Note: To help you determine if you are overweight, you may wish to use the Body Mass Index calculator.

Maintaining proper body weight is important to your overall good health, including your heart health. Our genes affect our tendency to gain weight. A tendency to gain weight is increased when food is plentiful and when we lead a relatively sedate lifestyle. However, it is possible to manage weight through balancing your intake of calories with your physical activity choices.

If you are overweight, loss of 5 to 15 percent of your body weight may improve your health, ability to function, and quality of life. Aim to lose about 10 percent of your weight over about 6 months. This would be 20 pounds of weight loss for someone who weighs 200 pounds. Loss of 1/2 to 2 pounds per week is usually safe. Even if you have regained weight in the past, it is worthwhile to try again.

To make it easier to manage your weight, make long-term changes in your eating behavior and physical activity. To do this, build a healthy base and make sensible choices. Choose a healthful assortment of foods that include vegetables, fruits, grains (especially whole grains), skim milk, fish, lean meat, poultry, and beans. Choose foods that are low in fat and added sugars most of the time. Whatever the food, eat a sensible portion size (see the Food Pyramid).

Make sure that you get appropriate levels of physical activity (exercise) to help maintain your weight. Children, teens, adults, and the elderly—all can improve their health and well being and have fun by including moderate amounts of physical activity in their daily lives. Physical activity involves moving the body. A moderate physical activity is any activity that requires about as much energy as walking 2 miles in 30 minutes.

Aim to accumulate at least 30 minutes (adults) or 60 minutes (children) of moderate physical activity most days of the week, preferably daily. If you already get 30 minutes of physical activity daily, you can gain even more health benefits by increasing the amount of time that you are physically active or by taking part in more vigorous activities. No matter what activity you choose, you can do it all at once, or spread it out over two or three times during the day. Of course, if you have a serious health condition or concern, you should always speak with your physician before beginning on a course of exercise or significantly changing your level of physical exertion.

An excellent web site maintained by the United States Department of Health and Human Services is available to help you with understanding and learning to control your weight through diet and exercise. (Click to go there now)

Source: United States Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health.