Losing weight can be a difficult challenge and add to some downright unhealthy behaviors that can do more harm than good when it comes to your health. Eliminating a whole food category, missing food all day, jumping on a scale every morning (something that will make you feel good or bad for the day), or just consuming supplements instead of eating whole food, are not the safest ways to shed weight and keep it off for a long time.
When it comes to weight loss, getting too much to go too fast can constitute a legitimate health risk.
Nutritional deficiencies
Extreme weight loss deprives the body of the necessary nutrients required for a healthy function. In addition, deficiencies of certain nutrients, such as vitamin D and calcium, can contribute to an increased risk of contracting certain health problems or can predispose you to injury. One such example of a nutritional deficiency disorder is anemia, which is marked by symptoms of fatigue which fainting, and which arise when the consumption of iron is deficient.
Imbalance of electrolytes
Many of our body functions are controlled by naturally occurring elements. Any imbalance in the proportion of these components may be potentially harmful and could cause symptoms such as seizures and arrhythmia (irregular heartbeats). Electrolytes are especially important to cell structure and integrity. If the latter were to break down, it wouldn't be long before the remainder of the body would follow suit.
Loss of muscle mass
When you lose weight, it's not just fat that you lose but also muscle. Loss of muscle mass often results in a declining metabolic rate, which further destabilizes the fat-to-muscle ratio. Weaker muscles tend to cause more inconvenience in day-to-day tasks such as heavy groceries or scaling the stairs. And if the amount on the scale of weighing ends up looking nicer, the quality of life may not be as nice.
Drastic drop in energy levels
Consuming insufficient calories or expending too many of them would definitely have a detrimental impact on your energy levels. Apart from becoming mentally drained, both your cognitive functions and your productivity could be impaired. Your mood may also be affected - extreme weight loss is frequently followed by excessive irritation.
Aim for a healthy weight loss
As enticing as the thought of losing weight is, it's never a smart idea to succumb to extreme diets that yield drastic results. Achieving and keeping a healthy weight is a long-term process, not a temporary objective that you can try to accomplish as quickly as possible!
