20 Reasons You Should Lose Weight

You only need to take one look at the television or social media to realise that weight loss is a big talking point these days.

‘Fat-shaming’ and ‘thin privilege’ are two terms I keep seeing all over the place.

Now while I believe that everybody should be treated equally as kindly, at the end of the day, we are health bloggers. This makes weight management/obesity a topic which needs to be looked at very objectively.

Holding a few extra pounds doesn’t hurt anybody. It really doesn’t. Both mine and Ryan’s weight has fluctuated in the past… it happens to most of us.

Being 8-10lb overweight isn’t going to have too many negative consequences, other than perhaps your jeans being slightly too tight around your thighs or bum.

However, when you’re carrying an extra 20, 30, 40lb or more, this is when it can have serious negative effects on a ton of different areas in your life.

Moral standpoints aside, I’m going to put it bluntly – being overweight is not good for you.

In order to back up these claims, I’ve written this comprehensive list of 20 reasons you should lose weight.

I’ve included various different benefits you can gain from losing weight, from physical, to mental, to emotional.

Hopefully one of these reasons will be enough to strike an emotional chord within you and help you get started on your journey to an overall better life.

If you do decide that you want to drop 10-20 pounds as fast as possible, I do have a recommendation at the end of this post which would be a great place to begin.

Let’s get started, shall we?

Your libido will skyrocket.

I have good news ladies and gentlemen.

Shedding the extra unwanted body fat leads to a rise in testosterone levels which causes a significant increase in sex drive.

A study was published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism which proved that men who are overweight have similar testosterone levels to men who are a full 10 years older than them.

It’s also been shown that women with higher levels of belly fat are more likely to secrete far higher levels of cortisol, a stress hormone. High cortisol levels have a huge negative impact on sex drive.

Aside from these facts, dropping an extra 20 pounds may help you feel far less self-conscious in the bedroom, too.

Of all the reasons you should lose weight, this has to be near the top of the list, right?!

You’ll get higher quality sleep… and more of it!

It’s not commonly known that your weight can have a significant impact on both the quality of your sleep and theamount of shut-eye you actually get.

It’s a known fact that regular exercise helps with sleep quality and reduces the incidence of insomnia. However, there are a couple of other sleep benefits of losing weight which not as many people are aware of.

The more extra unnecessary weight your body holds, the harder it has to work simply to remain in an idle state. If your body has to work harder, your sleep quality is reduced and you’re far more likely to wake upduring the night.

Also, those who are overweight tend to eat more sugary foods with less nutritional value. This leads to a lack of nourishment, meaning your body quickly craves more of these bad foods.

This can actually lead to waking up due to hunger either in the middle of the night, or abruptly in the morning, leaving you tired and unrested as you attempt to go about your day.

Your joints will feel much better.

Being overweight, especially obese, can wreak havoc on your joints, especially your knees.

But weight gain leads to inflammatory, which in turn causes trouble in smaller joints like your hands, feet, elbows and ankles. Adopting an anti-inflammatory diet can work wonders for those who suffer from conditions such as arthritis.

As you get older, your joints are slowly going to experience wear and tear, it’s inevitable. Why would you want to speed that process up? Lose the extra pounds now and it’ll save you from having surgeries and hip replacements at the age of sixty.

You’ll experience far less stress and anxiety.

There are some factors in life which inevitably cause a bit of stress. Financial pressure can play a part in this, along with your boss being on your back or being overwhelmed with a huge workload.

However, there are plenty of physical factors which worsen these effects. Things which we can easily change.

It’s no coincidence that the foods which increase your body fat are also the same foods which increase your stress and anxiety levels, while the foods which help you stay lean and healthy are the same foods which help alleviate stress.

It’s a known fact that processed foods and drinks like candy, ice cream and soda release a huge dump of cortisol, a stress hormone. They also spike your blood sugar, mess up your insulin sensitivity and then lead to a massive crash.

This causes your brain to release even more cortisol, triggering more cravings for sugary foods, and causing even more stress.

The foods you put into your mouth is a very simple decision which could drastically reduce the effects of every other stress factor in your life.

You’re more likely to get your dream job.

People can be assholes. Not all, but definitely some.

