If you are a teenager with weight problems, it’s important to stay cool and avoid ineffective or unhealthy ways to lose weight. During your teenage years, your body develops in many different ways – not all visible – and good health is essential to ensure this development proceeds smoothly.
Losing weight and remaining fit requires some planning and dedication. Weight loss for teenage girls is no different. In fact teenagers require more dedication because temptation to try fad diets during teenage is very high. Moreover young girls have some specific nutritional needs therefore overall health must be kept in mind before trying any weight loss program.
Teenage girls are more conscious about their looks than adults therefore they are easily lured by quick weight loss programs. They need not try any weight loss program if they start eating right. Following are some useful weight loss tips for teenage girls.
Teenage Girls Weight Loss
Safety First
Adolescence is not the time for extreme diets and risky weight loss fads. While these methods may initially produce weight loss, they tend to be unrealistic and fizzle out in the end. They can also deny your body the crucial nutrients it needs for healthy development. Instead, invest your efforts in a safe plan backed by experts in health and nutrition. A sensible food plan and simple lifestyle changes are more likely to result in the long-term benefits you’re looking for.
Food and Beverage Choices
Be choosy about the foods and beverages on your weight loss plan. A healthy plan is centered around the basic food groups. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy and lean meats or beans should all be represented. Look for a rich variety of foods that you enjoy. Examine recommendations for unsweetened beverages and water consumption as well. An assortment of wholesome beverage and food options will keep the plan flexible, practical and enjoyable. An extensive collection of food options can be found at the United States Department of Agriculture’s MyPyramid.gov website in the “Inside the Pyramid” section.
Calorie Intake
While calorie requirements vary with size, activity level and gender, the average teen girl burns about 1,800 calories per day, according to the American Heart Association. You need to burn more calories than you consume in order to lose weight. A realistic weight loss plan limits calorie intake through guidelines about portion size and the number of servings allowed per day. Online calculations of your individual, daily calorie needs can be obtained at the USDA’s My Pyramid website in the “My Pyramid Plan” section.
Considerations
Bingeing and grazing can result in the unconscious consumption of hundreds–even thousands–of calories each day. These calories add up and become unwanted pounds. Be wary of any weight loss plan that promises unrestricted food. The math simply doesn’t work. Also, bypass weight loss plans that support consumption of calorie-packed processed foods and items that are high in fat or sugar.
Warning
Consult your health care provider before you start your weight loss plan, especially if you have a health concern, such as diabetes or an eating disorder. Your health care professional should be able to provide you with additional information and possible resources. Check in periodically after you begin your weight loss program as well. Report health concerns, challenges or lack of progress, as these may be warning signs of an underlying condition.
Some Other Tips for Teenage Girls Weight Loss
Most kids and teens don’t have the money or means to join a gym, but thanks to school, there are plenty opportunities for exercise.
You could take on a sport in school, and if you don’t make the team, you can always participate in intramurals. When I was in high school there were several different intramural sports you could join after school. The choices ranged from volleyball, soccer, softball, to tennis, raquetball and more.
Exercise at Home
There are tons of things you can do at home to get exercise. Get an aerobics DVD and exercise in your living room. Heck, you can get the whole family involved and make it a group event.
It doesn’t matter what you do, the point is to get moving and get that heart rate up. That’s what helps you burn fat. I know a guy that used to run laps in his garage if he was unable to get to the gym.
Walking around the neighborhood is another easy way to get some good exercise. If you have a pet, take them with you. And if your pet is energetic, you may even get some running in.
Get off your butt and exercise
Fast weight loss will only be achieved with diet and exercise.
* Plan your week: Have 3 days where you do intense exercise – like running or a class at the gym. The other 3 days do low intensity exercise like a long walk and, well, that’s about it. The other day is your day off.
* An exercise “session” should go for about 30 minutes to an hour. You should burn at the very least 300 calories in a high intensity workout session in 30 minutes. Any less and you’re not working hard enough.
* You’re working hard enough if you’re sweating profusely, breathless (not the whole time, but a good part of the time), and when you’re done you can scull water with no effort because you need it that badly.
