In your life, you’ve probably heard tons of weight loss advice from different sources – friends, family, the internet, TV, etc. We’ve all heard weight-loss tips like: ‘Don’t eat after 6pm!’, ‘Don’t eat dairy! Or gluten! Or fat!’, ‘Don’t even think about having fries!’. All these ‘don’ts’ make you think that the best strategy to lose weight is stay at home and just inhale some air (it’s calorie-free!). It’s so terrible the way people perceive weight loss nowadays. We mostly blame the media, not only for setting unrealistic beauty standards, but also for spreading harmful dieting strategies. I’m sure you’ve seen those TV shows that take people struggling with obesity and run them through a-few-week-long gauntlet combining a very restrictive diet and exercise regime to get them as thin as possible. The audience loves the before/after effect and so the ratings go sky high. But the sad truth is that those people never seem to be able to maintain their newly gained looks. A year or so after the show is finished, they tend to have gained MORE weight than before they started their weight loss journey. But of course, you won’t see that on TV.
In this article, we want to talk to you about things that most weight loss gurus out there don’t like to talk about. If you’re fed up with listening to mainstream advice that simply doesn’t work, you will find this one very interesting.
1. It takes time to break/make a habit
Weight loss gurus like to promote the idea that losing weight is quick and easy. After all, they were able to make someone lose a shocking amount of pounds in a matter of weeks, weren’t they? Well, unfortunately, quick and easy doesn’t work. Yes, you can temporarily lose some weight if you force your body to live off of water and exercise, but please know – it is not a sustainable lifestyle. Anything that you cannot maintain will quickly be forgotten and your body will revert back to where it was, if not to a worse state. Our Spring Hill Dietitian talks about it relentlessly, but we will repeat it here for good measure: You need to take small steps. It takes at least 21 days (3 weeks) to break an old habit or form a new one. If you think you can trick your body, think again. Your body is excellent at keeping score. The best way to change anything is through slow, gradual progress. That way, your body will get used to your new ways and won’t rebel against you. Trust me, you have to work with your body and not try to fight it. Your body always wins (and if you have ever caved in to a craving, you know this statement to be true).
2. Losing weight rapidly can cause metabolic damage
Here’s another reason why quick and easy doesn’t work in the long term. We previously mentioned that people who lost a lot of weight in a short period of time tend to gain even more weight after the dieting stops. That is due to metabolic damage caused by the crazy diet and training program. Think about it this way: if the person was used to consuming 4000 calories a day, and that suddenly decreased to 1000, what is happening in their body? It simply doesn’t know what’s going on so it goes into self-defense mode. The so-called “crash diet” makes your body think it’s starving, and it will do anything it can to prevent that from happening. If you dramatically restrict your calories for a long period of time, your metabolism will slow down dramatically, too, to prevent energy imbalance. You don’t notice while you’re still on the 1000-calorie diet, but be honest with yourself: Will you be able to stay on that diet forever? No. And as soon as you start eating more food, you will see that you quickly gain back the weight. This is because of the slow metabolism resulting from metabolic damage.
3. The only way to lose weight permanently is to permanently change your lifestyle
Yeah, you won’t hear that on TV. Those people don’t want you to think about changing your lifestyle forever, because it feels like such a huge step. Who would want to do that? Well, having worked with people with obesity for many years now, we strongly believe that changing your lifestyle to a healthier one is not only easy, but can be enjoyable. That is, of course, if you take things easily and don’t try to upend your life overnight. Losing weight can be such a wonderful journey if you don’t expect rapid results and you don’t try to work against your body. We feel that with proper guidance and support, anyone can achieve the weight they’ve always wanted. If you’re fed up with constant yo-yo effects and the misery of yet another “miracle” diet, we are here for you. Our Spring Hill Weight Loss Clinic was founded for people like you. Would you like to find out more about us?
Hernando County Weight Loss – Batista Weight Loss
Our weight loss clinic in Spring Hill is proud to have two experienced clinical staff members who are available to help you develop and meet your weight loss goals. We have a Registered Dietitian and Licensed Dietitian onsite, as well as a Medical Doctor. Having such qualified staff gives our weight loss clinic the clinical skills and experience required to meet a range of weight loss needs. Read more about our Spring Hill Dietitian.
Everyone is unique. This means that not all weight loss goals are the same; furthermore, not all techniques work universally. Our Spring Hill Dietitian will meet with you on a one-on-one basis to create a customized weight loss plan and treatment schedule specific to your individual requirements. Depending on your exact circumstances, your treatment plan may include any of the following: