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January is here and with it all the craze of people believing “new year, new you.” As a new year begins, many people try to adjust, set aside unhealthy habits, and make choices that support them. Unfortunately, dieting in general and new year’s resolutions diets in particular don’t often work. Up to 95% of people who lose weight from dieting gain it back.
Let’s go through some of the reasons why new year’s diets don’t work.
1. Weight Loss Doesn’t ALWAYS Make You Healthier
Fat on its own won’t kill you. However, your fat/weight levels shooting up and down can cause chronic inflammation – the real risk factor for heart disease, diabetes, and other health concerns. Healthy behaviors such as walking, exercising, and other active hobbies have more of an impact on your health than weight loss.
2. Your Body Has Its Own Unique “Goal Weight”
Balance in just about all things is the most healthy state. In Biology, the idea of true balance and constancy is called homeostasis. Based on the activities you do, the environment where you live, and your genes, your body has a set weight range – any changes too far above or below that range feel bad for your body. Think about your pants size or shirt size. There may be slight differences in your size going up or down when you slow down (maybe in the winter) or get stressed. Though there are changes, you stay just about in the same range of sizes.
3. Dieting Makes Food More Exciting
Have you ever cut out sweets for awhile? Then when you go to have a dessert, you end up having half a sleeve of Oreos? This behavior is called binge eating and holding back makes it more likely to happen. When your body thinks or senses that it is dying, for example when it feels starved, it pushes you to do the thing, in this case, think obsessively about food. At this point, the foods that will most readily provide energy are the ones that are high in carbs, fats, and calories.
4. Your Body Needs Nutrients
Remember when we mentioned balance above? Your nutritional intake means eating many different types of food to get all the nutrients your body needs. Bread and fruits should definitely be on that list. Just about all natural foods have something positive to offer your body. Cutting them out without a plan is usually unhealthy.
Live a Healthier Life by Working with Men’s Wellness Professionals
Trying out fad diets typically won’t give you the healthy results you want. To get those long-term positive outcomes, you will need to have an overall health plan from a wellness professional. The trained staff at Proactive Men’s Medical Center can provide a customized healthy living program to best support your overall health. We will tailor the plan to your unique needs, history, and circumstances so you can get the best results possible. Give us a call today to set an appointment with our expert medical staff.