* Do some weight training. Muscles burn calories by just being there. The more muscles you have, the faster you’ll lose weight.
* Always, always stretch before, and after you exercise. It’s bloody hard to lose weight when you’re injured.
Diet Plan For Teenage Girls
Start with your diet. For fast results, you must change your eating habits. And because you want fast results, you must make drastic changes. However, hunger will not be one of the solutions and neither is bulimia. Some prefer to have set menus to stick to, some people prefer rules. This contains a bit of both.
* Breakfast Ideas: Toast with vegemite (unless you’re not an Aussie, in which case: Try it, decide you hate it, read How to Enjoy Vegemite , try it again) or your favourite spread (preferably without butter, unless it’s vegemite which is disgusting without butter.
* Just to talk up vegemite a little more: It has almost no calories – 4 per tablespoon or something ridiculous like that.
* So anyway: Toast with vegemite, a banana and coffee; cereal with skim milk and fruit; that kind of thing. Some can’t wake up without coffee, and it’s an appetite suppressant so thumbs up.
* Lunch Ideas: At some schools, most people bring their lunch from home, of course, what it’s like in other countries and schools vary, but do know that what you can bring from home will most likely always be better than what you can buy at any canteen/tuck shop/cafeteria.
* Sandwich on wholegrain/wholewheat/multigrain bread – (just as long as it’s not white bread which is bleached flour. It contains very little nutrients)- with cheese, ham or chicken, salad veggies (tomato, cucumber, lettuce, etc), mayo, tomato sauce (sounds weird but it actually tastes really great, don’t dog it until you’ve tried it), salt and pepper; if you have access to boiling water you can bring those powdered soups in a thermos and a bread roll; dinner leftovers are always great.
* Snack Ideas: carrot and fruit, natural yogurt and berries (you may need to add a tiny amount of sugar to this, depending on how sweet your yogurt is); a handful of nuts; veggies (like carrots, beans, snow peas) and low fat dip; i think you get the idea.
* Dinner Ideas: One idea is: 1/2 veggies, 1/4 protein, 1/4 carbohydrates. If your parents make fatty foods for tea, only have a little and make yourself a salad as well. If you’re cooking for yourself here’s some easy ideas: pasta with tomato based sauce; quick soup (the powdered type you add hot water to) and bread; scrambled eggs; if you really can’t be bothered, just make yourself a sandwich or heat up leftovers; eat baked beans cold from the can and have a bit of salad after. It really doesn’t matter, just as long as you follow that basic rules mentioned below.
Rules
* Breakfast: Carbohydrates, fat, dairy
* Lunch: Carbohydrates, veggies, protein
* Dinner: Pasta, carbohydrates, veggies
* Snacks: Fruit, veggies, dairy, protein
* For each meal, make the veggies the main part, then the protein, then the carbohydrates. dairy falls in somewhere there too.
* A serve fits in the palm of your hand
* 3 serves of fruit per day
* 3 serves of dairy per day(milk, cheese, yogurt)
* 4-5 serves of carbohydrates per day
* Go crazy on the veggies. You can have pretty well as much as you want, you can’t go overboard.
* Don’t cut anything out completely. Well, except fast food Maccas, Hungries (aka Burger King), KFC. Some facts about them are: Maccas soft serves are made from pig fat. KFC chips are fried in lard. Those thick-shakes have pretty much no natural ingredients in them (except probably fat). It’s all preservatives and additives, and lots of bad things. Read “Chew On This” or “Fast Food Nation.” You’ll never eat junk food again.
* Having said that, restrict consumption of: sugary, chocolate dark may be a bit healthier, but it is best to avoid! Have it once a week instead and you’ll probably enjoy it more as well as lose weight, Butter, oil, fried crap, ice cream, or potatoes (they contain a LOT of starch). Chips, biscuits, cake, juice, cordial, soft drinks, or sausages – at the end of the day, you know what is good for you and what isn’t.
* Listen to your body, it will tell you what it wants and when it wants you to stop packing in junk, or just when your full. Don’t eat out of boredom.
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