Often times, the process of weight loss is over-simplified with the message being: “prioritize your health by making diet and lifestyle changes.” That is much easier said than done! As we are all unique, there isn’t one program or diet or exercise plan that will work for everyone. So how do you decide what to do, when to do it, how much to do, and then have the insight to know when tweaks in the plan need to be made? It can be an intrusive, frustrating process that has physical, emotional and psychological impacts.

Stubborn weight can be the body’s way of letting us know that there is imbalance leading to inefficiency and insufficiency. It is important to assess whether the body has all the tools it needs in all the right places to respond appropriately to our efforts. For instance, what if you commit to a healthy diet but still have nutrient deficiencies related to an impaired gut microbiome? Or you cut out carbs and sugars but have an underlying insulin resistance issue? Or work out frequently and consistently and yet you are unknowingly creating an excess amount of oxidative stress and inflammation defeating your efforts?

So before you beat yourself for not being able to do what others seem to be able to do, come have an assessment. Make sure your body has what it needs in order to do what you are asking it to do. The body is a fierce machine - if you take care of it, it will take care of you!

Losing weight is hard, but sustaining that weight loss is even harder. There are lots of quick-fixes that promise weight loss. But inherently those quick-fixes only work while you are doing them. Often when you stop the intervention, the weight comes back on with avengeance.

At Balanced Health, we have seen a lot of successful weight loss that is sustained in both men and women of all ages. We believe in empowering each patient by helping them learn to listen to their body and gain insight into what it needs so they can regain confidence and control. We believe in systematically balancing the machine that is our body, giving it the gas it needs as well as a jump start, so that when you achieve your healthy goal weight, the body is now better prepared to maintain itself.

The process will look a little different for each person, but that is as it should be. Each of our machines are genetically unique, have a unique composition that has been molded and changed with life and age, have endured different toxins at different levels for different periods of time, and each have a different compensatory responses to the impairment and imbalance. Let us help you figure out how to get back to the person you know you can be. Together we can get you feeling good and looking as good as you feel!

Becoming your optimal self requires intention and effort. Our bodies are our vehicles for life and just like any other vehicle, they need to be maintained and serviced with time and use. Vehicles routinely need gas added, fluids changed, repair of parts for wear and tear, sometimes a jump-start etc.. Diet and lifestyle are a big part of the maintenance and service for our body.

Diet, or what we eat and drink, is the fuel for our vehicle and since we only get one vehicle, it is important to fuel it right. And what is right, looks different for each person. And what is right, will change as we age and enter different phases of life changing what the body needs.

Lifestyle refers to appropriate movement (for strength, flexibility, and circulation), quality sleep with a predictable pattern (to allow our parts to repair and recharge), and a level of mindfulness (to maintain a healthy brain-body connection). As with any imbalance, too little or too much of any of these components can throw off efficiency and sufficiency. As a result, the body may compensate for imbalance and impairment as best as it can to try to maintain homeostasis (i.e. inefficiently burning fat, inefficiently detoxing, inappropriately shunting nutrients and fluids to other places).

That being said, it takes about 21 days to change a habit. And if you change too many habits at once, it is likely you won’t stick to it. Taking intentional, mindful, baby steps is the key. And as you feel better, those changes require less and less effort improving efficiency and sufficiency. And then, a balanced body can better handle a less than ideal food choice or less than optimal lifestyle moment with less repercussion.