OBJECTIVES

• To teach participants why increasing their physical activity can help them lose weight.
• To teach participants how to select an appropriate physical activity; how to plan where, when, and for how long they will do it; and what to tell themselves while doing their physical activity.
• To teach participants how to begin a safe physical activity program.

KEY IDEAS

• Physical activity can help participants lose weight in several ways:
  

  - It uses up calories. - It uses up more stored body fat than dieting alone and
  	helps retain muscle.
  - It can help control appetite. - It reduces stress.

• Increasing physical activity has a cumulative effect in achieving weight loss.
• To ensure that a plan for physical activity is safe and sensible, participants should increase activity gradually and be careful not to overdo exercise.

NEW HABIT FOR PARTICIPANTS TO DEVELOP

Increase physical activity on a regular basis