Healthy Living in Connecticut Blog
Achieving Sustainable Weight Loss
I know some people who lost weight but they end up putting the weight back on. My heart breaks for them. I can’t imagine going through a weight loss journey only to gain the weight again. When I lost the weight and lost an incredible 120 pounds the first year, I was worried I would gain it back, but not too worried.
As I wrote in my book, I lost the weight with a lifestyle change. I don’t think it’s possible to have sustainable weight loss without a lifestyle change. The two have to go together.
Think about how many ads you see for Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem, weight loss pills, etc. Dieting gimmicks are everywhere. Some of them will work, but you need to stick with their programs for life in order to keep the weight off. I’m not putting down weight loss ads, but if someone were to lose weight with those advertised programs, they must learn the right foods to eat to keep the weight off.
As someone who yo-yo dieted for years, I found that health should be priority. In my quest to get healthy, I lost weight. You can too. If you have type II diabetes, for example, research foods that will help you control your disease. Find out what foods to avoid to prevent the disease from getting worse. We are lucky to have the internet at our disposal to find the information we need.
Doctors don’t know about nutrition either, unless they research the subject themselves. Doctors will tell you to cut back on calories and exercise, but you need to further research if you want to change your health and lose weight. Hopefully doctors will eventually be given more hours of nutrition in med school. It is so vital as many Americans suffer from heart disease, the number one killer in the US.
I started my weight loss journey nine years ago. I had no idea where it would take me but I was determined. I wasn’t about to give up and go back to my old ways. That’s why I’m so grateful I found the plant based way of eating. It helped me transform to an ethical vegan too, so no way would I allow myself to consume the foods I used to love. It really kept my lifestyle in check.
Of course, you need to research yourself but most diseases you will discover can bet better with a plant based diet. You will also discover, it will give you sustainable weight loss, without having to worry about being hungry all the time. You can finally break away from diets and achieve your goals with a lifestyle change!
About the author
Richard Hubbard was once over 350 pounds. After a doctor's physical and finding out he was pre-hypertensive, he decided to make changes and avoid medication. Over the course of a year, Rich lost the first 120 pounds of his incredible 150 pound weight loss. He ate healthy foods based on Dr. Joel Fuhrman's book "Eat To Live". He was mostly plant based, but switched to completely plant based in September of 2016. He also became a vegan in the process as his compassion for animals increased. He credits bodybuilder Robert Cheeke for influencing his decision of going vegan. Rich aspires to be a vegan bodybuilder and is planning his first half marathon this year.