The World Health Organization labels obesity an epidemic. The International Obesity Taskforce labels it a fully global epidemic - a pandemic.

Two out of every 3 Americans are overweight. One out of every 3 is obese. Even our kids are affected. An estimated 17% of North American kids are now considered seriously overweight.

Every day new statistics surface showing that rising numbers of North Americans are overweight – and gaining.

And yet it’s not like we WANT to be overweight. We all know health consequences.

Doctors tell us that excess weight:

-shortens our lifespan -puts a tremendous strain on our body -contributes to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, some cancers and a host of other health problems

And we’re only beginning to understand what it does to our children in their fragile developmental years.

But there are more than just physical hazards. Psychologically, being overweight can:

-destroy your self esteem -drain your self confidence -hold you back from taking risks -significantly reduce your quality of life

Depressing? Yes.

Should we be scared? You bet.

But what can we do?

It’s important to realize that we CAN do something.

First of all, let’s recognize what is CONTRIBUTING to problem so that we can take steps towards a healthy solution. Here, in my opinion, are top 3 contributing factors to growing weight epidemic:

#1) Diets

Surprised? Examine evidence:

>> We have more diets on market than ever before, more diet food, more diet books, more diet information. And yet we’re BIGGER than ever before.

>> It’s a proven fact that diets make your body more efficient at fat storage so that when you go back to eating ‘normal’ food, you will actually GAIN weight.

>> Diets boast a dismal 2-5% success rate. Looking at it another way, that’s a 95% FAILURE rate.

I believe that diets actually make problem WORSE:

#1 by slowing your metabolism

Build Foundation

Many people begin a weight loss program with their basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is amount of energy (calories) your body uses in a resting state, in gutter. The key then is to increase your BMR so that you are burning more calories throughout day, every day. Increase amount of calories you burn, increase amount of fat you lose. Makes sense, yes? The best way to increase your BMR is through adding muscle tissue. Females often shudder at idea of adding muscle due to their fear of becoming “bulky.” Relax babe! It’s a little harder to add that kind of muscle mass than you think. Besides, a little muscle mass goes a long way toward achieving a leaner body. And this is what you want, right?

Specificity of Program