Many of you may have set fitness goals for yourself to try and achieve. Some of you may want to shed off some pounds, while others want to gain weight. And so, you each do some significant lifestyle changes to achieve your weight goals and, ultimately, get that healthy and fit body you’ve been dreaming for.
Suppose after several weeks or months; you were able to attain your goal of having a healthy weight. And so, now comes the hard part, which is maintaining it. However, many people still struggle in maintaining a healthy weight and staying consistent with their healthy habits due to busy schedules and numerous responsibilities that distract them from pursuing healthier habits.
Maintaining a healthy weight is the key for your body to function better and defend itself from viruses and diseases. While it’s true that trying to maintain a healthy weight can be overwhelming and challenging, there are steps you can do to help you stay consistent and dedicated with your healthy habits.
Here are six lifestyle changes you can do to help achieve and maintain a healthy weight.
1. Keep Track Of Your Weight
This may not be part of your healthy habits, but keeping track of your weight regularly will help you monitor your weight if you’re losing or gaining some. You can monitor your weight by having a body weighing scale with you at home or installing bathroom scales so, you can quickly check your weight’s progress regularly.
The more you’re aware of your progress, the more you’re encouraged and motivated to stay consistent with your daily healthy habits and be more mindful of your lifestyle behaviors. How often you monitor your weight is your personal choice. You can do it on a daily or a weekly basis, or whatever works best for you.
2. Stick To A Healthier Diet
Your food intake contributes a lot to your weight and overall health status. The moment you finally achieved your weight goal, make sure you continue with your current diet. Don’t let yourself loosen up on eating healthier food choices even if you’ve already attained your desired weight.
For optimal health, your body will need forty nutrients, and not a single food can ever supply you with all these nutrients. Thus, it’s essential to balance your meals and ensure each meal consists of different nutrients. For instance, if your breakfast is packed with carbohydrates, you may opt to fill your lunch with protein and go for a low-fat meal during dinner.
It’s also ideal if you include vegetables and fresh fruits with your meals or snacks. For instance, instead of buying out a fast-food meal for your afternoon snack, prepare yourself with slices of fruits or a fruit smoothie as a healthier alternative.
3. Always Be Physically Active
Aside from healthier meals, your physical activity is also crucial in maintaining a healthy weight. Doing regular exercise and engaging in different physical activities will help burn off the extra calories you’ve collected from the food you eat. If you can’t sign up for gym memberships, don’t be discouraged. After all, hitting the gym isn’t the only solution towards doing regular exercise.
You can plan out some workout exercises at home or refer to fitness videos online for your guide. You can search for different exercises to lose belly fat or look up specific workout plans on health and fitness websites that match your fitness goals. Moreover, try to keep on actively moving despite doing regular tasks at home or outdoors.
For instance, you can take your pet for a 15 to 30-minute walk in the park as part of your physical activity. Another is, you may opt to use the stairs more rather than the elevator. The point is, leading an active lifestyle in every aspect of your life can help maintain your healthy weight. Just ensure you combine exercise with healthy foods for better results.
4. Get Enough Hours Of Sleep
The quality of your sleep is crucial when it comes to maintaining a healthy weight. Unfortunately, out of all the primary factors towards optimal health, it’s sleep that’s easily overlooked and neglected. If you’ve noticed, when you get busy at work or in your house, you often sacrifice your sleep just to ensure you get everything done on time. Another is if you’re hanging out with your family or friends, you put off sleep to spend more time with them.
Frequently depriving yourself of good sleep quality can bring adverse effects to your health, especially your metabolism. Poor sleep can slow down your metabolism, making it harder for you to control your weight. Moreover, insufficient sleep is also linked to the deterioration of your immune system. The weaker your immune system is, the harder it is for your body to fight off viruses and diseases, making you more vulnerable to sickness.
So, as much as possible, always strive to get at least seven to nine hours of sleep every day. It’s beneficial to start a bedtime routine to help you ease yourself to sleep faster and easier.
5. Stay Properly Hydrated
According to research, drinking lots of water every day can significantly help in maintaining your weight. You can use water to help you control your food intake before every meal. For instance, before taking your lunch or dinner, it’s best to drink one to two glasses of water thirty minutes before your meal to make you feel full and lessen your food intake.
Aside from that, drinking water also boosts your metabolism, which is vital for weight maintenance. Water encourages your body to burn more calories throughout the day, making it easier for you to achieve your weight goal.
6. Control Stress Levels
Did you know that stress can also greatly influence your weight maintenance? Stress is inevitable. You can feel it from your job, your studies, or even at home. That’s why, as part of your lifestyle habits, you must find ways to control your stress levels and overall emotional health.
When you’re constantly stressed, your body’s production of cortisol, a stress hormone, will increase rapidly. Having high cortisol levels will then lead to weight regain as this hormone triggers overeating, stress-eating, and appetite. If you’ve noticed, some people tend to eat more when they’re stressed, as it’s their body’s way of responding to stress.
To maintain your stress levels under control and maintain a healthy weight, you can do some things or incorporate new lifestyle habits that may help combat stress. Some of these may include doing yoga, meditation, traveling, journaling, or taking a warm bath before sleeping.
Key Takeaway
Some people experience weight regain because they try to achieve and follow restrictive diets and complicated workout plans. But the thing is, you don’t need to go through the hard way to achieve and maintain your weight. You only need to start doing small and simple lifestyle changes such as the ones listed above and try your best to be consistent with them for as long as you can.
Sooner or later, you’ll realize that maintaining your weight isn’t only about how strict you are with your diet. Other factors that present a vital role in weight maintenance include your sleep quality, exercise, and emotional and mental health. So, let these simple lifestyle changes guide you in slowly shifting to a healthier path towards your fitness goals.
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