Healthy Approaches to Weight Loss

While we now have more information about how to live healthy lives than before it seems diet culture has followed us into the 21st century. Since this approach tends to place emphasis on aesthetics wellbeing, it means people may aspire to weight loss for unhealthy reasons/

When we talk about losing weight in a healthy way, most of us tend to associate this with making healthy choices, for example making sure we eat nutritious food and take regular exercise. It’s also important to make sure that weight-loss itself is a healthy choice for you. 

Technology And Weight Loss

Recent advancements in technology have brought about a range of treatments designed to assist with weight loss and toning. Cosmetic surgery clinics are also more accessible than before, whether you are seeking weight loss in Natick or Napa. 

At one time, in-clinic treatments for weight loss might have been limited to intensive surgical treatments such as liposuction, but in more recent years new non-surgical treatments, even laser treatments, have emerged.

Types of Treatment

The following refers to cosmetic treatments, as opposed to bariatric surgeries which are intended to limit appetite. Cosmetic procedures are generally intended for patients looking to spot-reduce small areas of remaining fat following traditional attempts at weight loss via healthy eating and exercise.

Surgical Treatments

The primary form of surgical fat removal is liposuction. During this procedure a trained cosmetic surgeon removes fat using suction, via a small tube known as a cannula. This is considered a more invasive form of fat removal, with an expected recovery time of around three months during which the patient may experience bruising, swelling and soreness in addition to other potential complications such as skin irregularities.

Non-Surgical Treatments

• Injections: Typically carried out across two treatment sessions (between six and eight weeks apart) these are used to help dissolve extra fat around the chin.
• Ultrasound: Where a sound wave device is used to to gradually dissolve fat over the course of one to three treatments (depending on the type of device used)
• Cryolipolysis (cool sculpting): A device essentially freezes and breaks down fat, typically over two treatment sessions. 
• Radiotherapy: Similar in principle to cool sculpting, except this time a heat-based device is used to dissolve fat over the course of four to ten sessions..

About Cosmetic Treatments for Weight Loss

These treatments can be effective, provided they are carried out by a trained and licensed aesthetician. It also depends on whether the patient is a suitable candidate for treatment. Suitable criteria for a cosmetic weight loss procedure may include:

• Being within 30% of their recommended BMI
• Having good muscle and skin tone to aid healing.
• An overall good level of health (crucial to aiding post-surgery recovery)
• No substance abuse issues (e.g alcohol)
• Documented previous attempts to lose weight via dietary changes and exercise

Patients who are breastfeeding or pregnant should not undergo any surgical or non-surgical weight loss procedures. As part of the screening process for weight-loss surgery, patients should undergo a screening process. 

Putting Mental Health First

In addition to covering the above criteria, this also refers to mental and emotional health,.How we feel about our physical appearance is often closely linked to our sense of self-esteem and even our fundamental self-worth. 

For those considering weight-loss, it is vital to understand that it is not a catch-all solution. Eating disorders are often related to the pressures of unrealistic beauty standards -although that’s not always the whole story. 

Each person’s experience is different: Some people may rely on food to cope with difficult emotions, while another person experiencing depression might feel they don’t “deserve” to eat well. The following includes some examples of unhelpful beliefs and actions related to about weight loss and food:

• Equating love and acceptance with thinness
• Treating exercise as self-punishment
• Counting calories of every food item
• Hiding food or behaviors around food
• Feeling the urge to purge food after eating
• Struggling to eat in company
• Developing rituals to do with food
• Rapid weight fluctuations
• Gastrointestinal issues
• Struggling to regulate body temperature
• Body dysmorphia 

If you recognise any of these, make it a priority to speak with your healthcare provider about finding support: for your mental and emotional health. In scenarios like these, it may be better to seek therapeutic care first, especially since any underlying issues are likely to resurface even once physical weight goals have been achieved.

Social Media and Body Image 

Despite an increase in body positive messages in recent years, social media has only increased the number of idealized (and often heavily-filtered) images we see everyday. For many, thinness tends to be conflated with the aspirational lifestyle of influencers, and with weight loss medications like Ozempic on the rise, this idealized lifestyle can feel tantalizingly within reach.

Instead this tends to foster an unhealthy fixation on weight-loss and a belief in it as the solution to all life’s problems, and that once a certain goal weight is achieved, then you can go for that job, start going on dates or go on that vacation.  In reality this is only placing a barrier between you and your own happiness. 

Healthy Approaches to Weight Loss

It can be hard to take personal appearances out of the equation, yet achieving a “healthy” weight should be about just that: health. Increased focus on health goals leans more towards body neutrality: an appreciation for what the body is capable of, rather than what it looks like. If body positivity doesn’t feel right, this can be a mode of thought worth experimenting with. Some healthy reasons for weight loss can include: 

• Improved joint health 
• A healthier, more resilient immune system
• Reduced risk of sleep apnea
• More energy throughout the day 

Taking a slower more personalized approach to health (rather than reaching for the latest fad diet) is more likely to produce sustainable results. In addition to the health benefits listed above, this can also help to rekindle a relationship with food and movement based not on punishment but self-care and nourishment.