It’s been proven by various studies that being overweight can have a negative impact on your chances of getting a job.

The International Journal of Obesity published a study in which employers were shown two photos – one photo of a person who was overweight, and another photo of the same person after losing weight.

The study showed that they were more inclined to hire the ‘thinner person’.

Overweight folk are also less likely to be taken into consideration when it comes to supervisory and management positions, along with promotions.

Also, aside from your interviewer being a douchebag, it will also make you feel more confident in the interview… making you more likely to nail it!

Allergy and asthma symptoms will be greatly reduced.

Ryan has suffered in the past from both asthma and hayfever. The moment that England got the first signs of sun in March, out came the eye drops and antihistamines!

Cleaning up his diet and exercising regularly has been the most important factor in the management of these two conditions, so much so that the effects of both are almost non-existent nowadays.

Along with a bad diet, your actual body weight itself can play a big part in the severity of these symptoms.

The reasons for this is that being overweight or obese puts extra strain on your adrenal glands and your entire respiratory system.

Drop the extra weight, get outside and enjoy the spring and summer months like you’ve always wanted to!

Food will taste a whole lot better.

Did you know that being overweight can actually ruin your taste for food?

Many people know that smoking has this effect but it’s recently been proven by researchers at Stanford University that eating junk food can and will eventually reduce taste sensitivity due to overuse of the taste buds.

There is also speculation that the hormonal changes within your body during the weight loss process can lead toimproved taste sensitivity.

You’re less likely to pick up common illnesses.

Success in weight loss is usually due to a combination of positive lifestyle changes.

These include regular exercise, eating a highly nutritious diet and getting plenty of rest.

It’s a no-brainer that making these changes to your lifestyle will help your body fight off bugs and viruses, making it far less likely to contract colds and the flu.

Your memory may improve.

The first thing I notice when I’m living an unhealthy lifestyle and eating a ton of junk food is that my memory becomes jaded.

I can remember things from years ago but I struggle to remember what I did last weekend, or what I had for dinner last night.

In one study, women performed much better on memory tests after losing weight than they did when they were holding the extra pounds.

Brain scans showed that being a healthy weight actually makes it easier for your brain to form memories, and easier to recall them.

Also, refined sugars disrupt the formation of pathways in the brain which allow us to learn or experience something new.

The best way to improve your brain function is to cut down on the sugary foods (cut them out completely, if possible) and supplement with omega 3’s.

Spots will be a thing of the past.

If you experience skin conditions such as acne, psoriasis or eczema, shedding those extra pounds make all the difference!

Nutrient-dense foods have a ton of benefits for your skin and complexion, which you can read more about here.

Another benefit is that eating a clean weight loss diet means refraining from sugar. Sugar breaks down the amino acids in proteins that keep your skin looking fresh and clear – elastin and collagen.

It builds all-round confidence.

There are few things in life which are as encouraging and motivating as getting on the scale and seeing that you’ve lost 5 pounds or more.

Sometimes the main reason we can’t accomplish a goal is that we’ve beaten ourselves down and lost our confidence.

Take weight loss for example. If you’ve been on diet after diet and caved into temptations every time, you end up thinking that dieting is a waste of time altogether because you don’t even believe you’re going to stick with it to begin with.

Dropping even those initial few pounds of body fat is a signal that you’re in control and that you’ve accomplished something.

It shatters any limiting beliefs regarding weight loss which may have been holding you back and in my opinion, this is the number one benefit of losing weight, as it affects every other area of your life in a positive way.

You’ll be full of energy.

One of the main side effects of losing weight is the feeling of invigoration and being super energetic.

The reason for this isn’t just because you’re eating cleaner foods, but it’s also because you’re carrying much less weight around, so your body doesn’t need to work as hard to do normal things.

I strongly recommend getting those first few pounds off and seeing how amazing you feel – you’ll want to be busy all the time because it just feels so effortless!

Your mood will improve and depression will ease.

Whether you have chronic depression or you just feel crappy in the colder months like myself, having the blues certainly doesn’t make life any easier.

One study found that those who suffer from depression and began regularly exercising showed the same amount of improvement in their symptoms as a group who were taking antidepressants.

