Diet and Exercise Helps You Lose More than Weight

Do you ever get frustrated with your diet and exercise program, wondering whether it’s worth the effort? Don’t give up. You aren’t just losing weight — you’re also gaining profound health benefits. And those benefits pile up faster than you might think.

A team of researchers at the University of California in Los Angeles placed obese men on a high-fiber, low-fat diet with daily exercise for three weeks. They were allowed to eat as much as they wanted, as long as they limited their fat intake, ate adequate protein, and concentrated on fiber-rich fruits and vegetables. They were also required to walk on a treadmill for 45 to 60 minutes every day.

Stunning Health Improvements

At the end of three weeks, these men were reevaluated. They had only lost a little weight, but they showed stunning improvements in several important areas:

• Of the seven men who had high blood pressure at the beginning of the study, none were hypertensive at the end.
• Total cholesterol fell by almost 20 percent.
• Blood sugar and insulin levels dropped by 7 percent and 46 percent, respectively.
• Oxidative stress which refers to levels of damaging free radicals in the blood, dropped by an by an average of 28 percent.
• Blood levels of nitric oxide, a potent antioxidant and protector of the arteries, rose by 28 percent.

Just Three Weeks Makes a Difference

All this happened in just three weeks, with diet and exercise alone. There is not a drug in the world that can produce such dramatic results! So next time you’re contemplating giving up, think about not only the weight you’re going to lose but also the years you’re adding to your life.

Now it's your turn: Has losing weight improved your health?

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