Lighten up! Control your weight by eating healthy and exercising regularly

Looking for ways to shed those extra pounds, or are you simply struggling to maintain that new and hard-won svelte figure?

If so, you are not alone. Scores of Americans continue to struggle with their weight. An estimated 77 percent of Black women and 59 percent of Black men are overweight or obese, according to the American Heart Association. And doctors say obesity increases the risk of heart disease, certain cancers, diabetes and arthritis.

The good news is that you can control your weight through behavior modification, say health experts like Barbara Dixon, a registered and licensed dietician and nutritionist at Dixon Medical and Nutrition Clinic in Baton Rouge, La. "Changes in your behavior will not only help you lose weight, but will help you keep it off," says Dixon, who has been in the business for more than 30 years. "Behavior modification will help you recognize signs that you may befalling off track. Getting off track and regaining some of the weight is not a sign of personal failure, but an indication of a need for another phase of active management of your weight-loss/weight-management program."

The trick is to set achievable goals and to keep the focus on diet and exercise. Most diets fail because the exercise component is missing from the program, says Dr. Otelio S. Randall, a cardiologist and leading expert in the field of obesity, as well as hypertension and cardiovascular disease prevention at Howard University Hospital. Dr. Randall, who is program director of the General Clinic Research Center, where he developed the Obesity Project, is also director of Howard's Preventative Cardiology-Hypertension Program. "In order to maintain your current weight, your caloric consumption must equal the amount of calories burned each day," advises Dr. Randall, co-author of Menu For Life: African Americans Get Healthy, Eat Well, Lose Weight, and Live Beautifully. "To lose weight, the caloric intake must be less than the number of calories burned. The bottom line is that dieting doesn't work without exercise."

The following are some additional tips to help keep your weight-loss/weight-control program on track:

* Monitor your food intake. Drink lots of water, at least 8 glasses a day. Keep your consumption of fat to 30 percent of your total caloric intake, cut back on sugar and increase your consumption of fiber. Fiber can be obtained from fruits, vegetables and nuts, and oatmeal, which is a low-fat, nutritious food that satisfies your hunger. Oatmeal not only satisfies your hunger, it has other health benefits. Research during the past 40 years shows that eating certain kinds of oatmeal helps lower total cholesterol and can help clear arteries. "I recommend it to patients with elevated cholesterol," Dixon says of oatmeal. "It has good healthy fiber that gets into the body's tissues. Increasing fiber in your diet not only lowers cholesterol, but helps decrease blood sugar levels in diabetics."

Weight control experts say that eating a healthy and filling breakfast that includes oats is a good way to remain satisfied until it's time for lunch. Between meals, try to avoid unhealthy snacks that have little to no nutritional value. In other words, the products are full of empty calories that contribute to weight gain.

* Be aware of what you're eating. Read food labels to determine whether products are low-fat, fat-free or low-calorie. Nutrition experts also urge people to keep a food diary to record everything they consume. "Keeping a diary helps you maintain awareness about what you're eating," says Dixon. "If and when you start to gain, you can see in writing exactly what it is you're eating that's causing you to gain weight."

* Exercise! Exercise! Exercise! There is no program that works in the long run if it does not include exercise, says Randall and other fitness experts. Hard to include a workout in your day? Randall advises people to walk at least 30 minutes a day. He also urges people to avoid elevators at work and hit the stairs. If you drive to work park a few blocks away from the office and walk (if it's safe to do so). When the weather is bad, walk in the mall before or after work and on weekends. While walking, pedometers can be a walker's best friend--recording the number of steps taken and calculating the number of calories burned.

* Overcome stress and boredom. Determine what stresses you out so that you can avoid late-night raids on the refrigerator, or snack attacks at the office. Make room for some downtime in your day. One professional says that she burns lavender oil in her office during times of stress. If that's not appropriate in your work setting, seek a quiet place in the office to chill out instead of reaching for that candy bar, which will make you crave more sugar. If you're a spiritual person, read comforting passages from the Bible during times of high stress. After work, take a warm bubble bath and light some candles to calm down. (A warm bath is also a great way to relax after a brisk walk or workout!)