{"id":5411,"date":"2019-01-14T10:05:26","date_gmt":"2019-01-14T16:05:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/?p=5411"},"modified":"2022-04-18T09:33:43","modified_gmt":"2022-04-18T14:33:43","slug":"following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Following through on your weight loss resolution can do more than help you look good"},"content":{"rendered":"

Losing weight is a common New Year\u2019s resolution. Who doesn\u2019t want to fit in to their favorite old pants they can\u2019t bring themselves to throw out, or feel more confident in a swimsuit? Looking great can help you feel great.<\/p>\n

And it\u2019s no secret that losing weight is good for your heart health.<\/p>\n

If you need a little extra motivation to get you on the right track, it might help to know that losing weight has neurological benefits, too. It can help reduce your risk of stroke, improve your sleep and improve your spine health, which reduces back pain.<\/p>\n

Decrease your risk of stroke<\/h2>\n

A healthy diet and plenty of physical activity are keys to losing weight. They\u2019re also keys to reducing your stroke risk.<\/p>\n

Being overweight places you at a higher risk of developing diabetes<\/a>, which increases your risk of a stroke, according to the American Stroke Association<\/a>. A poor diet, especially one that is high in sodium, can lead to extra weight and contribute to high blood pressure<\/a>, which also increases your risk of stroke.<\/p>\n

\u201cWork with your physician to create a strategy that works for you,\u201d said Arun Talkad, MD<\/a>, of OSF HealthCare Illinois Neurological Institute<\/a>. \u201cDevelop a plan to eat healthier and making your life more active. It really is one of the best things you can do to prevent a stroke.\u201d<\/p>\n

Try to be active for at least 30 minutes every day and set reasonable goals. You want to create a lifestyle you can stick with. After all, losing just five pounds can make a big difference in your health. Take this quick stroke risk assessment<\/a> to see what your stroke risk is.<\/p>\n

Better sleep equals better rest equals better you<\/h2>\n

\"Asian-American<\/p>\n

Poor sleep and sleep deprivation can have a broad range of effects on your health and your quality of life.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you don\u2019t sleep well, you\u2019re more fatigued during the day and you don\u2019t function at your best,\u201d said Sarah Zallek, MD<\/a>, a sleep specialist at OSF INI. \u201cPlus, a lack of sleep increases your risk for a broad range of medical issues.\u201d<\/p>\n

Memory issues, weakened immunity against viruses and bacteria, weight gain, high blood pressure and an increased risk for diabetes \u2013 these are all possible side effects of sleep deprivation, and being overweight or obese can contribute to a lack of sleep.<\/p>\n

Obstructive sleep apnea<\/a> is the repeated collapse of the airway during sleep. Every time the airway collapses, you wake up. This can make you tired in the daytime, raise your blood pressure, increase the risk of heart attack and stroke and even lead to weight gain. Just as weight gain can make apnea worse, weight loss almost always helps and sometimes cures it.<\/p>\n

Plus, exercising to help keep your weight down can have the added benefit of improving your sleep quality. Studies have shown that people who exercise regularly sleep better than those who don\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Help keep back pain at bay<\/h2>\n

Studies have shown that overweight and obese people are more likely to experience back pain, especially lower back pain<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cDecreasing your weight helps reduce the pressure bending your spine forward and wearing down the discs between your vertebrae,\u201d said Daniel Fassett, MD<\/a>, a spine specialist at OSF INI.<\/p>\n

