Weight can be stubborn and become difficult to control. A problem that many dieters face when undergoing a weight-reduction plan is the yoyo effect or weight cycling. It is where people lose weight fast and regain it back, over and over, hence the struggle continues.
Weight watching becomes a vicious cycle that makes it difficult to lose weight permanently. It hurts the body and can also have severe consequences for mental health.
Here are some of the possible effects of yoyo dieting on a person:
Physical stress
Losing weight is a form of starvation that sets your body into “survival mode,” thus making it difficult to lose weight. You will not experience this in the early days of crash dieting. Still, your body will weaken due to caloric restriction, and you will lose the needed energy to cope with your usual routine. You might be insomniac, and as a result, can binge on midnight snacks.
Loss of muscle and body mass
Don’t get fooled with what you see on the scale; weight loss could be a decrease of fluids in the body, which in turn contributes to muscle loss instead of fat. When muscle mass decreases, the body can still adapt but will show a drop in metabolism. This unhealthy effect makes it impossible to lose weight. It will cause the body to conserve energy and protect stored fat.
Eating more protein and doing strength training are preventive measures for losing muscles and lean body mass when on a diet.
Starvation
When you are on a diet, your body allows the drop in the amount of leptin. Leptin is a hormone-controlling hunger. It signals the brain that there is still enough energy available. All the fat cells in the collection are capable of producing leptin. Because your body wants to refill the fat cells, your appetite increases because of hunger. Low levels of leptin can make you feel less satiated after having a meal.
Mental stress
Creating a mindset that you are dieting can get your brain preoccupied with negative thoughts. This can, in turn, lead to you suffering from anorexia nervosa (creating a lousy impression with the foils). You always feel conscious of how you look and getting paranoid about checking the weighing scale now and then. You no longer have control over your health, and eventually your life.
It can be unhealthy
Being fit is healthy; it can improve life because it lowers your blood pressure. A healthy lifestyle can reduce the risk of dreadful diseases like cancer, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.
However, a reduction in weight when you are not used to it is never healthy. Losing weight comes with a lot of mental and physical stress, and to lose weight fast, and yoyo back increases your risk of these chronic diseases.
What is the alternative to crash diets?
With all these harmful effects mentioned, are you still on a Yo-yo diet your entire life? Why not lead a healthy lifestyle while being slightly overweight? These healthy tips might help:
- Reduce the intake of sweets, processed foods
- Lessen your carbohydrates
- Cut down on alcoholic drinks
- Increase lean protein in your meal
- Go vegan or vegetarian
- Nuts, soya beans, whole grains, and eggs are not forbidden foods
- Reduce stress (physical and mental)
- Avoid foods with trans fats but go for healthy fats.
- Exercise makes a difference.
Conclusion
Quit the “diet mindset.” Perfect body weight is not your goal but the result of what you do. Bear in mind that a yoyo diet is a complete bore so that you will avoid it ever. It only consists of lousy foods that you might rebel in the end, hence the detrimental effects on your health.
The struggle to lose weight fast is continuous, so why hurry when you have all the time. Reducing weight is a marathon, not a running sprint. Set a smaller goal and work on it until it becomes habitual. In this way, it is impossible to fall back and yoyo once again.