What do you do if you're a teen and think you don't have the perfect body? What if you're dealing with being overweight or underweight, or just want to get rid of some fat in one spot? You should first ask yourself, can weight be controlled during puberty?
If you want to lose weight during adolescence, you should know that healthy weight loss for teens needs more than just diet and exercise. Your body goes through lots of changes that can affect how much and how fast you lose weight.
• Factors that affect your weight during adolescence:
You can change your body in your teen years, but how much you can change depends on several things. Some you can control, some you can't.
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Puberty:
You might not want to, but puberty can have a big effect on your weight and body shape. All boys and girls can expect to gain weight and grow taller during puberty.
Often the hormones your body makes during adolescence (puberty) cause these changes. Boys start building muscle, girls gain more body fat. These changes are normal but might make you feel fat even if you're not.
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Genetics :-
You might wonder, "Why don't I look like my friends?" One reason could be that your genetic makeup and heredity are simply different.
You inherit certain things from your parents like (where extra fat is stored in your body, and the length and shape of your body), so if your parents are overweight, it raises the chance you'll gain weight too.
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Diet :-
While puberty and genetics are things you can't control, what you eat is another matter. It's a factor that directly affects your weight and you can control it.
Eating fast food full of calories but lacking nutrients (like chips, sodas, and sweets) regularly leads to a big increase in your weight.
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Physical activity :-
One reason weight is a problem for many teens to adults is all the activity we do. Lack of activity greatly affects your waist size and overall health.
Watching TV and playing video games are some of the activities that involve sitting for long periods, which teens usually do, and this greatly adds to weight gain, especially if you're not exercising or following a healthy diet.
• Is losing weight necessary during the teenage years?
Most people don't really need to lose weight. Often teens focus on losing weight to unhealthy levels to get the 'perfect' body, which can lead to strict unhealthy diets and eating disorders.
You might have a distorted idea of what your body weight should look like, especially if your role model is a model or celebrity known more for their looks than anything else.
It's important to understand what a healthy weight range is, and more than that, the number on the scale doesn't always accurately show your real weight (Radwa, better add a link about weight fluctuations or how your weight can change but the scale reading doesn’t).
The scale weighs everything: bones, fat, muscles, organs, and everything you eat or drink before weighing yourself, so it doesn’t precisely tell you what you gained or lost. Using the scale alone to track weight progress isn’t always the best way.
So before starting a diet or weight loss program, take some time to see if you’re really overweight or if you just have a distorted body image.
• Seeking proper advice on weight issues:
You should talk to your parents and doctor about any weight issues you might have and whether you should worry about losing weight.
You might also wonder if you can lose weight from just certain areas of your body, like your thighs and hips, and if so, what program to follow to reach your goal.
