According to the fitness and nutrition experts at Movara Fitness Resort, in Ivins, Utah, healthy and permanent weight loss involves gradual lifestyle changes that are non-restrictive. The resort is redefining healthy weight loss with a unique non-diet approach to eating and moderate changes to everyday life.
Emily Fonnesbeck, Movara’s in-house registered dietitian believes that every individual has his or her own unique healthy weight regardless of Basal Metabolic Rate (BMI) measurements and body weight charts.
‘I would describe healthy weight loss as being a product of self-care,’ says Fonnesbeck, ‘but I also wholeheartedly believe that health is a product of healthy behaviors and not determined by weight. So often individuals engage in very unhealthy behaviors in an attempt to lose weight (restriction, reliance on supplements or low calorie/low fat food alternatives, inadequate nutrient intake, binging, extreme exercise, etc.) which leaves them in poor health, even if their weight loss goals are achieved.’
Here are Fonnesbeck’s four basic needs for self-care and achieving a healthy weight.
1. Adequate sleep (the National Sleep Foundation recommends seven to nine hours for most adults 18 or older).
2. Effective stress management – taking time outs, breaks, saying no, setting boundaries, and so on.
3. Regular and consistent nutrition, emphasizing nutrient dense foods balanced with satisfying and pleasurable foods.
4. Moving the body regularly in a way that’s enjoyable.
In her lectures, Fonnesbeck teaches a very lax method of eating well, and Movara’s nutrition staff makes a point of not introducing a strict diet. Instead, they demonstrate different ways to prepare healthy meals.
They address the underlying emotional factors that pertain to poor health. And, they educate guests about metabolic functions in their body and they introduce guests to healthy cuisine from a wide variety of foods from each food groups – fruit, vegetables, proteins, fats, carbohydrates and even desserts.
The results, says Fonnesbeck, are quests feeling more satisfied, having fewer cravings and being less likely to engage in unhealthy behaviors around food.
And when it comes to ‘moving the body regularly’ there are plenty of options at this Utah retreat. Movara’s fitness program involves nearly six hours of exercise a day including hiking, kick-boxing, HIIT (high intensity interval training), circuit training and, new to the resort, kayaking.
The program is results-oriented for the time that guests are at the resort, but they understand that the greatest challenge will come when they return home.
Fitness trainor Cliff Tapusoa’s top tips for anyone looking to lose weight: Do not lose hope. And, remember your “why.”