Having Fun While Losing Weight: 5 Effective Exercises

Tackling fat loss can be an overwhelming venture. Aside from a proper diet, having a strict workout routine is one of the most common strategies for those wanting to shed extra pounds. While exercise is a great way, many would agree that they dread exercising due to the challenging workout routines and the motivation to start and end the exercise.

Furthermore, laziness, lack of motivation, and a packed schedule can quickly throw you off. So if you happen to be one of the few determined to lose weight but need some motivation, perhaps these five activities may be just the right amount of fun to get you up and exercising!

Zumba

If you love music or dancing, Zumba fitness is the perfect choice for you to lose weight! Zumba takes the basic steps from Latin dance styles like salsa, Latin-pop, merengue, cumbia, samba and many more while incorporating a fitness formula. This Latin-inspired dance workout is easy to follow and works for weight loss, fat loss, body toning, and weight management.

Who does not enjoy a good dance session over intensive exercises? Zumba is super fun because you are dancing and also working out! Like a regular gym class, Zumba incorporates fitness moves that get all your different muscles moving from head to toe. Plus, the music and dance styles are upbeat, allowing you to have fun and release all those happy hormones in your body. This type of exercise is one proof that fitness is fun, a testament to its rising popularity.

Walking

Walking is one of the best ways to burn calories and get your body moving towards weight loss. This step is an easy and convenient way for beginners to start exercising without the need to push it too hard, feel overwhelmed, or purchase workout equipment. Furthermore, it is effortless to fit walking into your daily routine – try walking during your lunch break, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or taking your dog for a walk.

Cycling

Cycling is rapidly becoming one of the popular exercise routines that improve your fitness and help you lose weight. This exercise is perfect for people of all fitness levels – from beginners to athletes. Plus, cycling affords you the ability to do it at any time of the day, making it a fun activity to do as a family and witness different sights together.

Yoga

Yoga is commonly known as a stress reliever and is rarely associated with weight loss. The truth is, yoga burns a fair amount of calories while also offering several additional health benefits promoting weight loss. Besides burning calories, it also teaches you the act of mindfulness, which can improve your discipline in resisting unhealthy food, managing eating habits, and understanding your body’s needs as you try to lose weight.

Hula Hoops

Did you know that hula hooping can burn up to 600 calories per hour? Albeit physically intensive, this fun weight loss technique is less hassle because it can be done anywhere – even in the privacy of your room! While hula hooping seems easy to do at first glance, it can be challenging to do – start by using a heavier hoop as it is easier to rotate. As you get the hang of it, switch to a lighter hoop to raise the challenge.

Conclusion

Losing weight does not always mean going to the gym and lifting weights; you can try several physical activities to achieve your desired weight. No matter how hard you put your mind to it, there are just days where the business of life interfere with your schedule, making it hard to maintain a strict workout schedule.

Aside from trying out the physical activities listed above in conjunction with a healthy diet, include a slimming treatment into your weight loss routine if you wish to reach your body goal in no time! Here at Slim Couture, the best slimming centre in Singapore, we incorporate traditional Chinese medicine methods into our program to help you slim down effectively! The treatment helps remove body toxins from your system and boosts your metabolism to remove those extra pounds safely. Do not hesitate to get started on your weight loss journey with us, and call our consultants today!

5 Ways Your Job Is Undermining Your Weight Loss Efforts

Most adults spend more than eight hours a day or 40 hours a week in the workplace, especially now that the default is to work from home. One can only imagine how the effects and consequences of such a working lifestyle would affect various aspects of a person’s health, weight in particular.

Although it is unrealistic to expect your workplace culture to change overnight, recognizing the adverse effects of your job on your well-being will get you started addressing the problem and getting back in shape. Here are five factors from unhealthy work environments that may be sabotaging your weight loss efforts.

1. Sedentary lifestyles

Unfortunately, deskbound jobs significantly account for the increase in weight for most workers. Compound this lack of movement with high-stress levels, and you have a surefire recipe for weight gain.

Additional factors linked to deskbound jobs, like poor posture, also lead to back pain and fatigue issues, making the worker less inclined to exercise or head to the gym after work, in conjunction with preferring to just crashing on the couch after a long day at work and sleeping in.

2. High-stress levels 

Stress creates a ripple effect on one’s state of mind and body. For instance, many people engage in emotional or binge eating comfort food when stressed— though one can content that what we eat is within our control, it is also the body’s nervous system’s response to stress.

