Why is it so Difficult to Control Your Weight?

Everyone knows that if you eat too much food – especially the kind of food which is full of sugar, salt and saturated fat – there is a good chance you're going to put on weight. Very few people actually want to gain weight, because when you pile on the pounds your clothes no longer fit and you start to hate the way you look. Plus, you are also conscious of the fact that being overweight could be bad for your long-term health. Despite all these negative aspects of weight gain, many people find it a struggle to control their weight.

Even though you may want to remain slim, so that you can wear nice clothes and feel good about yourself, whilst also not having to worry as much about your health, the lure of junk food can be too much. The trouble is that it is far too easy to fall into bad habits. All it takes is for you to start working longer hours or to begin taking evening classes and suddenly you no longer have the time or inclination to prepare your own meals. It is much easier to grab a packet of biscuits and eat them on the move and perhaps pick up a burger later when you're on your way home, so that you don't have to cook.

Skipping meals and eating fast food on the go is hardly conducive to a healthy weight, though. If you don't eat regularly, your metabolism will be affected, whilst your excessive hunger may lead you to binge on high-calorie foods later on in the day. Sometimes, however, you are too preoccupied with other things going on in your life to worry about your calorie intake, even though you start to regret having ignored the problem when you finally do step on the scales. If you're busy at work, or having relationship difficulties, for instance, you may be stressed or feeling down and such negative emotions can affect your eating habits.

It perhaps would not be so bad if you made time for exercise, but the chances are that if you don't make the time to eat sensibly, you are probably even less likely to try to fit exercise into your schedule. If you're really lazy, you may not even bother to walk anywhere. It doesn't cost anything to walk and it at least gets you moving. However, when you work miles away from your home, you may be more inclined to take your car than to use your legs. Unfortunately, if you're not getting any exercise and you eat too much rubbish, you will end up having a difficult time trying to control your weight.

The only way to control your weight is to balance your calorie intake against your calorie expenditure. If you regularly consume more calories than you consume then you gain weight, something which is easy to do when you work long hours and don't bother to plan your meals. When you gain weight, you may decide to put yourself on a diet to get back down to your normal size, though if you follow a fad diet, you could just end up regaining any weight you lose. If you have a habit of not watching your weight, then how are you going to control it? You can't simply eat without thinking and hope that dieting now and again is going to solve your weight issues.

In the long term, to control your weight you have to make sure you eat properly, rather than eating whatever is most convenient, and try to get some exercise. It may seem like a hassle, but it is surely better to be careful with your diet and exercise habits than to watch your weight going up and down and feeling as though you are never in control of it.