Although a variety of diseases and debilitating conditions can detract from a person’s ability to lead a life that’s full of vitality and meaning, obesity can be especially disempowering. That’ the case for several reasons, including the fact that obesity makes people more susceptible to other diseases such as cancer, diabetes, metabolic condition, faintness, and more.

These days, the rate of obesity in the United States has become so high that health experts have classified the condition as an epidemic. Excessive weight among so many Americans is having a profoundly negative impact on society, but there are several strategies that obese people can adopt to begin losing weight and feel great about themselves again.

Here are three proven techniques to help obese individuals begin to embrace a life of health and wellness.

1. Get Professional Assistance

One of the biggest challenges that can prevent obese individuals from losing weight in a healthy, sustainable manner is that there is a lot of disinformation about the condition floating around. Whether you turn to the Internet, print magazines, or pretty much any other form of media, there are always ads for starvation diets, unreasonable workouts, and a range of other shoddy advice that will most likely lead to disappointment and despair.

3 Solid Ways To Fight Obesity, The New Health Epidemic

Instead of paying any mind to this noise, an obese individual who’s serious about dropping unwanted weight should obtain professional assistance from people who have extensive education and experience in the field of healthy weight loss. Some professional resources that are good to tap into include medical doctors, dietitians, nutritionists, individual trainers, and health instructor.

2. Create SMART Goals

As many life coaches know, the creation of SMART goals is one of the most effective ways to realize any personal or professional objective you desire. The acronym SMART stands for the creation of goals that are exclusive, quantitative, receivable, realist, and time-bound.

In the context of obesity, a sample SMART goal might be: “I will begin jogging every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for 45 minutes in order to help me lose 1 pound per week.”

3. Get a Non-food Hobby

One of the reasons obese people tend to stay overweight is that that they build their life around food. Whether this includes going out to eat all the time or participating in a club that is devoted to baking delicious but ultimately unhealthy dishes, centering your existence on food-related activities will obviously encourage obesity rather than curtail it.

With this thought in mind, it’s a smart idea for obese people who want to lose weight to start engaging in activities that are not directly related to the acquisition or consumption of food. One such hobby would be playing a musical instrument.

If you’re interested in playing an instrument such as the piano or violin, you can access some great sheet music options at Virtual Sheet Music.

Although obesity is now considered one of the biggest health epidemics of the 21st century, individuals who want to shed unwanted weight should take heart and realize that they can do so. By implementing some or all of the strategies outlined above, you can start to get fit and healthy today.

In so doing, you’ll be able to start living the kind of productive, powerful life that you deserve to have.