Many workers also skip proper meals due to stress or delay having their meals on time, resulting in large meal portions later on throughout the day. With the lack of exercise, a healthy eating routine, and high levels of stress and anxiety, chronic inflammatory diseases like heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes are imminent.

3. Overwork and fatigue

Overworked and burnt out adults usually adopt unhealthy behaviours leading to weight gain, on top of inconsistent diet and physical activity. Employees who work above hours, i.e. a work culture known as presenteeism, are more likely to eat, grab, and go whatever is convenient and within reach. This usually means foods high in sugar, sodium and fat.

It is important to remember that work is never-ending, and our health should never be at the expense of it. Practising boundaries between yourself and work and taking breaks while working is essential, especially now that you are working in the comfort of your home, where getting carried away with work is likely. Being out in the sun for a short few minutes helps regulate your circadian rhythms and energy, and it has also been linked to weight loss results.

4. Lack of sleep 

Research has consistently established correlations between sleep deprivation and weight gain. Consequently, employees with longer work hours and heavy workloads tend to pull all-nighters and oversleep afterwards to make up for the loss of sleep. It is also common to sleep less than the recommended eight hours of sleep, resulting in a phenomenon known as sleep debt.

Furthermore, staying up late or pulling all-nighters increases the odds of reaching for convenient meals, like fast food or instant noodles. Come the following day, unsurprisingly, workers would be sleepy at work, resorting to a cup of coffee for a quick shot of energy.

5. Overeating

The unhealthy snacks in your office pantry, the candy bowl on your desk, and vending machine out in the hallway can have a ruinous effect on your diet. If you frequently go out to lunch with your colleagues, their unhealthy food choices may also rub off on you.

Distracted eating, which is mindlessly snacking at your desk throughout the day as you work, can drive you to skip meals from feeling “full” from all the snacking. Should healthy lunch options be unavailable nearby, it might be worth the effort to meal prep your food ahead of time.

Conclusion

We spend so much time at work that it is crucial to think about its impact on our health and self-care. One should identify factors that impede their weight loss endeavours and counteract them with renewed efforts and revised methods.

Want to lose fat in a fast, powerful, and effective way? If you are still searching for the best slimming centre, look no further! Slim Couture provides an effective slimming treatment incorporating Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) principles. We offer natural and healthful qualities of TCM to give you excellent and immediate results without the use of supplements, rigorous exercise, and extreme diets. Contact our slimming centre now to get you started on your weight loss journey.

How Stress Increases Your Weight and The Ways To Manage It

Stress is a normal part of life. Everyone goes through stressful situations or experiences from time to time. However, being under constant stress causes numerous health problems. For one, it can lead to several health issues, including heart disease, diabetes, asthma, gastrointestinal problems, Alzheimer’s disease, and depression.

Aside from causing your health to deteriorate, too much stress can also give you unwanted additional pounds. Many experts associate unsuccessful weight-loss regimens with poor stress management. To know how true this may be, let us examine the relationship between our stress and weight and what you can do to eliminate those extra pounds.

The Link Between Stress and Weight Gain

According to studies, there are two main possible factors for how stress causes weight gain: hormonal and psychological factors. The human body has a hormonal checks and balances system that may facilitate weight gain when under stress.

During a stressful or threatening event, your body will release a stress hormone called cortisol, along with epinephrine and norepinephrine. These hormones are released to allow the body to adapt to stressful events. Once the latter has passed, your epinephrine and norepinephrine levels will return to normal, but your cortisol levels can remain high over a long period; this is especially so if you are prone to chronic stress, your cortisol levels remain persistently elevated.

Cortisol serves many purposes, and one of its goals is to provide energy for your body. It stimulates your fat and carbohydrate metabolism, as well as your insulin release and blood sugar level maintenance. All of these actions increase your appetite. Consequently, having an increased appetite can cause you to experience difficulty losing unwanted pounds.

Aside from the possible hormonal causes, psychological reasons may also be behind your stress-induced weight gain. Often, people eat a lot to fulfil their psychological needs when under stress, which is known as binge eating. The psychological effects of stress can essentially lead you to eat more than what your body needs.

Best Ways to Avoid Gaining Weight Due to Stress

Minimising your stress levels is the best way to avoid gaining weight from stress. However, it is normal for some days where the stressful events exceed your capacity to cope, causing you to feel beaten or overwhelmed. Nonetheless, managing stress and regulating our hormones is possible by doing the following:

1. Exercise Regularly

Doing regular exercises is one of the classic and most effective ways to manage your stress while at the same time burning the extra calories. It is also an excellent way to regulate your stress hormone. Though it may seem too burdensome at first, whether you hit the gym or go for a brisk walk in the morning, exercising can help maintain your lean body mass, which is essential during long periods of elevated cortisol levels.

