If you have ever tried to lose weight, then you know it can be quite the battle to reach your weight goals. That battle isn’t all just mental either. Did you know that your body actually pushes back against weight changes? The body wants to hold onto weight and may go into starvation mode, holding onto your weight. There are also many other changes that happen when you lose or gain weight.

 

Fluctuating Weight Changes

There are over 45 million people on a diet each year in the United States alone. Many of those people yo-yo diet off and on and can do that for years. That means that they constantly are having weight changes with dieting and gaining. Millions do this over and ever. You can actually be hurting your health more when your weight changes so often. First, your body doesn’t know if it should be storing or getting rid of fat, so it goes into starvation mode. That means, when you try to diet, your body will actually try harder to hold onto your fat because it doesn’t know if it will go through a period of fewer calories in the future.

 

Second, many people also subscribe to diets that cut out whole food groups, which quickly lead to nutrient deficiencies and illness. The only real way to lose lasting weight while staying healthy is through proper diet and exercise. Dieting that makes your weight go up and down will not only stress out your health, but uneven pressure put on your body from going up and down in weight can cause back and joint problems as well.

 

Going Too Low On Weight

There are healthy weight ranges for everyone that you should strive to be in. An easy way to know if you are in a “normal” weight range is to see what your BMI is. This stands for “Body Mass Index” and is a measuring tool that can help determine if you have too little or too much fat on your body. Having one or the other will put you at risk for countless health problems. You can calculate your BMI here. If you are “underweight”, you might not be getting enough nutrients.

 

There are many factors that can lead you to be low on weight including sickness, disability, drug use, nutrient deficiencies, etc. Nutrient deficiencies lead to neuropathy (nerve damage) issues, lower energy, fatigue, illnesses, a poor immune system, irritability, depression and mood disorders. Too low of weight and/or dietary issues can also lead to daily headaches, dizziness, constipation or diarrhea, and body aches and pains. If you’re not exercising enough or too much, your joints can wear down and your muscles can atrophy.

 

Problems with Added Weight

When you take on extra weight, your body takes on extra pressure all over the place. Something has to hold up the body when a person becomes overweight or obese, and it’s usually the joints and the back that take a hit. Pressure is added all over your body, which leads to chronic aches and pains in some patients. Some may start to have degenerative joint disease (arthritis) early or may sustain injuries easier.

 

Healthy, nutrient-packed foods don’t generally lead a person to be overweight or obese. Poor nutrition coupled with extra weight will put you at risk for diabetes, cancer, heart disease, stroke, heart attack, neuropathy and countless other conditions. If you need to lose or gain weight, you should do it by eating healthy and having your weight changes be gradual, which is easier on the body.

 

How Weight Changes Mess with Alignment

Your body’s alignment is incredibly important to keeping the structure of your body and ensuring that your body works right. You have 33 vertebrae in your spine that hold your body up and that protect the spinal cord and brain. This is one of the most important parts of your body. Keeping your spine and back straight is essential for your nerve health. It’s also important if you don’t want uneven pressure on your joints throughout the body.

 

Between your vertebrae in the back are openings that allow the joints and cartilage some breathing room to move. This makes twisting, turning, running, jumping and everything else possible. However, if you slip one of your vertebral discs, you will experience chronic pain and immobility. When nerve endings poke through the openings, you can end up with compressed or pinched nerves. If in jury or posture changes the position of a vertebrae over time, you can find yourself with chronic pain, arthritis, scoliosis and more.

 

Millions of people have chronic pain and conditions because of simple misalignments in their back, spine and limbs that disrupt everything else in the body. Problems with misalignment lead to pinched nerves, neuropathy, back, neck or limb pain, herniated discs, trigger points or knots in your muscles, problems moving, injuries and more. Having weight changes frequently or too much weight on you can push your joints and bones out of alignment.

 

What Can You Do?

Having someone help you with your weight changes and weight goals will give you the motivation to make a change. Working with a professional can help you see health problems that are caused by weight changes. They can make exercise, diet and rehabilitation plans to get you to a healthy weight and a healthier mindset.

 

For injuries that happen, we have an excellent chiropractic care service that covers chiropractic adjustments, spinal decompression, vibration traction, customized exercises, orthotics and much more. Don’t wait to make a change! Call Spine Correction Center today at (970) 658-5115!