When you go on a diet, the objective is to reach a healthier weight and reduce the risk of obesity-related conditions. But, how do you know what is a healthy weight? That is where the BMI chart comes in.

BMI stands for “Body Mass Index.” It is a tool that is used to determine how much you need to weigh in relation to your height. It is a better way to determine where you stand on the obesity scale than just weight alone.

The BMI is a guideline that gives doctors a place to start when approaching their patients about weight. It has been determined that being overweight increases your risk of certain diseases such as heart attack, stroke and diabetes. A poor diet can raise bad (LDL) cholesterol which in turn can increase plaque development in the arteries and lead to other life-threatening conditions.

To find out where you stand on the chart here is how the Body Mass Index is calculated. First, determine your weight in pounds. Next divide that by your height in inches squared. Remember to square the height before dividing. After that, multiply the answer by 703. This will determine your BMI number.

Here is where you fall on the chart with your resulting number:
* A BMI below 18.5 is considered to be underweight
* A BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered to be the normal range
* A BMI between 25.0 and 29.9 is considered to be overweight
* Any BMI over 30.0 is considered obese.

Any doctor who notices that they have a patient in the overweight to obese range would be remiss if they didn’t discuss it with them. Losing even ten percent of your body weight can greatly reduce the risk of developing high blood pressure and heart disease. Losing more can cut out your greatest risk factor altogether.

Body Mass Index is also determined for children. Their BMI chart is a little different but does the same thing. The parent of a child who is overweight can consult their pediatrician for ways to reverse the condition and improve their health.

For children, the best way to determine their BMI is by letting the doctor determine it. You can use BMI calculators online to get a preliminary number to work with.

The BMI is only a tool. It doesn’t mean that you will develop heart disease. There are other risk factors that go into the disease process, but weight is one of the factors that can be changed by you. Losing weight eliminates obesity from the equation in your life. With that gone, the odds are better that you will not develop health issues at a young age or in the future.

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When it comes to weight loss, everyone has an opinion on how the latest diet will help you. To their surprise, these diets don’t work for all people. For lasting weight loss it’s time to go back to the drawing board and learn the basics.

Let’s start with how many calories you need to eat on a daily basis. For women, a healthy daily caloric intake is 1,800 calories. For men, the number is slightly higher at 2,200 calories. For either group, ingesting less than 1,000 calories per day is considered dangerous. The body needs at least that many calories for daily maintenance activities.

Most of us ingest more calories than that in a day. The deciding factor in any diet is the number of calories being eaten on a daily basis. The facts are still the facts. To burn one pound of fat, 3,500 calories need to be lost. Dieticians say that a healthy weight-loss program will have you losing no more than two pounds a week. That doesn’t seem like much, but it will add up to 104 pounds in a year.

Losing weight is about the numbers. Fewer calories in means more weight lost. To lose that weight, a lower calorie diet is combined with some form of physical activity to move fat from your body’s stores to be used as fuel for your activities.

If you are active in sports, go to the gym or walk on a daily basis. However, all of this is for naught without a proper eating plan. For that you don’t have to go to the bookstore or turn on the television to learn about the latest fads. Simply school yourself on the basics of nutrition and then formulate your own plan.

One thing that you need to know about fad diets: They are not healthy and won’t lead to permanent weight loss. The infomercials say that they take all of the guesswork out of dieting but they are taking away your right to know the science behind it. The only way to definitely know that is to learn it for yourself first.

If you don’t learn anything else, know that all foods are not equal. There are always alternatives to unhealthy foods that you can create. For instance, white bread is made from processed white flour which is not the healthiest for you. Whole grains (foods contain the endosperm, germ and bran) are not processed and contain a lot of fiber which regulates the digestive system. Eating that bread increased fiber intake and fills you up without raising your blood sugar.

Eating fruits and vegetables in their natural state provides more nutrients and fewer calories. Eat an apple instead of a glass of apple juice. Juice has 100 calories as opposed to 40 calories for an apple. The apple contains fiber which will hold off hunger longer.

Get yourself a good nutrition guide and read it cover to cover. Armed with how food works in the body and which foods give you more bang for the calorie, you can design a weight-loss meal plan within your calorie limits but filled with great tasting foods and no hunger pains.

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Despite the well-known fact that exercising is essential to good health, many people just don’t do it. These days, it’s often because we just don’t have time. We’re more informed about the benefits of a good workout routine than ever before, but who can work a full cardio and strength training regimen in, even if it is just a few times a week?

For those who want to improve overall fitness but feel that there aren’t enough hours in the day, circuit training may be the answer. As the name suggests, circuit training involves doing a series of exercises in rapid succession. Over a period of 30 minutes to an hour, one can use circuit training to work all of the major muscle groups and get a good aerobic workout.

A typical circuit training session consists of alternating toning and cardio exercises. Each weight exercise targets a different muscle group. Individual exercises usually last between 30 seconds and 2 minutes. These factors keep the exerciser from tiring out too quickly, making it possible to exercise continuously.

Circuit training is highly structured, yet it can take on a number of forms. Some gyms, such as Curves for Women, offer a circuit training program in which members use one machine for a specified amount of time, then switch to another machine. There are also personal training programs that take a circuit training approach, coaching clients through a rapid series of exercises. Some people also create their own circuit training routines.

Circuit training is most often intended to promote weight loss and build lean muscle tone and endurance. But it can be adapted for use in muscle building. This can be accomplished by using various types of weights and increasing the length of time at each station. Circuit training may also be used in training for just about any sport by incorporating the right exercises.

Creating a Circuit Training Workout

You don’t need an expert to create a circuit training routine for you. It’s not terribly difficult to create one yourself. Here are some guidelines:

* Determine what your goals are. If you’re interested in overall fitness, you’ll need to choose exercises that work each muscle group. If you want to work on specific areas, you can incorporate exercises that benefit those areas.

* Alternate types of exercises. Do an aerobic exercise, then a toning exercise, then another aerobic exercise, and so on. If you’re only targeting a couple of different muscle groups, alternate between them to prevent fatigue.

* Try to create some variety. Do some exercises that do not require equipment, and some that do if possible. This will keep things interesting.

* Don’t forget the warm-up and cool-down. These are important because they help prevent injury and assist your body in adjusting from normal activity to working out and back again.

Circuit training is a great way to get a solid workout in a short amount of time without overexerting yourself. Whether participate in a gym, with a trainer or on your own, you can produce results quickly.

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