Are you tired of carrying excess weight everywhere you go? Being overweight or obese isn’t just a physical burden. It can also weigh you down mentally and emotionally. If you’re finally ready to make a change for the better, adopting a healthy diet is one of the first steps you should take. However, dieting isn’t just about dropping excess pounds. You’re more likely to fail in your weight loss endeavors if you focus all your attention on simply getting skinny.
Ideally, your “why” for adopting a healthier diet should be much bigger than slimming down and looking more attractive. It’s OK if that’s part of your goal, but you’re more likely to succeed if your focus is deeper than appearance alone. Here are four areas of health to include in your dieting journey if you want to improve your motivation to succeed.
Table of Contents
1. Mental Health
Your mental health refers to your overall state of well-being and ability to cope with life’s challenges. Many people gain weight in the first place because of poor mental health. Social, structural, and individual factors can either build up or undermine your mental health. If you want your dieting efforts to be successful, it’s wise to honestly analyze your mental health and make improvements as needed.
There are plenty of ways to boost your mental health on your own (such as meditating, practicing mindfulness, and developing gratitude). However, you’ll most likely get better results with professional help. Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to find affordable online therapy that works with your schedule. Give it a try to see how a therapist can help you identify, manage, and overcome your mental health challenges. When you improve your mental well-being, you’ll have an easier time dieting and letting go of extra weight.
2. Physical Health
If you make your dieting focus all about getting slimmer, you might not make the wisest food choices. With traditional weight loss efforts, the prevailing mantra is to simply burn more calories than you consume. In many cases, it doesn’t matter whether the bulk of your calories comes from vegetables or candy, as you don’t exceed your daily limit. While this dieting method might help you lose some weight, it certainly won’t help you get healthier.
To maximize your weight loss efforts, make sure you focus on building up your physical health while dropping extra weight. Focus on consuming nutrient-dense foods such as whole grains, vegetables, lean meats, fresh fruits, and other whole foods. You may be surprised to discover how much more you can eat without exceeding your calorie limits when you focus on nutrient-dense options.
3. Social Health
If you’re planning on avoiding friends and family until you can surprise them with the new, slimmer you, think twice before isolating yourself. Social support and interactions are crucial for successful weight loss and dieting efforts. A supportive network can help you push through when you feel tempted to binge on sugary sodas, ice cream, or other empty calories. If you try to do it on your own, there’s less accountability when you reach for a chocolate chip cookie or slice of pizza.
Making lasting lifestyle changes can be incredibly challenging. However, having adequate social support for your weight-loss and healthy living efforts can mean the difference between failure and success. So, go ahead and tell those closest to you about your healthy living goals. You could even inspire someone else to join your healthy living journey and change their life for the better, as well! At the very least, you’ll have other people in your corner rooting for you and helping you become your best self.
4. Emotional Health
When you’re feeling sad or disappointed, do you tend to reach for a bag of chocolate or chips to help you feel better? If so, you’re probably an emotional eater who turns to food for comfort when experiencing emotional distress. If you want to stick to any healthy diet for the long term, it’s crucial to break your emotional eating habits first. To do that, you’ll need to identify your emotional triggers and build up your resilience to emotional stressors. You may also need to modify your dieting approach to one that’s more likely to work for you.
Emotional eaters may respond with extreme emotional distress when they’re forbidden from enjoying their favorite comfort foods. They may find themselves unable to think of anything except the food or treat they’re “not allowed” to indulge in. A better method for an emotional eater might be to eat mostly healthy foods but allow favorite comfort foods in moderation. This removes the emotional anguish that comes with deprivation. It’s also a good idea to address the underlying cause of emotional eating with a qualified therapist for long-term dieting success.
Adopting a Healthier Lifestyle
Sticking to a diet can be hard, especially if your sole motivation is to look good in your wardrobe. Getting a gorgeous, beach-ready body might be incentive enough for some people to change, but not all. If you want to increase your ability to adopt a healthier lifestyle for the long term, consider focusing on these four crucial areas of health while dieting.