Managing Weight Loss Productively: Tips for Busy Women

Overweight and obesity can have far-reaching impacts on working women’s lives. In terms of their effect on day-to-day life, overweight and obesity can cause sleep disturbances that flood the body with stress hormones, in turn reducing energy levels.

Extra weight also contributes to joint and back problems that limit movement which can make daily activities more challenging. Moreover, individuals with obesity often have to deal with chronic pain, impacting their overall productivity and quality of life.

If you’re a busy woman battling weight loss, it may be tempting to turn to crash diets that promise to deliver instant results. But, dietician Dr Vanessa Rissetto says the truth is that fads like crash diets are unhealthy, unsustainable, and ultimately ineffective. Their restrictive nature makes it impossible to stick to it in the long run, and a fad diet almost always ends up with individuals gaining back the weight they’ve lost.

Fortunately, there are better ways to manage weight productively. Today, we’ll be going through some tips on how busy women can implement simple, but efficient ways to lose weight without compromising their health.

4 Weight Loss Tips for Busy Women

Try Meal Planning

One of the challenges of sticking to a healthier diet is deciding what to eat. This can result in decision fatigue and affect your productivity. Worse, you may end up eating whatever is most convenient regardless of your diet. Our article on ‘5 Healthy Habits’ suggests meal planning as a tried and tested option that allows you to save time without sacrificing nutrition.

For this, it’s best to plan a weekly menu that contains specific foods and meals that are tailored to your personal goals. Then, you can cook the food before the work week starts, so during your work day, all you have to do is reheat your prepared, nutritious meals.

Make Smart Food Swaps

Swapping unhealthy staples is a simple way to incorporate more nutritionally dense foods into your diet without feeling deprived of the foods you love. For instance, instead of sour cream, you can opt for Greek yogurt, which is rich in protein, probiotics, and contains fewer calories. Turkey can also take the place of fattier meats like pork or beef.

If you prefer to take your coffee with milk, switch to skim milk. Just keep in mind that managing your overall caloric intake is more important for healthy weight loss than being overly restrictive.

Turn to Medical Intervention When Necessary

In some cases, diet and exercise alone aren’t adequate for tackling weight loss. This is especially true for women with other health issues like PCOS, osteoarthritis, or diabetes. To help you shed weight more efficiently, you can ask your healthcare provider about prescription medications such as Saxenda for weight loss.

Saxenda is the brand name for liraglutide, a GLP-1 agonist that emulates a gut hormone called GLP-1. This hormone is responsible for preventing blood sugar from spiking after a meal and can even lower blood sugar. Saxenda amplifies this effect while also influencing how your brain controls appetite, making it easier to eat healthier. In terms of how long it takes to see results, clinical trials have shown that weight loss can begin as early as the first week of treatment.

Create a Sustainable Exercise Routine

Implementing a workout regimen may seem like a daunting task that can take up a lot of your time, but it doesn’t have to be. The key is to make movement a habit throughout the day. Trick your body by making small adjustments like parking further away so you’ll get more steps in, or taking the stairs instead of the elevator. And, if you’re really pressed for time, choose shorter, better exercise routines such as a 20-minute HIIT workout that can burn more calories than a long run, as suggested by celebrity trainer Amoila Cesar.

Dealing with overweight or obesity severely impacts your health and productivity. Hopefully, using the tips above, you can adopt healthier habits that will result in meaningful lifestyle changes and successful weight loss.

If you’re a busy woman who’s trying her best to juggle work, business, and social calendar, check out our free Productivity Superstar workshop!