Besides the large amount of time and the great effort it takes to lose weight quickly, there are other physical side effects that you might experience that you hadn’t taken into account before starting your otherwise healthy project. While losing one to two pounds per week is the ideal rate that most health experts recommend, you can still lose an additional amount of weight per week, but you do risk certain negative impacts.
Losing more than two pounds of weight per week doesn’t necessarily mean that you are losing the body fat; instead, you might lose valuable muscle as your body catabolizes muscle, potentially causing a loss of muscle tone and leaving you with more flab than a taut and fit body.
Think about the following 5 ways to counteract negative side effects of rapid weight loss so you can do the job quickly and reap the rewards and enjoy your success:
- 1. Lift Weights to Maintain Muscle Mass. At a heavier weight, you are stronger than you might think, but each time you move, your muscles become stronger to accommodate the excess weight. Lift weights to hang onto as much muscle as possible.
- 2. Drink Plenty of Water to Keep Your Skin and Organs Healthy. During your rapid weight loss and after, you might experience a lack of skin moisture, and your organs will need the extra boost to function properly that water offers.
- 3. Consider Surgery for Removal of Loose Skin. One of the worst side effects of rapid weight loss is the risk of having loose skin on your stomach, under your arms or in your thighs. Sometimes you can reverse this negative effect with exercise, but sometimes you need to consult a physician about a skin removal surgery.
- 4. Ask Your Doctor About a Tummy Tuck. Similar to skin removal surgery, a tummy tuck might help rejuvenate your stomach skin so you can wear bikinis or midriff shirts again.
- 5. Increase Calories Slightly Once At Your Goal Weight. If have reached your goal weight, it is time to go into maintenance mode where you eat the calories that you plan to eat to stay healthy and maintain your healthy goal weight. Add calories slowly but steadily to give your body time to adjust to the new influx of calories.
