If you are reading this article there is every likelihood that you are overweight, possibly to the point of obesity. Obviously, you realize that you need to lose some weight for health reasons, but you may be asking yourself if there are other benefits.

There most certainly are!

However, let’s consider the health reasons first. You may be pleased to learn that you don’t need to lose a huge amount of weight to give lasting health benefits, provided you keep it off. Just losing between 5% and 10% of your body weight will give long term benefits. By losing just that little, you will reduce considerably your risk of high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, back pain, osteoarthritis, type 2 diabetes, and even some types of cancer. Those benefits alone should be enough to get you started.

Less Medication

Furthermore, if you already suffer from type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure, for instance, and you are taking medication, it may well be that your physician will recommend a smaller dose. The less medication you need to take, the better.

However, there are many other benefits also. For example, by losing weight, you will find that you have increased mobility and simply find it easier to get around. If you have difficulty breathing, you will find that losing weight improves that, and it also reduces the general aches and pains that overweight people seem to suffer.

A Good Night’s Sleep

In addition, you will find it easier to get a good night’s sleep, which will mean that you wake up in a good mood, feeling refreshed. You will have more energy, which means that, instead of sitting around on the couch all day eating snack foods and watching TV you will feel more like getting out and about, and perhaps starting to participate in sports or other activities that interest you, but which you have previously felt too lethargic to attempt. This, in turn, will help you to lose further weight, so it’s a win-win situation. An additional benefit is that losing weight improves your immune system, which gives you a greater ability to fight off illness and disease.

Another great benefit is in your wallet. If you reduce the amount of snack foods that you presently eat it stands to reason that you will save money. Cutting your calorie intake by just 100 a day will save you an average of around $200 a year.

Attraction To The Opposite Sex

Another great benefit of losing weight is attraction to the opposite sex. While some people find overweight people attractive, they are in a very small minority, most women preferring the toned, muscular look in men, and most men going for the slim waist and hourglass figure in women.

In addition, losing that 5% to 10% will improve your sex drive considerably. A study of 1,210 people of different weights and sizes conducted by Duke University Medical Center established that people who were obese were no less than 25 times more likely to express dissatisfaction with their sex lives as people with a normal body weight. Another survey found that men who simply went walking for 30 minutes four days every week reported better sexual satisfaction.

So there you have it. There is a whole host of benefits to losing weight. It is time to bite the bullet and get started.