- Home
- Departments
- Health & Human Services
- IMCare Division
- Members
- Population Health Management (PHM)
- Healthy Lifestyle Resources
Healthy Lifestyle Resources
Investing in your health has physical and mental health benefits like boosting your energy, improving your mood, managing your weight, improving your sleep, and reducing your risk of illness. Being healthy means something different for everyone and since expectations and goals are different between people there is no one plan to improve health that will work for everyone. When making a change to a healthy living lifestyle it is important to choose a plan that will work for you and that you can follow to reach your health goals.
What is a healthy weight?
When discussing weight, there is no right number. Weight changes depending on several factors such as:
- Gender
- Hormones
- Diet
- Physical Activity
Being overweight also raises your risk of developing a serious disease or a chronic health condition including hypertension, diabetes, and depression.
Weight is a number that depends on several factors and is a poor judge of health on its own. The most used screening tool to review your health related to weight status is called Body Mass Index or BMI. This tool is used for adults aged 19 years and older. Use the CDC screening tool at https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/adult_bmi/english_bmi_calculator/bmi_calculator.html to find out your BMI. The CDC also groups BMIs in the following categories:
- If your BMI is less than 18.5, it falls within the underweight range
- If your BMI is 18.5 to 24.9, it falls within the normal or health weight range
- If your BMI is 25.0 to 29.9, it falls within the overweight range
- If your BMI is 30.0 or higher, it falls within the obese range
If you have concerns about your weight or BMI, the best person to talk with is your medical provider. Your provider will be able to review your health status and work with you to make a safe plan for your weight goals.
More information on healthy weight and resources can be found at: https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/
Encouraging physical activity:
- Local resources through Get Fit Itasca can be found on their website at: https://www.getfititasca.org/
- Free tools to help you get started, make goals, and track your physical activity can be found at: https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/exercise-and-physical-activity-tracking-tools
- Tips on how to start being more active can be found at: https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-management/tips-get-active/tips-starting-physical-activity
- Tips on continuing to stay active can be found at: https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-management/tips-get-active/tips-keep-moving
- Further information for health eating can be found at: https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/index.html
- Information on food groups and portions can be found at: https://www.myplate.gov/myplate-plan
Putting it all together:
- Use this free tool to calculate life changes you can take to reach your weight goals! https://www.niddk.nih.gov/bwp