When you need to lose weight for your health, it can be difficult to know what strategy to use. It may be tempting to try to drop the weight as quickly as possible. However, safe and healthy weight loss cannot be achieved through crash diets or extreme exercise programs; it requires making gradual lifestyle changes. At Men’s Vitality Center in Tucson, we offer weight loss management to help our patients reach a healthy weight in a healthy way. With the guidance of our physicians, we can help you find a program that works for your life, so you can sustain your weight loss and new healthy lifestyle. Unfortunately, there are many people out there who are not willing to have the patience required to lose weight healthily, and use unhealthy or dangerous means to lose weight. Here is our list of the worst ways to attempt to lose weight:
Starvation diets
While severely limiting the number of calories you consume can lead you to lose weight, it also deteriorates your muscles and slows your metabolism. These types of diets are not sustainable, and the moment you switch back to a normal eating pattern, you will gain the weight back, this time with more fat and less muscle. It is inadvisable to restrict your calorie intake below 1,200 per day; otherwise, you are not getting the nutrients you need to go about your day.
“Miracle” supplements
There is a whole market for dietary supplements that make grand claims about how much weight you can lose by taking them. These claims are invariably false. Makers of supplements do not have to prove the effectiveness of their products like makers of prescription drugs do, so they can claim their supplements perform miracles. However, these products have no effect, and sometimes, can even be unsafe for you.
Purging
Purging, such as vomiting, chewing and spitting out food, and using laxatives, is very unhealthy for you. Stomach acid can cause erosion in your esophagus, mouth, and teeth, and increases your risk of cancer and tooth decay. Regular purging can also cause dehydration, as you are losing fluids and electrolytes.
Extreme exercise
Excessive exercise can cause serious damage to your body and increase your risk of injury. It can also be psychologically unhealthy, as it can associate exercise with punishment for eating in your mind. It is best to follow an exercise regimen that involves moderate cardio for 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week.
When you need weight loss management, Men’s Vitality Center in Tucson can help. Contact us today for more information.