2. Eat Right

The most common cause of weight gain is uncontrolled appetite and diet. Although they are called comfort food, processed foods and drinks contain high sugar levels, causing you to feel sluggish over time. Eating right is not always easy, especially when stressed out, but it is worth it. Therefore, it is necessary to curb your cravings and monitor your diet to have your fats at bay. By eating right, your consumed calories will turn into energy and not be converted into stored fat inside your body.

3. Practice Relaxation

Psychological instability is one of the possible factors behind stress-induced weight gain. Hence, to manage the effects of stress on your body, practice relaxation through meditation, yoga, deep breathing, or mindfulness. Relaxation can essentially help you maintain your mental stability and bring the production of cortisol back down to normal levels.

Conclusion

Healthy stress levels allow us to feel motivated and challenge ourselves to be the best version of ourselves. However, too much of it can also result in severe problems for your mental and physical health. If you are trying to lose weight, constant stress can prevent you from achieving your goals. Constantly feeling burnt out increases the need to fulfil your psychological needs through eating, making it hard to lose those extra pounds.

Regular exercise, a healthy diet, and practising relaxation can help you combat the adverse effects of stress on your weight. Aside from these methods, you may also try TCM slimming treatment to achieve your weight loss goals more effectively.

Here at Slim Couture, we have experts that incorporate traditional Chinese medicine methods in helping people achieve their dream body under any circumstances. Contact us today to begin your weight loss journey at the best slimming centre in Singapore right away.

3 Reasons Why Sleep Plays A Vital Role In Your Weight Loss

Most people overlook sleep as just as important as regular exercising and proper dieting in losing weight. One of the most common misconceptions about weight management is that sleeping only makes you gain more weight, which results in people depriving themselves of adequate rest. However, sleep does the exact opposite.

More recently, research has shown that sleep is one of the most overlooked factors by people struggling to lose weight effectively. As such, managing your weight successfully, in the long run, means getting a good amount of sleep every day. Let us go deeper about how sleep affects your weight loss journey more than you may think.

Lack of sleep increases your appetite

When you feel hungry or full after a meal, it is not merely a question of feeling. Those reactions are controlled by neurotransmitters that regulate hunger, signalling the urge to eat and the feeling of being full. These neurotransmitters naturally increase and decrease during the day to communicate the need to consume calories.

As a result, sleep deprivation may impair the body’s regulation of these neurotransmitters. For people who are sleep deprived, this dysregulation may result in increased hunger and decreased feeling of fullness. Furthermore, the later we stay up at night, chances are we get hungry or have the craving to snack, presenting the opportunity to overeat, resulting in a higher risk of weight gain.

Inadequate sleep means less energy

Sleep deprivation can lead to a lack of energy for physical activities. Exhaustion might make it challenging to participate in various exercises contributing to a healthy and fit state. In addition to making your workouts feel more complicated, lack of sleep might undermine your drive to exercise at all. With this, if you want to maintain your weight and general health, getting sound sleep will indefinitely contribute to a more active lifestyle.

Moreover, doing regular exercises can improve sleep quality. Studies show that people who have been exercising fall asleep quicker, longer and have better sleep quality than before they started exercising. Therefore, it will be a virtuous cycle — a good night’s sleep makes up for better capacity to exercise, and regular exercises lead to better quality sleep.

Poor sleep may lead to poor food choices

Sleep deprivation impacts how your brain functions, making it more challenging to make good decisions and restrain yourself from enticing meals. Several studies have found that sleep deprivation affects your dietary choices — people who are sleep deprived prefer to eat foods heavy in carbohydrates, calories, and fat.

Furthermore, it appears that eating activates the brain’s reward regions more when you are sleep deprived. Consequently, after a lousy night’s sleep, you will have a more challenging time practising self-control. So, for better food choices, do not skip your sleep.

Conclusion

A healthy weight-reduction plan includes getting enough quality sleep. Getting enough sleep, eating well, and exercising are essential elements of weight management. However, practising those as mentioned earlier can only do so much for some. If you want to reduce weight effectively and naturally, try TCM slimming methods.

At Slim Couture, the best slimming centre in Singapore, we have blended traditional Chinese medicine practices into our program. This therapy aids in the removal of toxins from your system, effectively stimulating your metabolism and allowing you to maintain a fit body. What are you waiting for? Get in contact with us and experience the wonders of TCM slimming.