Have you ever stopped to consider all the harmful habits that hurt our health? Sadly there are things many of us do each and every single day without realizing how these harmful habits hurt our health. Since changing my lifestyle and setting a goal to be a happier and healthier person I have decided work on kicking the harmful habits to the curb and focus on creating healthy habits. After all, I want to be around for as long as possible.
Harmful Habits That Hurt Our Health
Here are a few harmful habits that hurt our health. Finger crossed you’re on the right track!
1.) Low Cal or Starvation Diets
We all know that reducing our caloric intake goes along with losing weight, and portion control can be an effective tool in getting fit. Low-Calorie diets can become too extreme and can sometimes turn into starvation diets. Starving bodies will find a way to get the energy it needs.
So, we may note weight loss, but we are actually losing the muscle we work so hard for. A big calorie restriction can also lead to higher fat percentage and lower muscle quality because the body goes into starvation mode as a survival means to function. It is important to maintain a healthy diet with any exercise and physical activity regimen. We need to put calories into our bodies so we have the energy to burn when we are working out.
2.) “Too Good To Be True” Supplements
We have all heard those infomercials with huge promises and unbelievable results. With those supposed miracle pills, the company promoting them are not required to prove the safety or effectiveness of the supplements. If the bottle says “all natural” there is a chance that it isn’t.
Use them at your own choice and always be sure that you speak to a doctor before starting a diet or weight loss program and definitely before taking any pill that promises quick weight loss.
3.) Detoxification and Cleansers
Detox methods do result in rapid weight loss. However, the weight that is being lost is from water and stool instead of significant fat loss. Body cleansers and detoxification can be tricky and it is easy to become dehydrated, and like the low calorie/starvation diets, the body can begin to “feed off” itself in search of hydration.
The best way to cleanse the system is to eat foods that are high in fiber and water content that also helps the digestive system. Also, drinking plenty of water is helpful because it oxygenates the blood. When we work out and our blood is pumping, our muscles are working ore efficiently and building into stronger, denser and better muscles.
4.) Extreme Exercise
The more we exercise, the more weight well lose. Makes total sense, right? It’s true that we will lose weight, but it is important to know when too much exercise can become harmful. If too much exertion becomes part orf our daily routine, we set ourselves up for a number of detrimental results. It can lead to a higher chance of injury and harmful dehydration a well. An overzealous workout regimen can lead to an electrolyte imbalance ht is hard on the body. Also, along with dehydration, there can be horrible mental effects.
If we eat and feel guilty and make ourselves workout as a remedy, we begin to associate exercise as a punishment. This can also lead to dangerous eating habits, which we have seen as problems already. It is important to have a fun, and exciting exercise program that is to stick to and doesn’t burn us out mentally and physically.
5.) Smoking and Caffeine
Having a smoke and a cup of coffee usually go hand in hand for some people. Also, it is very common to have a cigarette or coffee, particularly among women, to control hunger.
They are considered appetite suppressants but at what cost? Smoking harms almost every organ in the body, from the heart to the skin. Heart disease, emphysema, and cancer are threats among the many other problems associated with smoking. Also, when a smoker stops the habit weight gain is almost inevitable. Few people drink their coffee black and they add sugar and creamer. Well, that adds a lot of fat calories without really noticing it, which can cause weight gain over time.
So, even if it does kill the appetite, a small cappuccino or latte hides a lot of unneeded fat and calories. There are different ways to curb the appetite with food, drink, and psychological techniques. we don’t have to turn to harmful things in our bodies.
6.) Stress and Lack of Sleep
Working out more and reducing the hours of sleep in a day is sometimes used as a tool for weight loss. This is a HUGE no no. Sleep is essential for the body’s ability to function and if you are asking it to work without ample rest, it cannot do it. Lack of sleep leads to emotional and physical stress that over time leads to weight gain. Cortisol is released when the body is stressed, again as a survival technique.
When Cortisol is released it causes weight gain and is harder weight to get rid off in the long run. Plenty of sleep and stress management is important in everyday life and especially when we are asking our bodies to work each day. I find that yoga, painting, and just simple meditation help me to relieve stress and allows me to ignite that motivation to exercise much more easily each day.
Fast and speedy weight loss leads to loss of muscle mass. It is best to have a healthy diet, a reasonable and challenging workout regimen, and a positive attitude to achieve our fitness goals. Everything that is worth doing, losing weight and getting fit included, requires hard work. There ar no short cuts without dire consequences.
Last month, February, was American Heart Month and I learned a lot and applied what I learned into my workout regimen. I decided to train at muscle strengthening for March and focus on a stronger physique. I received the Skulpt Aim that measures muscle quality and fat percentage. This gave me some ideas.In February, I made it a point to incorporate exercise and activity to improve my heart health.
In addition, tweaks to my diet and stress relievers like meditation and yoga, helped to improve the overall condition of my heart. I could feel and see the improvement and it motivated me to do something special each month. The Skulpt Aim gives me motivation to make every work out a special and productive work out.
The Skulpt Aim is a wonderful tool and app that tracks the inner progress of muscle quality and fat percentage using electric currents. By moistening the tool and measuring each specific muscle, I am able to analyze what my muscles look like underneath. It helps with planning my workout. If I have a high MQ like my calves, which is 133 or my right, I know that my program for my leg is successful. I also can see where my other muscles need a bit more focus, like my hamstring which have MQ of only 125.
The Skulpt Aim also measures fat percentage for the significant parts of my body. By measuring the inner percentages and not just my overall weight, I can fix my regime to work my muscles accordingly. I realized, with low-fat percentage of only 10.8%, like in my right calve, I see what works.
I focus a lot on my triceps and biceps and using the Skulpt Aim, it’s easy to see that my left arm needs a bit more focus. I am proud of this data, and will continue to do what I am doing, but with this information I can apply it to the other parts of my body that need improvement. My glutes definitely have been neglected with 20.3% fat and only 124 MQ measurements.
Knowing all this about my body gives me the power to be successful in losing weight, getting fit and staying in shape. The Skulpt Aim helps me to improve my workouts and my results, I’m not sure how I managed without it before. I remember a lot of things I did to lose weight that I see now, were very detrimental to my goal. Here are some steps some of us have taken to get fit, but they are things we should avoid like the plague. This is a list of things we should never do to get fit.
Using the Skulpt Aim, I am able to see my progress internally. I can see where I need to add more physical activity and focus and also what muscles are in great shape and need to be maintained. The more information and tools we have to utilize the better results we will achieve and the less likely we are to injure ourselves physically and mentally.
It is a wonderful feeling to see my body become toner, my clothes fit better, and my muscles develop more definition. With the Skulpt Aim, I get the additional reassurance that I am gaining muscles mass as well as reducing m fat percentage. It helps me to plan my workouts each week and what muscles I need to pay more attention to.
My workouts through March have been a success and the Skulpt Aim has helped me achieve better fitness. It is a wonderful tool, a great motivator and an easy way to see my progress. Be sure to check back in the very near future. I want to share some of my progress and also a few exercise and workout items I have used that have been highly effective for me. Remember that with hard work and dedication comes great rewards. Get the Skulpt Aim to add some motivation to your goals and get up, get out and get going! Stay fit everyone and let’s get Skulpt’d!!
This post is sponsored by Skulpt Aim and written by me. All statements and opinions are 100% my own. www.skulpt.me @Skulpt_Aim #Skulpt_Aim
