Things to Think About when Considering Weight Loss

By Jeremy Watts, IMM

Jeremy’s recommendation:

Walk 5 days per week for 45 minutes per day

Fast—Eat 1 or 2 times per day for 3 days out of the week & use portion control

Shop for foods with less SODIUM, SUGAR, AND SATURATED FATS

Sleep—Get to bed at a decent time and make sure you are consistent

Over the course of my time in academia and research I have witnessed many things about the status of Americans' health. One is that the statistics show that we are sicker than ever in every chronic disease category. That is the direct result of the second fact which is that we are more overweight and obese than ever.

These two facts significantly increase annually and show no signs of slowing down.  So what can we do to curb these unhealthy trends?  There are a number of considerations that we must be mindful of daily.    We want healthy livers, hearts, brains, and joints as we age.  We can reduce inflammation, sleepless nights, emotional instability and anxiety, and improve our metabolism to reduce our weight and live a healthier life.  Below are some of the things that we can execute in our lives to begin reversing our behaviors and thus change our body composition and reduce our weight.

Food Intake and Strategy

Food intake is by far the most important and most effective concept of weight control and healthy metabolism, which I’ll break down into the following categories:

Nutrients and Fasting Strategies
Physical Activity
Shopping

NUTRIENTS include vitamins and minerals that are essential in our metabolism and assist our bodily functions. Our thyroid, liver, heart, brain, kidneys, joints, skin, and our senses require adequate nutrients to work for us. This Nutrient Link provides basic sources of vitamins, minerals, and more specifically healthy sources of protein. We want to avoid processed sugars, and reduce carbohydrates which inflame all of our cells, and transform into fat that gets stored in our organs and all of the unwanted places that become empty weight. I recommend switching to a plant-based diet (you can still eat meat) and buy an assortment of colors of veggies. You will get an assortment of vitamins and minerals that you wouldn’t get with a sugar and carb-based diet. It’s never a bad time to learn how to prep and cook a meal; your significant other will love it, I’m certain of that! I also recommend supplementing with a multivitamin. Vitamin C, Zinc, Iron, B-12, and Calcium.

The western diet we eat inflames us and these inflammatory foods will bloat the intestines and decrease the absorption of the right nutrients. Bloating actually has more of a negative effect on the mind than we realize and can be demoralizing when we constantly feel bloated. Fasting strategies may assist with this, which we will move into next.

FASTING STRATEGIES are a highly effective method for weight control. If we are fasting, we are also reducing the number of times we eat which reduces chronic inflammation. As mentioned, inflammation has detrimental affects on your nutrient intake, and it will also affect your mood—your mood directly affects your decision-making that includes whether you exercise and are being active or whether you stay in the house. I recommend picking out two or three days a week (or more) where you eat once or twice in a day. Fast for in between 16 and 24 hours and pay attention to your eating impulses that you experience. We are programmed to eat 3 times a day and we want to recognize this while allowing our body to rely on stored fat and energy to fuel us for the day. This method reduces the frequency of food inflammation and promotes natural metabolism to occur. Over time you may find that your focus on life increases as well if you practice it which touches on the spiritual side too!

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY is a major component for weight loss. Let’s begin with walking, which has been proven to improve your mood. There is a bi-directional relationship between activity and mood—if you’re active you’re more likely to feel good and if you feel good you’re more than likely to be active, while follow through on executing that meal plan as discussed earlier. Being active also has a positive effect on our metabolism, blood pressure of the organs, focus, and blood flow to our tissues. If we are gaining weight then we have most likely accumulated fat cells in certain areas of the body, including important organs—such as the liver. The liver is critical in filtering the blood and reconverting spent blood sugar back into more energy. Walking for an extended period of time will also target fat storage for energy which helps reduce body fat, losing the empty weight that we carry. The key to walking and other forms of exercise being effective is CONSISTENCY. Create a schedule and time, and make a contract with yourself to be accountable. Once you gain momentum and create a habit, the activity usually becomes easier!

Shopping

Reading a food label is highly effective.

WHEN we go to the grocery store, it’s important to choose healthy foods from the produce isle—this a given for a plant-based diet with healthy meats for protein. However, it’s equally important to read the food labels on everything we purchase through the rest of the store.

Some of the ingredients are detrimental to our cells and organs if consumed in excess, which most Americans are in excess! Sugars for example, are highly inflammatory and can negatively affect your mood, your arteries, the liver, and contributes to the onset of diabetes. Saturated fats lead to bad cholesterol which accumulate in the blood vessels over time and can lead to higher blood pressure, heart rate, and increases your likelihood for cardiovascular disease. Sodium is another ingredient found in high quantities in certain foods, like canned soups, frozen dinners, and various potato chips. Sodium also contributes to higher blood pressure and can be an inflammatory. Always watch for these ingredients when purchasing things like milk (high sugar), and canned goods (sodium). Bacon, cheese, and many brands of cake snacks are high in saturated fats. It becomes easier with practice but it is a must!

Start thinking about these things and eventually you may decide to take action and remember to practice some or all of these methods. Let’s go!

Sincerely,

imm