Weight Loss Tips

By Dr. Brad Crump
Health Services Manager

Contrary to most thinking, small changes we make in our lifestyle choices such as nutrition and exercise make significant improvements in our overall health and wellness. Experience shows that individuals who gravitate to an "all or nothing" attitude tend to experience the most failure and tend to be the most discouraged. This usually leads to a return of unhealthy habits. Building a solid foundation through small progressive and consistent steps usually leads to more realistic and long term changes. Enjoy the journey!

Red Mountain Resort & Spa focuses on personal evaluations so that specific and individualized action plans can be put into place. We are then able to design a nutrition program or an exercise program that is tailor made for that individual. Red Mountain also offers a wide variety of programs and services that help each individual identify areas of need as well as find activities that they are passionate about. This tends to increase their sense of purpose, motivates them and provides them a network of professionals to help encourage and follow up with their progress.

The most important steps for weight loss and healthy eating habits really revolve around understanding personal needs. It is also important to help an individual determine what their specific goals are and to establish a time frame that is realistic to achieving those goals. In addition, scheduling those activities becomes important. Just as we schedule work related activities, we need to schedule exercise time and eating times and be consistent and true to those “appointments.”

To become a habit, an activity must be performed consistently over a period of time. The reason most people stop exercising or eating right is that they do not see results, the find it too challenging (feels like too much work), they feel they do not have the time or they lack family or social support.

Here are some ways to take small steps and implement the spa experience at home:

• Schedule exercise and eating times. Make sure that these times are realistic and obtainable. Rome was not built in day. Enjoy the small changes and the experience of change.


• Involve the family. Find activities that the family can do together and that everyone enjoys. Join a walking group or get friends together a few times a week for group exercise. There tends to be strength in numbers as well as accountability and support.


• Think positive. The surest way to fail is negative “self talk.” Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you are probably right. The universe tends to give us what we ask for.


• Choose a healthy recipe to prepare each week. This will get you into a more healthy way of eating and will help see how healthy eating can be delicious as well.

There are a number of books and resources available. Here are a few that can be of great benefit:

• “Organizing from the inside out” by Julie Morgenstern


• “Life is a do over” by Cindy Clemens


• “Grocery shopping made easy” by Chris Mohr and Kara Mohr (DVD)


• “Ultra prevention” and “The ultra simple diet” by Mark Hyman


• The Red Mountain Spa cookbook