise above it. Dieting
and workout regimens seem to be the crowd-pleasing categories in American
trends today. However, do Americans really understand how well these diets and
workout plans actually work? Do they know if they even work at all? Some of the
most popular weight loss trends in America include juice cleanses, hot yoga,
acupuncture, the alkaline diet, slimming body wraps, meditation, and hypnosis
(Rubin, par. 2). One of the reason why so many people are obese is due to the
fact that they do not fully educated about a truly healthy lifestyle. There are
too many fad diets and crazy exercise plans that people start to overlook the
whole healthy aspect of living. Most people probably do not know that there are
3500 calories in one pound or that muscle weighs more than fat. It is all about
the basics. Once Americans know the basics of healthy living, it is their
decision to make a change.
Obesity is a very serious issue here
today in the United States (Obesity, sec. 3). This disease can kill people if
not treated properly because it can cause so much damage to the body. There are
many health risks associated with obesity that can cause potential problems for
an individual (Obesity, sec. 1). The American society places a huge emphasis on
dieting and exercising today because obesity has become such a big problem.
However, they are trying to take shortcuts on losing weight the healthy way.
Since society has such a large impact on the nation as a whole, they should
encourage people to live a healthy lifestyle. If they could tell people how to
lose weight the right way, there is a chance that people would finally accept and
realize that weight loss is a challenge, but is very rewarding in the end.
Works
Cited
"Obesity In America: What's Driving The
Epidemic?." Harvard
Men's Health Watch 16.7 (2012): 5-7. Health Source-
Consumer Edition. Web. 13 Nov. 2013.
“Obesity.” Opposing
Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit:
Gale, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 24
Oct. 2013.
Rubin, Courtney. "Do
Trendy Diets Work?." Health (Time
Inc.) 27.4 (2013): 41. Academic Search Complete.
Web. 13 Nov. 2013.
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