Five reasons why you’re still overweight

You have that friend who sweats it out endlessly, trying one diet fad after another in an attempt to shed off unwanted fat. Yet, results are less than stellar.

There are countless factors that account for a failure in reaching one’s fitness goals.

Based on my own experience, with persons I have mentored here, are some of the top reasons why that gut refuses to fade into the sunset.

l.Exercising without a proper diet plan. Sure, getting started on that exercise program is always a good start. But this must go hand in hand with a diet plan that will support your workout. Some people I know got started on a program but failed to complement this with proper diet and ended up sniffing in more calories than they actually burned. Sadly, this may result in weight gain. Proper nutrition along with exercise is key to kicking flab out the door.

2.Junk in the trunk. Those crispy, savory treats and ready-to-eat morsels of sweetness are easy grab and go options when hunger pangs come knocking in between meals. While a taste every now and then won’t hurt quite as much, the danger of making a habit out of snacking on junk food is a clear and present one. They’re accessible, cheap and most of them taste damn good. But junk foods are called such for a reason. Most, even those being marketed as healthier than their next-door neighbors at the convenience store, contain empty calories. Meaning they do not provide much nutritional benefits to your body but instead bombard your system with high amounts of undesirables such as transfats, sodium, sugar, preservatives and what have you.

3. Liquid calories. These silent diet poopers go down the kisser quite easy and are usually guilty of the added weight gain. Iced teas, sodas, powdered and ready to go juice drinks are usually very high in sugar, thus promoting unneeded insulin spikes that lead to fat storage and weight gain. Water is best when thirsty. Ditch the bottomless ice tea unless it’s sugar free. And trust me, it isn’t. Likewise, the plethora of hydration drinks should only be taken during or after exercise when our sweat glands are on overdrive—not when you’re sitting at your desk or watching television. Unless of course you have a case of LBM and need the added hydration. Otherwise, skip it.

4. Starvation diets. Eating a leaf for breakfast, a twig for lunch and half a grape for dinner will not do the trick. Sure, starvation diets may make you lose some weight at first but this is the wrong way to do it and you will be sure to gain it back in the wink of an eye. This is because such diets slow down the body’s metabolism so when you start eating normally—which you soon will—it will take fewer calories for you to gain the weight back. Cutting calories is essential to losing unwanted fat but we must make sure our bodies receive the right amount of nutrients to perform our daily functions and then some. Cut out the bad, empty calories but load up on the ones that serve our bodies a purpose.

5. Not enough water. This one always lands a spot in any must-do list relative to health and fitness. And it cannot be emphasized enough that we must consume at least 64 ounces of good old H2O a day. That’s around eight glasses. Besides keeping our metabolism ticking, water burns fat, flushes out toxins from our bodies and sends nutrients to our muscles. It keeps us hydrated and able to perform those last sets and finish that cardio workout that will spell the difference—and determine whether we keep our shirts on or rip it off in the scorching heat of the sun this wonderful summer. –Greggy Romualdez, Manila Times

greggyromualdez@yahoo.com