One of the major factors in chronic health problems is being overweight. Overweight prevention is as essential protection as protection from workplace chemicals and noise. In fact, obesity accounts for 2-7% of the total health costs in industrialized countries.
Find out your daily caloric need
We use energy no matter what we are doing, even sleeping. The Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is the number of calories that we would burn if we were sitting all day.
Now that you know your BMR you can find out what is your need in calories:
- Little or no exercise: BMR x 1.2
- Light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week: BMR x 1.375
- Moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week: BMR x 1.55
- Hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/week: BMR x 1.725
- Very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training: BMR x 1.9
6 basic tips for a balanced diet
#1 Reduce red meat
Fish and poultry are good alternatives.
#2 Eliminate fried foods
Prefer grill, bake, roast, broil or boil food instead.
#3 Begin your meal with a soup or salad
These options can help reduce hunger and control food portions
#4 Stop soft drinks
Soft drinks contain a lot of calories and no nutritional value
#5 Drink more water
Reach for the target of drinking an extra 1.5 litres of water per day.
#6 Prefer low-glycaemic foods
Foods that breakdown slowly, releasing sugars, such as oats, butter beans and peas
- 30 min. of exercise/day: For those that do not want to lose weight
- 45 min. of exercise/day: Prevents from gaining weight
- 60 min. of exercise/day: Prevents from gaining weight and starts losing
- 90 min. of exercise/day: For those who try to maintain a normal weight
