Sustainability is big in the world right now. You hear talk of sustainable business practices, sustainable energy sources, sustainable fashion, and more, but arguably the first sustainable way of life that we all need to adopt is to our own health. Being sustainably healthy means being perpetually healthy. It means staying in a healthy range in terms of fitness, weight, and in terms of diet.
Our bodies naturally want to remain in the state that they are in, and this is why we can go into starvation mode when we start extreme diet fads and end up putting on more weight than we had when we started. Getting up and being active is difficult to achieve because while exercising feels great, it also uses a lot of energy we are simply not used to. Quitting our favorite foods can be similar to quitting smoking for some, particularly as those favorite snacks of ours tend to be items high in sugar, fat or salt.
Remain health conscious in today’s world
Our bodies try their hardest to keep us in our current state. The only problem is, of course, that modern life has changed how we can live our lives. We have the luxury of remaining indoors, walking little, sitting most of the day, and eating a wealth of tasty foods without too much fuss. It is altogether too easy to be unhealthy. However, being unhealthy is more than just being overweight – it’s a threat on your life.
Diet affects your health and wellbeing
The top causes of death in the western world are heart disease and cancer. Obesity is a risk factor in both. Being overweight causes your heart to strain, your blood vessels to contract, and for your fat to store unhealthy toxins in your body for long periods of time. Obesity and being overweight also limits your ability to move, further restricting you in terms of what you can do, and how long you will live. Going on a crash diet won’t help you reduce your risk of these diseases, because it is a short-term solution and not a long-term, sustainable way to live. You need to change your lifestyle, not your diet for a month.
Crash diets put a lot of strain on the body, but replacing the unhealthy foods in your diet can do the trick. You need to stop thinking of a diet as in dieting, and instead, realize that your body needs its essential vitamins and nutrients to thrive. Rather than starve yourself, get the food you need from healthier sources that do more for your body.
Keep up a nutritious and balanced diet
A lot of processed foods has been treated with chemicals. This is what makes said processed food last longer, but in many cases, it also means that your body cannot absorb what few nutrients that food has. In effect, you are eating empty calories. Empty calories are the food your body needs to function, but it is the nutrients that it needs to be healthy and to thrive.
In order to take the weight off and keep it off, you need to be more committed to a lifestyle change. One of the ways to do this is to lower your body’s weight with the SetPoint diet. Your SetPoint weight is, essentially the weight your body will fluctuate. Everyone has a different SetPoint weight, and to be healthier; you need to lower your SetPoint weight to a happy, healthy level. This weight range of ten pounds is where your body will act to sustain its current state. It’s why you feel hungrier on some days and less on others, and so on.
Understand your options and follow a routine
You don’t need to starve yourself to reach your healthy weight; you just need to eat healthier. Stock up on frozen fruits and vegetables if you cannot afford fresh ones all the time. Frozen options, in fact, can hold more nutrients than their fresh counterparts and are an excellent way to save money and stay healthy. Combine this with being more active. Walk in the morning, take the stairs at work, or even dance in your living room when you get home. You don’t need to go to the gym to be active; you just need to be more active. Once your body is used to the increased movement, you can then go and hire a personal trainer to help you get the body you’ve always dreamed about.
Gone are the days of unhealthy beauty standards. You don’t need to look like the Photoshopped models in magazines, but you do need to be healthy. Being healthy is what will help you be your best and happiest self.
