The internet full of testimonies of amazing bodily transformations can easily lead you to think that when it comes to health, anything less than perfect results is a pure waste of time. What does your barely lost 5 pounds mean compared to someone’s 50, is it even worth sacrificing for so little?
The answer is yes! It is not necessary to reduce by three ready-made numbers to feel certain health benefits and thus affect a better quality of life. Losing just 5% of your current body weight can positively affect the whole range of health problems you have and make you feel better.
This by no means means that you have to stay on it but just gives you encouragement to continue with your goals knowing that even now, even though you may not see them in the mirror, good changes are happening in your body.
Wondering what exactly changes that? The answer is as follows:
1. Relief for joints
Just 5 pounds of excess creates increased pressure on your knees and other lower body joints which affects their increased wear. Also, excess fat can cause inflammation in the body and thus over time lead to damage to body tissues, including joints. Losing just 5% of your body weight can have a positive effect on these processes, reducing the risk of arthritis and other possible damage, while allowing you to move more easily and perform daily activities.
2. Reducing the risk of cancer
There are studies that have already linked a minimal reduction in body weight with a reduced chance of developing breast cancer. Although each individual study should be taken with a dose of suspicion, the lifestyle factor that is most often and strongly associated in many studies with a reduced risk of breast cancer incidence and regression is physical activity, such as a moderate 3-4 hour walk per week that also contributes to maintenance. healthy weight. There is no clear evidence that the same benefits can be achieved with other types of cancer, but some changes that occur with weight loss in the body may suggest that this may be the case – primarily positive changes in hormones associated with cancer such as estrogen, androgens and insulin.
3. Prevention of type 2 diabetes
If you are genetically predisposed to face this disease, maintaining a healthy weight and losing extra weight with regular activity and proper nutrition are the best ways to prevent it, or reduce the chances of getting it to a minimum by changing your lifestyle on time. If you weigh 100 kg, losing just 5 kg could take you in the opposite direction to the one that leads to the disease, and if you have been ill for some time it could allow you to reduce the doses of drugs or discard them altogether, help control your blood sugar and reduce the risk of other diabetes-related health problems.
4. Increase HDL cholesterol levels
We all already know that a healthy lifestyle can affect the decline in the level of so-called. “bad” LDL cholesterol, but we must not neglect the importance of HDL cholesterol, which we call “good” because of the task it has, which is to cleanse our cells of excess cholesterol and therefore we want it in the blood in large quantities. Regular activity and weight loss have a positive effect on raising HDL levels, which preserves our cardiovascular system and thus our overall health.
5. Decreased blood triglyceride levels
Fat in our body, as well as that in food, is in the form of triglycerides, and high values of this parameter increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, as well as other health complications. Losing just a few pounds can have a positive effect on bringing blood triglycerides closer to healthy limits, while reducing these risks.
6. Reduction of high blood pressure
Being overweight creates more pressure on your heart which raises your blood pressure and increases the risk for a whole range of health disorders. If you lose only 5% of your body weight, this loss can have a positive effect on your blood pressure and thus reduce the consequences of it. If you keep your salt intake low (at least those who are sensitive to it) and the recommended portions of vegetables and fruits, this effect will be even greater.
7. Resolving apnea and better sleep
Many who suffer from excess weight due to the accumulation of fatty tissue in the neck have difficulty breathing during sleep, or struggle with so-called apnea, which not only negatively affects the quantity and quality of sleep but also overall health, especially heart health. The negative effects of sleep deprivation on health are known, such as fatigue, irritability, appetite dysregulation and many others, and apnea is just one of the causes. Losing just 5 pounds doesn’t seem like much, but it does reduce this problem, which in turn positively affects many other factors associated with better diet sustainability.
8. Improving insulin sensitivity
Adipose tissue is an endocrine tissue that secretes many harmful inflammatory molecules such as cytokines and spreads them throughout the body. Particularly dangerous to health is the area of the abdomen, which, unlike the fatty tissue in the area of the buttocks and hips, puts us far more at risk of getting sick. These harmful inflammatory molecules disrupt the normal functioning of hormones, including the hormone insulin, which is responsible for regulating blood sugar levels. When, despite the increased work of the pancreas, the cells stop responding normally to insulin, and blood sugar consequently begins to accumulate in the blood, insulin resistance occurs, and it itself poses a great risk to the health of the whole organism. Cell sensitivity to insulin increases with better living habits, but one should not overdo it to see results. And that slight weight loss for you for your body will be a welcome relief in the form of improving insulin sensitivity which will positively affect the work of all organ systems and automatically open the door to better health.
9. Better mood
Losing weight can help fight a bad mood, which is partly due to a better self-image and improved sleep quality, which is often the result of healthier habits. One study found that depressed people were classified and improved as obese after losing only 8% of their body weight. Moreover, it is often enough to just take the first step towards healthier living habits to experience the stated benefits.
10. Reduction of inflammation in the body
As already mentioned, fat cells release certain molecules that irritate and create inflammation in all body tissues which is associated with many health problems like arthritis, heart disease, heart attack and stroke as well as certain mental disorders. By losing weight, you reduce the level of inflammation in the body, and thus the risk of the disease that it causes.
11. Better intimate life
Overweight people often struggle with a negative image of their own body which, in addition to a lack of sexual desire and similar limiting factors, limits them in performing normal sexual activities. It is not necessary to go into extreme transformations to affect this type of life – as with everything else above, only a few kilograms less is enough to change the perception of yourself and the environment, and thus for better and more relaxed relationships. Last year brought us a handful of fears and challenges but also some valuable lessons. One of them is that the greatest value is hidden in the smallest things. In the same way, every smallest kilogram is counted, because no matter how insignificant it may seem, it certainly gives an incentive for better health and good motivation for the future.
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