Your discs prevent your vertebrae from grinding against each other. When they degenerate from wear, they can press on your spinal cord and cause pain, which generally requires surgery to fix.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, it doesn\u2019t matter WHY you choose a healthier lifestyle. It just matters that you take action, and that you do it intelligently. So, be sure to consult with your physician before embarking on a weight loss journey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Losing weight is a common New Year\u2019s resolution. Who doesn\u2019t want to fit in to their favorite old pants they can\u2019t bring themselves to throw out, or feel more confident in a swimsuit? Looking great can help you feel great. And it\u2019s no secret that losing weight is good for your heart health. If you […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":5418,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[99,5],"tags":[286,755,352,114,30],"coauthors":[692],"class_list":["post-5411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-neurosciences","category-diet-exercise","tag-back-pain","tag-osf-ini","tag-spine","tag-stroke","tag-weight-loss"],"yoast_head":"\nFollow through on your weight loss resolution | OSF HealthCare<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Dropping a few pounds can be beneficial for your health. Besides reducing your stroke risk, maintaining a healthy weight helps in other ways.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Follow through on your weight loss resolution\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Dropping a few pounds can be beneficial for your health. Besides reducing your stroke risk, maintaining a healthy weight helps in other ways.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"OSF HealthCare Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/osfhealthcare\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-01-14T16:05:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-04-18T14:33:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"628\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ken Harris\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Follow through on your weight loss resolution\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Dropping a few pounds can be beneficial for your health. Besides reducing your stroke risk, maintaining a healthy weight helps in other ways.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@osfhealthcare\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@osfhealthcare\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ken Harris\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/\",\"name\":\"Follow through on your weight loss resolution | OSF HealthCare\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-01-14T16:05:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-04-18T14:33:43+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/99db8faf7294806788c8cabb2f164061\"},\"description\":\"Dropping a few pounds can be beneficial for your health. Besides reducing your stroke risk, maintaining a healthy weight helps in other ways.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":628,\"caption\":\"Older woman standing outside wearing a winter coat smiling.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Following through on your weight loss resolution can do more than help you look good\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"OSF HealthCare Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/99db8faf7294806788c8cabb2f164061\",\"name\":\"Ken Harris\",\"description\":\"Ken Harris is the proudest father and was a writing coordinator for the Marketing & Communications division of OSF HealthCare. He has a bachelor's in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and worked as a daily newspaper reporter for four years before leaving the field and eventually finding his way to OSF HealthCare. In his free time, Ken likes reading, fly fishing, hanging out with his dog and generally pestering his lovely, patient wife.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/osfhealthcare.org\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/author\/kharris\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Follow through on your weight loss resolution | OSF HealthCare","description":"Dropping a few pounds can be beneficial for your health. Besides reducing your stroke risk, maintaining a healthy weight helps in other ways.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Follow through on your weight loss resolution","og_description":"Dropping a few pounds can be beneficial for your health. Besides reducing your stroke risk, maintaining a healthy weight helps in other ways.","og_url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/","og_site_name":"OSF HealthCare Blog","article_publisher":"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/osfhealthcare","article_published_time":"2019-01-14T16:05:26+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-04-18T14:33:43+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":628,"url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ken Harris","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Follow through on your weight loss resolution","twitter_description":"Dropping a few pounds can be beneficial for your health. Besides reducing your stroke risk, maintaining a healthy weight helps in other ways.","twitter_image":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg","twitter_creator":"@osfhealthcare","twitter_site":"@osfhealthcare","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ken Harris","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/","url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/","name":"Follow through on your weight loss resolution | OSF HealthCare","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg","datePublished":"2019-01-14T16:05:26+00:00","dateModified":"2022-04-18T14:33:43+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/99db8faf7294806788c8cabb2f164061"},"description":"Dropping a few pounds can be beneficial for your health. Besides reducing your stroke risk, maintaining a healthy weight helps in other ways.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg","width":1200,"height":628,"caption":"Older woman standing outside wearing a winter coat smiling."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/following-through-on-your-weight-loss-resolution-can-do-more-than-help-you-look-good\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Following through on your weight loss resolution can do more than help you look good"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/","name":"OSF HealthCare Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/99db8faf7294806788c8cabb2f164061","name":"Ken Harris","description":"Ken Harris is the proudest father and was a writing coordinator for the Marketing & Communications division of OSF HealthCare. He has a bachelor's in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and worked as a daily newspaper reporter for four years before leaving the field and eventually finding his way to OSF HealthCare. In his free time, Ken likes reading, fly fishing, hanging out with his dog and generally pestering his lovely, patient wife.","sameAs":["http:\/\/osfhealthcare.org"],"url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/author\/kharris\/"}]}},"modified_by":null,"featured_image_url":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/neuro-weight-loss-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5411"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5411\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15564,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5411\/revisions\/15564"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5418"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5411"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=5411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}