If only losing weight was as easy as drinking green tea.
I have a lot of patients who are interested in losing weight. One of the most common weight loss supports or “tricks” that many of them try is drinking green tea and lots of it. Sometimes the tea has lemon, ginger or hibiscus added to it.
Here’s the good news: Green tea has many benefits, so enjoy it! Here’s the not-so-good news: Green tea is unlikely to help you lose weight.
Green tea has components that help you relax and can help you sleep but be careful about the caffeine intake that will counteract this benefit. Its effects are proportional to the amount you drink and how consistently you consume it. In other words, when you stop drinking it regularly, the benefits stop as well.
If a green tea break in the afternoon helps energize you or staves off a carb craving, go for it. But there’s nothing about the tea itself that’s providing weight loss benefits.
Try this tea instead: Accountabili-Tea!
That’s the key to weight loss. In my practice, I’ve counseled hundreds of patients with sustainable, customized plans that work for their preferences, health status, lifestyle, and level of accountability.
When it comes to reaching weight loss goals, I walk people through the process of figuring out what changes they can be accountable for 70 to 80% of the time. I also ask patients these questions:
How much longer in your life do you want to weigh less? Just the next three months, or for your lifetime?
How long do you want better health? For right now, or for the rest of your life?
You have to figure out what you can consistently do for your health as a lifestyle. Is it walking four days a week? Is it eating vegetables with every meal? Is it getting adequate sleep every night? I know that will change a little bit over time, but the essence of what you can be accountable for will not change.
Check out our LifeLong Health program with proven strategies to help you manage your weight. Text our office at 325-268-0650 to make an appointment, and we’ll discuss further.