After four months, almost 70% of the subjects were classed as no longer being depressed, and these effects lasted longer than those of the antidepressants.

The release of endorphins from exercising and losing the extra weight will drastically improve your overall mood and they’ll actually have you hooked on exercising and clean eating!

People will be nicer to you.

Like I said earlier in the post, people can be assholes. Sometimes, they do it without realising it.

If you’re overweight, the chances are you’re being discriminated against in certain situations by people who don’t even know they’re doing it.

Once you shift the unwanted body weight, suddenly you’ll start to feel everything change. People will treat you better.

People will smile and say hello, they’ll hold the door open for you and they’ll just give you a much warmer reception.

This doesn’t apply to everybody but you’ll definitely notice people being more positive towards you once you drop your bodyweight.

You may be able to cut the meds.

We all know about the long-term positive effects of losing weight, but even if you lose 10lb over the next month or two, it will help alleviate the symptoms of a ton of different diseases!

This means you could potentially lower your doses of current medications, or even come off of them altogether.

Be sure to see your doctor and get professional advice – every disease and condition must be treated on a case-by-case basis.

You’ll have a fatter wallet.

People say it costs too much money to eat clean. I say they’re talking rubbish.

It costs way more to buy a latte from Starbucks on your way to work than it does to drink water.

It costs far more to grab some fast food at lunchtime Monday to Friday than it does to bulk cook a bunch of healthy meals to take to work.

Those who live at a healthy weight also spend 42% less on medical billsand health expenses than their overweight counterparts.

Trust me, your bank account and wallet will be far healthier if you just fork out the $30 for a gym membership.

Far less risk of cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

If this isn’t a reason to lose weight, what is?

This is the big one for a lot of people. The number of people developing diabetes nowadays is absolutely insane, and heart disease and stroke are the biggest killers in the world, accounting for 15 million deaths in 2015.

Cancer is shortly behind, killing almost 600,000 people last year in the United States alone.

Obesity is just as strongly linked to cancer as smoking cigarettes. Weight gain causes DNA damage which then wreaks havoc on your entire body.

You can decrease levels of inflammation (therefore avoiding the weight gain) by losing just 5% of your overall body weight, according to a Cancer Research study.

Why take the risk guys? Start losing weight today, don’t wait.

Your kids will eat cleaner and healthier.

Ever heard the term ‘monkey see, monkey do’?

Your children are going to copy you, whether you like it or not. Children like ice cream and chocolate – kids will be kids.

But there is no way your child will eat clean food if you don’t also eat clean food. That’s just not how kids work!

A University of California study showed that for every time a parent loses a BMI unit, their children lose a quarter of theirs, too.

If you’re yet to have children, you should really be proactive and lose the weight now…

A study published by Pediatric Research found that if you have poor gut health (caused by bad food and being overweight) going into pregnancy, it can cause an impairment in your baby’s brain development.

Other studies showed that this can also lead to your children being more prone to obesity.

You’ll try and experience new activities.

You may not realise it but being overweight limits your life in so many different ways, whether it be the kind of exercises you can do, hobbies you can partake in, or even the kind of holidays and vacations you can go on.

With a leaner, healthier frame, you can get involved in so many awesome activities that you wouldn’t otherwise have taken part in.

Think hiking, skiing and mountain biking. These are some of the most fulfilling activities I’ve ever done and they’re best suited to those who have the energy and ability to get up and go.

I’d recommend getting the whole family involved, they’re all amazing opportunities to bond!

You’ll live longer.

This really should say it all.

This may seem obvious, but don’t you want to be around for your family for as long as possible?

A meta-analysis of 20 studies in PLOS Medicine found that obesity can shorten your life expectancy by up to 14 years!

It subsequently discovered that if those same people lost just 3% of their body weight, it would add two years onto their life.

Conclusion…

Those are my 20 reasons to lose weight. Now, the obvious question springs to mind: what are you waiting for? We offer a ton of actionable information in our articles which you can implement right away.

If you’re looking for a step-by-step plan which will help you lose weight as quickly as possible in a healthy manner (no starving yourself – the diet consists of 3-4 meals per day), you should really consider taking a look at The 4 Week Diet Plan!

Article Source: http://thewellnessblog.co/20-weight-loss-reasons/