You’ve had weight loss. You’ve had weight gain. Doesn’t matter how much, you’re pretty happy with yourself. The scale isn’t your enemy anymore. Then suddenly, it seems (actually, it isn’t so sudden) the number on your scale inches up as the inches on your body expand. You shouldn’t really be that surprised. Once you’ve hit your goal weight and decide you’re “off” of your diet, the weight is going to come right back. You loosen up on healthy behaviors and dig into foods that previously had been on the no-fly list. Rice cakes give way to creamy risotto, steamed veggies give way to fried anything. The common thinking is that once you’ve lost the weight, the hard work is over. If you begin to beat yourself up and feel like a real failure, you’re in good company. Estimates suggest that anywhere from 80 – 95 percent of people who lose weight gain it back.
YO-YO DIETING; LOSE IT. GAIN IT. LOSE IT. GAIN IT. KEEP REPEATING.
Even worse than losing weight is when you have weight gain. When your weight has more ups and downs than a hotel elevator. This is what is called yo-yo dieting, also known as weight cycling. Apropos, as it’s a cycle of discontent. You find your closets have a range of sizes hanging woefully on the rods, your “skinny” jeans rotating with your “fat” jeans. If you need a good example of yo-yo dieting, just look at Oprah Winfrey, queen of the dieting roller coaster. Her 40-year weight loss struggle has played out on tv and covers of magazines for the world to see. She’s accomplished amazing things but keeping her weight off isn’t one of them. While being overweight often comes with some health issues, yo-yo dieting can lead to muscle loss, a higher body fat percentage and even an increased risk of diabetes, heart disease and higher blood pressure.
EVEN WHAT THE BIGGEST LOSERS LOST CAME BACK
Without question, the show “The Biggest Losers” was an astounding winner. People watched with awe, both mesmerized and inspired. But get this; researchers from the National Institute of Health followed 14 contestants who had participated in the “Biggest Loser” reality show. During the 30 weeks of the show, the contestants lost an average of over 125 pounds per person. But in the six years after the show, all but one had weight gain. They gained back most of their lost weight (some even more), despite continuing to diet and exercise.
REGAINING WEIGHT LOSS; METABOLIC MELTDOWN
Sometimes regaining weight you’ve lost isn’t all your fault. As soon as you start losing weight, your body suddenly wants it all back. It can’t tell the difference between intentional weight loss and being struck by famine. It immediately goes into protective mode, lowering your metabolism and stimulating your appetite to preserve fat stores. Then there are hormones that can wreak havoc on your efforts to avoid weight gain. Your fat cells make a hormone called leptin. It tells your brain when you have enough fat stored up. As you lose weight, less fat means less leptin. That makes you hungry. And that can make your cravings skyrocket.
STAY A SUCCESS STORY If you want to lose weight, and more importantly avoid weight gain, fad diets or nothing but egg whites and lettuce leaves simply aren’t going to work. So, what are you supposed to do? A good place to start is at Thrive Health Solutions in Denver, CO. Thrive offers a doctor-supervised, integrated medical weight loss program uniquely designed to help you lose weight without feeling deprived. Thrive’s weight loss options include pharmaceutical HCG, custom-compounded fat-burning lipotropic injections, B12 injections and FDA approved appetite suppressants. When combined with a variety of diet systems like Paleo, Keto, intermittent fasting or Thrive’s proprietary weight loss diet, you can lose from ½ to 1 lb daily. Want to see what results like this look like? Just check out our “before and after’s” page. Make an appointment at Thrive to find out all your weight loss options. Find your own happy “after”. And stay there.
