As the body gets ages muscle mass can start to decrease, leading to a reduced metabolic rate. In turn, this can lead to a gain in weight as fewer calories are burned. This gain in weight can have a dramatic effect, both physically and mentally. Many people go on a diet to try to shed their extra pounds, but these diets are not without their problems. This article will take you through a few problems and explain how to overcome them.

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People who become unhappy with their own weight may decide to go on an intense diet, as this may seem like the most obvious solution to lose weight. However, this can often make matters worse. When you don’t eat your body goes into starvation mode and starts to burn muscle rather than fat, preferring to keep the fat in reserve. This further decreases muscle mass and therefore the potential to burn calories. In order for you to lose weight safely, you must do so slowly. Instead of reducing your intake to almost nothing, you must reduce it a little bit at a time.

Sometimes people perceive their diet to be healthy, yet continue to gain weight. This may be because although they are eating healthier food, they are still eating the same amount. Whatever the food, it is only healthy in moderation. In order to lose weight you must both eat healthier and eat less.

Even when people reduce their portion size they still find that they are gaining weight. This may be because people eat more snacks in order to try to compensate for the decreased calorie intake at meal times. In order to lose weight you need to cut out these unhealthy snacks, or at least replace them with a healthier alternative; have an apple instead of a chocolate bar.

Some people do everything right in terms of what they eat, but still struggle to maintain or lose weight. The quickest way to lose weight effectively is to exercise properly as well as keeping to your diet. But remember, you must exercise at a level that is intense enough for you to burn calories and build muscle mass but not too strenuous that it could be potentially dangerous.