3 habits to lose weight with hypothyroid

I implemented these 3 habits into my daily life to lose weight with hypothyroidism. It’s a journey, but we want to keep it off not yo-yo.

Most of us are game on for weight loss. It’s either to feel good or look good, or both! Being “thin” is what we are socially exposed to all day every day, instead of being exposed with loving your body enough to give it what it needs to function optimally. I prefer that term than to say healthy. Saying healthy can lead to other traps like “eating healthy foods”, which most of them are not and, what may be “healthy” for one, isn’t for the other.

Studies have shown that if you are consistently doing something in particular for at least 21 days, it will become a habit. Because good things take time, we have to consider weight loss, a long-term lifestyle habit. Why? Because reality is, we will fall of the wagon at times, but it’s how quickly you can get back on it. Our culture revolves around food, a lot of it, and a lot of “bad” stuff is out there. For everything, we need food. We go on dates, family reunions, events, weddings, movies, everything we associate with food! No wonder our body is freaking out since we don’t constantly feed it what it really needs. So below, are three habits that will get you to lose a little bit of weight for the long-term lifestyle.

1. Water

YES!! I know, we’ve all heard this for so long, for so many years, in so many classes. But it’s true. Besides keeping the body hydrated, for weight loss, it helps to keep and make you feel “full” longer. You know those hunger pangs you get sometimes? It just might be the body asking for water! I know crazy! Just try it, and let me know how it goes. Water has a ton of benefits as well, which helps keep the body operating optimally. Other health benefits that water will add are:

• Detox- helps move toxins out of body
• Moisturizes skin and lips (you know, chapped lips?)
• Reduces headaches
• Reduces constipation
• Helps vital organs
• Gives you ENERGY (we all could use some of that!)
• Spinal health (of course! Your discs need water too!)

Researchers have always suggested the regular 8 cups of 8 onz a day rule. But it’s not factoring in if we eat fruits and vegetables that also contain lots of water. The key here is to drink the same out every day. The reason being is, sometimes our extra weight is really water retention. Our body goes into freak out if you never drink enough water, and one day you do, it’s like “wow, I got water today, I’m keeping it here just in case”. We don’t want that. We want our body to feel safe that we will nurture it every day with more water. Strive for the 8 cups of 8 onz a day. Some people don’t like the “taste” of water. Totally understandable, I had issues with it at the beginning too. I got myself a water diffuser bottle, and just added fruits. It was double bonus if I added fruits that promoted more weight loss!

2. Sleep

I know all the excuses all too well. Between having kids, work, insane work hours, studying, favorite tv shows (who doesn’t love a good netflix binge), family and friends, who finds time to sleep? As we get older, we start to realize our body doesn’t function without a proper night’s sleep. You know exactly what I’m talking about. Early twenties, teen years, party all night, get in at 6 am, shower, straight to class? Yeah, those were the good years. And some how, we were still doing it all wrong! You see, in those years of development, we had to sleep more. Sleep releases the growth hormone, so it was a natural thing, you sleep you grow. Maybe that’s why I got stuck at 5’3…..(hahaha). It’s cool, I enjoy being the short one of the group now, it’s fun when your partner is the one who can reach the kitchen cabinets. But yes, sleep. Studies have shown that we need a good 6-8 hours of sleep. Again, one size doesn’t fit all. Add all this technology, and light pollution, no one is getting a real good night sleep. For some people with certain diseases, the body needs more time so it can recover. For example, I need a good 9-10 hours to be fully optimal doing that every night. But realistically, I go to school full time, study part time, do life, and it’s just not always possible. But why does Sleep affect weight loss? Cortisol! Cortisol is the stress hormone, in a nutshell. So when we don’t sleep, cortisol rises. And so does a lot of health issues that we will discuss later, including weight gain. So we want the body to be relaxed, we want the cortisol to be in a range where it’s functional for us.

Give yourself a time to go to bed. Make the most of your day, and try sticking to that time every night, wake up the same time every morning, including Saturdays and Sundays. And you will start noticing if you need to add an extra hour, take an hour a night so you can find your optimal rhythm.

3. Destress

I think the whole world has gone into a serious campaign to destress.  Why? Because it’s gotten way out of control. We watch the news, we open newspapers, we open facebook, at work, kids, school, the list goes on. We are constantly attacked with negativity! Destressing is a whole other ballgame topic that we will tackle on. Right now, make a list of all the things that help you feel amazing, that help you feel relaxed. From extreme sports to lying on the beach like a mermaid for hours. And guess what? Find the time to do them. It’s beyond important, even for more than just weight loss. Remember, stress, cortisol rise, weight gain. Less stress, will help reduce hormone and thus the weight in most cases.

Let me know in the comments below what destresses you!