Managing your weight

How can I keep to a healthy weight?

Keeping to a healthy weight is important for your general health, but it can also have benefits for people with different types of arthritis.

Being overweight can put more strain on your joints – particularly those in the legs. The force put through your knees when walking can be two or three times your body weight, so losing even a small amount of weight can make a difference. Being overweight can also increase inflammation in the body, which could cause you more pain.

You may be more likely to develop certain types of arthritis if you’re overweight, including rheumatoid arthritis, gout, back pain and osteoarthritis.

Am I a healthy weight?

The easiest way to work out if you’re a healthy weight is to use a BMI calculator. BMI stands for body mass index and it is used to work out if your weight is healthy based on your age, gender and height.

It’s important to know that the BMI is only a rough guide and doesn’t take things like muscle density into account. However, it can be a very useful tool, and a healthcare professional will be able to look at your BMI along with other factors when working out if you’re a healthy weight.

The NHS website has an online tool to work out your BMI. The tool also gives advice on how to achieve and maintain a healthy BMI.

A BMI score between 18.5 and 24.9 is in the healthy range. If your BMI is in a range below or above this, you may need to consider making changes to your diet. A doctor, your practice nurse or a registered dietitian will be able to give you advice on this.

If you want to lose weight, the NHS has developed a free weight loss plan that you can follow over 12 weeks including:

Being underweight can also pose many risks for both physical and mental health. This can be a symptom of some conditions like rheumatoid arthritis. Being underweight is linked to an increased risk of fractures, which is related to the condition osteoporosis. If you think you may be underweight, it’s a good idea to speak to a healthcare professional who will be able to give you advice.

Eating a balanced diet

A balanced diet refers to both the types of food and the amount of food we eat. Keeping to a healthy weight is all about making sure the amount of food you eat is equal to how active you are. But changing what you eat shouldn’t be at the expense of getting a balanced diet that contains all the food groups and nutrients you need.

A balanced diet

What is a balanced diet?

A balanced diet is important for your general health. This involves eating a range of foods in the right amounts, to stay healthy and maintain a good weight. Find out more about what makes up a balanced diet including different types of food groups and lowering your cholesterol.

What is a balanced diet?

Getting the right amount of calories

The amount of energy in food is measured in kilocalories, sometimes shortened to calories or kcal. Our bodies need a certain amount of energy each day. But if we eat or drink more calories than we use, the extra is stored in our bodies as fat, which can lead to weight gain.

The average man needs around 2,500 kcal a day to keep to a healthy body weight. The average woman needs around 2,000 kcal a day. However, this can vary based on age, size and how active you are.

The number of calories in food is normally shown on the packaging as kcal, but there may also be a different measure called kilojoules (kJ), which is the metric measure of energy. Each day an average man needs around 10,500 kJ and an average woman needs around 8,400 kJ.

Keeping active

All adults and children need to do a certain amount of physical activity each week to maintain their physical and mental health. Exercising also burns energy, so it’s an important part of losing weight. Increasing the amount of exercise you do will use up more of the energy you get from food.

Exercise is still important whatever your weight. This is because research has shown regular exercise can help reduce your risk of conditions such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke and some types of cancer, as well as having many other health benefits.

When it comes to physical activity, it’s important to choose an exercise you enjoy. Adults 19 and older need to do at least two and a half hours of moderate aerobic exercise each week – this includes things such as cycling, swimming or walking briskly. They also need to do strengthening exercises on two or more days a week that include the legs, hips, back, chest, shoulders, abdomen, chest and arms.

Regular exercise also lowers your risk of osteoarthritis and hip fractures and reduces the risk of falls in older adults. For people who already have arthritis or a related condition, exercise can:

  • reduce pain and fatigue
  • improve the range of movement in your joints
  • reduce stiffness
  • increase the strength of your muscles, which support your joints.

Healthy living