How Do You Know If It Is Time To Lose That Excess Weight?

Are you one of the millions of people who look in the mirror each day and say to themselves "I need to lose some weight"? Nearly all of us have done this at one time or another and in most cases you do indeed need to lose a bit of weight. However, this is not always necessary and so just how can you tell whether you really ought to go on a diet?

A big problem with weight gain is that it often seems to arrive when you are not paying attention and this is being seen particularly in countries like North America where obesity is classed as an epidemic. Because your weight normally rises only slowly over several months, you normally simply do not notice the increase in terms of changes to your appearance and are only conscious of it when you step onto the bathroom scales. Thus, it is a good idea to get into the habit of weighing yourself regularly (roughly once each month is generally sufficient) and if you see that it has increased noticeably then it is time to go on a diet.

There are differences of opinion about precisely what constitutes obesity but if your weight has increased by in excess of perhaps thirty pounds or so then you are almost certainly heading towards obesity and a raft of accompanying medical problems.

Yet another sign that you probably should to go on a diet is when a friend tells you that you are putting on weight. Now you could well take offense if someone informs you that you should go on a diet but remember that they most likely found it hard to pluck up the courage to tell you and are also practically always demonstrating a heartfelt concern about your health, rather than passing a comment about the way you look.

A further sign that you are putting on too much weight is seen when you start to experience difficulty with easy tasks such as running to catch a bus or climbing the stairs and discover that you are getting short of breath all too quickly. Of course this is not necessarily a consequence of carrying too much weight and could be caused by other health problems, however you will be surprised at how often the cause turns out to be weight. Your body is starting to ring its alarm bells and these should not be ignored.

A final and very simple, although frequently dismissed, indication of weight gain is quite simply finding that your clothes no longer fit like they used to. A somewhat tight waistband following Christmas is not unusual for a lot of us but when it continues to get tighter and tighter and you find that you are buying larger and larger clothes each time you go shopping then the time has come to diet before your waist stretches not only your clothes but also your store card.

Here we have of course examined just a few examples of the many signs that you are overweight and need to take some corrective action. Excess weight tends to creep up on you gradually and it is all too easy to simply not notice it at all. However the key to looking and feeling good is quite simple - know what your ideal weight should be and jump on the scales regularly to make sure that you are not putting on too much weight.

Obesity, and particularly teenage obesity, these days is an increasing problem and one which can result in serious medical complications. It is also wise therefore to learn how to calculate BMI which is the medical indicator for obesity.