Fitness & Nutrition

Most weight loss programs are based on some combination of diet/behavior modification and regular fitness program. Banner Health offers a multidisciplinary team of physicians, nutritionists, psychologists and specially-trained staff members at a number of our facilities, who are available to help patients lose weight safely and keep it off. 

Fitness & Exercise

Starting an exercise program can be especially intimidating but the benefits of exercise are clear, however and there are ways to get started.

A National Institutes of Health survey of 13 studies concludes that physical activity:

• Results in modest weight loss in overweight and obese individual
• Increases cardiovascular fitness, even when there is no weight loss can help maintain weight loss

New theories focusing on the body's set point (the weight range that your body is programmed to weigh and will fight to maintain) highlight the importance of exercise.

When you reduce the number of calories you consume, the body simply reacts by slowing metabolism to burn fewer calories. Daily physical activity can help speed up your metabolism, effectively bringing your set point down to a lower natural weight. So when following a diet to attempt to lose weight, exercise increases your chances of long-term success.

Easy exercises you can start today:

• Park at the far end of parking lots and walk
• Take the stairs instead of the elevator
• Cut down on television or walk or move during TV time
• Swim or participate in low-impact water aerobic
• Ride an exercise bike

Overall, walking is one of the best forms of exercise. Start out slow and build up. Incorporating exercise into daily activities will improve your overall health and is important for any long-term weight management program, including weight loss surgery. Diet and behavior modification also plays a key role in successful weight loss.

Banner Health's Physician Referral Services can provide you with information on physicians who practice at Banner hospitals specializing in nutrition.  You may access this information by calling (602) 230-2273 or 1-800-230-CARE and pressing option #1 (Monday - Friday between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.) to speak with a physician referral representative.

Healthy Eating and Nutrition

Good nutrition depends on eating all the essential nutrients - fats, carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, minerals, and water - and eating them in a balance that nourishes your body. Learn more about how you can eat a balanced diet.

Diet & Behavior Modification

There are literally hundreds of diets available. Moving from diet to diet in a cycle of weight gain and loss - yo-yo dieting - that stresses the heart, kidneys and other organs can also be a health risk. Ninety percent of people participating in all diet programs will regain the weight they've lost within two years.

Behavior modification uses therapy to help patients change their eating and exercise habits. Diet and behavior modification are instrumental to sustained optimum fitness levels and weight loss.

Ideal Weight Chart

"Ideal" body weight is a target weight derived from your height and gender. View our chart that you can use to estimate your "ideal" body weight range.

For anyone who has considered a weight loss program, there is certainly no shortage of choices. In fact, to qualify for insurance coverage of weight loss surgery, many insurers require patients to have a history of medically supervised weight loss efforts.