8 Health and Well-Being Benefits That Weight Loss Brings
Losing weight is about much more than the numbers on your bathroom scales. Getting a little slimmer brings huge benefits across your entire life, and here are eight of the most important.
1) Improved Self-Confidence
There’s nothing that says you can’t be overweight and still be full of confidence. But the chances are, if you’re a little heavier than you’d like then your self-confidence will be impacted. Slimming down will help make you feel more secure about your appearance, and so be happier in your everyday life.
2) Enjoy an Energy Boost
A strong side effect of dropping a few pounds is that you’ll have more energy as you go about your days. This is for three reasons. First, you’ll have less weight to carry around with you all the time, and so normal movement won’t be as tiring. Second, losing weight usually leads to more consistent blood sugar levels, reducing fatigue in the hours between meals. Lastly, you’ll also be fitter overall and have more stamina, especially if you increase your exercise levels as part of your diet plan.
3) Increased Productivity
This combination of increased energy and greater self confidence means you can expect a boost in productivity. You’ll get more done at work, with the obvious career benefits that brings. But you’ll also see the benefits at home. You’ll get the chores done more quickly, leaving more time and energy for hobbies and things that make you happy and fulfilled.
4) Better Heart Health
Obesity is one of the largest factors in heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular conditions. Every pound you lose reduces the strain on your heart, and could literally be a lifesaver.
5) Better Sleep
Losing weight can help you sleep more restfully. This is largely because conditions like sleep apnea, acid reflux, and lower back pain are less common the slimmer you become, and are less likely to disturb you during the night.
6) Diabetes
Research suggests that seriously overweight people are 80 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those with a body mass index within the healthy range. The risk is particularly high for people with excess tummy and hip fat, although the reason isn’t yet fully understood.
7) Reduced Strain on Bones and Joints
Losing weight reduces your future risk of osteoarthritis, and also lessens the everyday aches and pains felt in your overworked joints.
8) Lower Risk of Cancer
Obesity is linked to a higher risk of many different forms of cancer, especially liver cancer, gastric and intestinal cancers, kidney cancer, and breast cancer. The increased risk is thought to be caused by long-term tissue inflammation brought on by excess weight. And to make matters worse, recovery is more complicated and less successful in cancer patients who are overweight at the start of treatment.
Not all of these benefits will be seen by everyone who loses weight, and some people find dieting much harder than others. But the advantages of slimming down to a healthier weight are too strong to be ignored, whether you drop a few pounds or a few dozen.
