It’s been a few months since we all made those New Year’s Resolutions. Was your Resolution to lose weight?
Feeling discouraged with only a few pounds loss? A new study is out that may give you some encouragement. Losing as little as 5 percent of body weight can improve insulin sensitivity and lower risks for developing cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, says research published in Cell Metabolism.
While that small amount of weight loss may not show huge cosmetic results, it comes with large health improvements. The study author states that people are ultimately much healthier on the inside and five percent of body weight can be a reasonable and achievable target.
Although the research was done with the small amount of participants (40 men and women) the participants who lost 5 percent body weight also lost 8 percent body fat mass, 7 percent intra-abdominal fat volume and a staggering 40 percent liver fat. This minor weight loss also decreased glucose, triglycerides and insulin levels in the blood.
Losing even a small amount of body weight results in lower blood pressure and heart rate. This contributes to lower risk of serious conditions such as stroke and heart disease.
Even if you’re not seeing a huge cosmetic difference with your weight loss, keep up the good work! You can take comfort in the fact that your insides are noticing the difference.
