Q: I have a son who is 17 years old. He is very fat, weighing about 95 Kgs. He is about 5 feet 4 inches tall. To reduce his weight we are trying various methods. One such is we have purchased a Treadmill and make him walk or jog for 30 min every day. But to make use of this system and achieve our goal in reducing my son’s weight at the earliest, I request you to give me some direction. We are vegetarians. How many hours should he walk or jog on the treadmill in a day? There is a display facility in the system that shows the calories burnt during the exercise and we can also fix the timer. Could you advise me how many calories my son should burn in a day to have a safe reduction process? How frequently he can use the machine in a day? What should be his normal weight and how long will it take for him to reach the normal level if he continues to do the exercise and burn the calories using the treadmill? Looking forward to your advice.

A:Losing weight can be a tough task but one which can be very gratifying for all the other benefits that come along with the ensured exercise routine! Losing weight or fat content in the body, is the culmination of a good aerobics program, (which you are doing well) some simple muscular strength work and a balanced healthy , nutritious diet, one low in calories. The idea is to make sure that calories are spent by way of extra energy by the body and not put back by way of high calorie food. This can take a some time depending on how many calories that are being spent in the output and putting back in terms of food. An ideal benchmark to go by is about 2-4 kgs a month of weight loss in a month. Continue the aerobic exercises that he has been doing for anywhere from 40-60 minutes a day, once a day. Or you can ask him to break this up into smaller efforts, if this amount of time is not available to him. Add to the routine some simple abdominal crunches, some back extensions, some simple pushups and some squats and lunges to make the muscles stronger. Most of all he has to have patience and don't be hard on him. You need to tell him that he is on the right path, continue it and also understand that he is gaining in other areas besides, and only - losing weight. His health will see an upward gain and he will find a higher self esteem and self confidence that will take you through this with great results You can also give your son a whole lot of encouragement to take care of his health, which he will need from time to time.