By Meghan Belnap
If you’re like most Americans, you spend your time alternating between dieting and wishing you were dieting. You probably couple your diet with bursts of exercise, and then somewhere along the line you get too busy or unmotivated and lapse back into an unhealthy lifestyle.
Fortunately, diets aren’t always the way to go. In fact, the best and only way to lose weight and actually keep it off is to lose it holistically, without the aid of intense diets and workout programs. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle will do what fad diets can’t.
1. Cleanse the Body
Many people are unaware that they have allergies or intolerances. If you have trouble keeping weight off, feel consistently under-the-weather, or experience regular cramping, bloating, constipation, or headaches, you might have a food problem.
More and more Americans are going gluten-free. Why this trend is becoming so popular is a subject for another article, but many are choosing this lifestyle for medical reasons and not by choice. If you have a gluten-intolerance, losing weight and feeling healthy will be next to impossible.
Once you eliminate allergens from your diet, you’ll be amazed at the difference you feel. Set up a doctor’s appointment with your family doctor to get tested—if you come back allergic or intolerant to anything (eggs, dairy, peanuts, and gluten are some of the most common), listen to your body and cut it from your diet. It might take completely changing the way you eat, but it will be worth it.
2. Exercise
We’ve all heard this before. But we hear about exercising again and again because it’s important…and it works. You aren’t going to lose weight in a healthy, holistic way unless you’re giving your body the exercise it craves. Our bodies weren’t meant to be sedentary, and too many Americans spend their workdays sitting in an office.
If you’re going to exercise, you need to do something you love. Forcing yourself to go on morning jogs before the kids leave for school won’t last long if you really hate running. Go swimming or biking, do yoga, hop on an elliptical at the gym, or join a sports league. Find something that you enjoy doing so that you’re more motivated to work out.
3. Drink More Water
This is simple enough, but means a major lifestyle change for many Americans. Studies show that soda is neck and neck with water as America’s #1 drink of choice. Some sources say that Americans still drink more soda than water—others are more optimistic about America’s increasing water intake. But regardless of whether soda is a part of your diet or not, adding more water into your daily routine will make a difference in your weight.
Keeping hydrated stops your body from retaining water as a survival instinct, which helps with bloating. It also keeps you from being hungry throughout your day, which cuts down on all that in-between meal snacking. Our bodies are made up of 60-65% water—little wonder that it’s such a staple of our diet.
4. Cut Eating Out
Trends in real estate tell us that Americans’ priority is no longer the kitchen and dining area. Luxury homes often have small kitchens and dining rooms in favor of larger bedrooms and living spaces. This might be indicative of another trend that will negatively impact your holistic weight loss approach: eating out.
Some studies say that the average American household spends half of its food budget eating out. Some say that Americans eat out 4-5 times a week. Fast food (and even restaurants) meals are full of sodium, carbs, starch, and calories. The less you eat out, the healthier you’ll feel and the more weight you’ll be able to shed. Eating fruits, vegetables, and meals made at home will make a noticeable difference.
5. Focus Right
Focus on your health, not weight loss or size. If you’re focused on maintaining a better, healthier lifestyle, your weight and what size jeans you wear will follow—or won’t matter as much anymore.
So instead of checking the scale every day, focus on eating 7 servings of fruits and vegetables a day, cutting back on the sugar and carbs, staying active, drinking more water, and getting more sleep. Make sure your body gets the vitamins and nutrients it needs. These can come through doctor’s prescriptions, daily vitamins, or even programs like Crazy Wrap Life, although getting them through healthy eating is, of course, the goal.
So don’t jump from diet to diet, wondering why you aren’t losing weight—change your lifestyle instead. It will make all the difference.