The Drawbacks Of Extreme Exercise And Dieting

31 Jan The Drawbacks Of Extreme Exercise And Dieting

At the start of each new year, many people will set fitness goals they’d like to hit before the year’s end. To lose weight or gain muscle, many may go to extreme levels in their exercise regimen or diet, which only does more harm than good. At Advanced Orthopedics and Joint Preservation, our orthopedic doctor in Brooklyn wants to see all of our patients hit the goals they’ve set for this year. By sharing some of the drawbacks of intense exercise and dieting, we hope to shed some light on why you should strive to hit these goals safely.

The Dangers of Crash Diets:

Any diet that involves taking in less than 1,200 calories a day is known as a crash diet. While these may promise to help you lose weight fast, they can be extremely detrimental to your health. Losing large quantities of weight over a short time period will decrease your metabolism. This will make the weight you lost easier to put back on in the future. Other complications that can arise from crash diets include the increased risk of some of the following ailments:

• Dehydration.
• Heart palpitations.
• Cardiac stress.
• Heart attacks. 

Don’t Neglect Your Nutrients!

When trying to hit a fitness goal, tracking calories is an excellent way to achieve this intention. However, this process is not as black and white as many people expect. You’ll need to make sure you’re intaking the correct nutritional substances after reducing your consumption levels. A failure to do so will put you in need of an orthopedic doctor in Brooklyn due to injury. To prevent this from happening, make sure you consume enough of the following:

• Carbohydrates: These are the body’s main source of energy. Consuming complex carbohydrates found in whole grains, fruits, and vegetables will help keep energy levels at a sustainable and healthy level.

• Protein: Protein intake is essential to building and repairing muscle throughout the body. It can also be used as a source of energy when your carbs are low.

• Unsaturated Fats: This can seem counter-intuitive, but consuming fats is an important aspect of staying healthy. Unsaturated fats can help reduce inflammation and is the primary fuel for aerobic exercise.    

Over-Exercising:

It’s easy to adopt a “no days off” mindset at the start of each new year. Though exercising is a vital part of staying healthy, overdoing it can cause major injury. After periods of vigorous exercise, your body needs time for rest and repair. Creating a workout plan that allows for ample rest can have you losing weight and becoming stronger than you would when trying to overexert yourself day in and day out. Our orthopedic doctor in Brooklyn recommends breaking from exercise every three to five days to achieve optimal fitness results. Aside from sustaining an injury, a failure to receive enough rest can lead to:

• Decreased athletic performance.
• Fatigue.
• Poor sleeping patterns.
• A weakened immune system.  
• Mood swings.   

Orthopedic Doctor In Brooklyn

At Advanced Orthopedics and Joint Preservation, we want all of our patients to hit their fitness goals. However, they must be achieved healthily to avoid ill-effects. Our orthopedic doctor in Brooklyn can help you accomplish this task. To learn more about how we can help, make sure to request an appointment with us today.