When a client seeks my advice for weight loss, I dispense advice one at a time. Too much information is overwhelming. I would rather have clients focus on performing one activity well before proceeding to the next steps. Weight loss and body transformation, if they are to be lasting, cannot be quick fixes. They must be intentional journeys.
The very first advice I give is to drink more water. In fact, replace every beverage in your diet with water. This means no more alcohol, carbonated beverages, and even caffeinated beverages. Black coffee is a bit nuanced, but a typical mocha, latte, or cappuccino can contain hundreds of calories. Diet sodas do not provide adequate hydration and studies have shown that artificial sweeteners can increase the risk of heart disease, obesity, and high blood pressure.
You need water to survive. Most of your body consists of water. You need water for your brain and muscles to function. Everyone needs water.
Water also controls your appetite. Too often, we confuse dehydration with starvation and eat unnecessarily more when we actually need to hydrate more. There is an association between dehydration and obesity.
For those who are overweight or obese, drinking more water and replacing all beverages with water would be the first lifestyle change I would recommend. Once this habit is formed within the first few weeks of the journey, we will have a solid foundation to implement other lifestyle changes and exercises to help you permanently transform your body and improve your health.
References:
Chang, Ravi, Plegue, Sonneville, and Davis. “Inadequate Hydration, BMI, and Obesity Among US Adults: NHANES 2009-2012.” Annals of Family Medicine. VOL. 14, NO. 4, July/August 2016.
http://www.annfammed.org/content/14/4/320.full.pdf+html
Parker, Najja. “This is what 12 Diet Cokes a day can do to your body, according to Atlanta nutritionists.” Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Dec. 13, 2017.
https://www.ajc.com/news/world/this-what-diet-cokes-day-can-your-body-according-atlanta-nutritionists/WtFN5e0VYGxYodBxuCyJaL/
