It’s a tale as old as time: Every January, we make resolutions to improve our health, such as exercising daily or even following a medical weight loss plan. But by mid-March, and sometimes even sooner, 95 percent of us have dropped our goals and returned to old habits. If you want to avoid sabotaging your own New Year’s resolutions, watch out for these following six mistakes.
Failing to prioritize sleep. When you’re tired and cranky, exercise is the last thing you feel like doing. Plus, your body releases stress hormones that slow your metabolism and cause you to crave fatty, carbohydrate-rich foods. Talk about a triple threat to your health goals!
Focusing on the scale. Regular weigh-ins can help you track your medical weight loss progress. But if you weigh yourself every single day, you might set yourself up for disappointment and frustration, which tempts you to give up. Stick to weekly or even bi-weekly weigh-ins, and focus more on how healthy you feel and how your clothes are fitting.
Giving in to pressure. Unfortunately, not all of your friends, family, and coworkers will be supportive of your goals. They might simply not understand, or your attempts at improving yourself might actually make them feel bad about their own choices. Whatever the cause, don’t give in to peer pressure to drink, partake of snacks in the break room, or go out for fatty meals that you don’t really want.
Midnight snacks. It’s normal to feel a few cravings while following a medical weight loss plan, but giving in at midnight is the worst time to do it! You won’t have time to burn off the calories before going to bed, so they’ll be stored as fat.
Letting yourself get dehydrated. If you don’t drink enough water, you’ll start to feel sluggish and tempted to skip your exercise plans. Your digestion will slow down, too. So make sure to keep your water bottle filled and sip it regularly.
Going on a crash diet. Crash diets might appear to work in the short term, but they wreck your metabolism. So when you start eating “normally” again, you regain the lost weight quickly. Instead, remember that slow and steady is the key to long-term weight loss that you can maintain.
And on that note, give us a call to schedule a consultation on medical weight loss. We can help you decide if this type of plan is right for your body type and goals, and then guide you toward changing your lifestyle and health.
