Hope everyone has enjoyed the holiday from Christmas to the New Year. I am now hearing some people around me talking about the “heavy feeling” after overindulgence of delicious food and drinks. So, I’d like to ask: how’s your body feeling after the holidays?
Usually, New Year is a golden time to set goals, and maybe “lose some weight” is one of the most popular statements today. Now, let’s discuss how Chinese medicine could help to actualize this intention?
How to lose weight?
No.1: Understanding the excessive weight gain
We believe that excessive weight gain (if it is not a healthy one) could be an outcome of the accumulation of dampness in the body. Dampness is a typical pathogen or body waste that’s difficult to eliminate through the normal body functions. It could also be related to deficiency in the spleen and stomach which affects your digestion; or eating too much food could add on a burden to the spleen and the stomach. The undigested food then becomes dampness instead of nutrients.
No.2: Balance the body with customised herbs
It is important to understand that weight gain is a sign of the body, telling you that it is losing some balance.To rebalance the body is the ultimate goal. Although there is some evidence showing that some herbs could help with weight loss, we can’t use them without considering the individual difference. For example, if someone has a yang-deficiency body type plus the dampness, we will add the herbs to tonify yang energy to help the body gain the balance. Whereas, if the person has a yin-deficiency body type, he/she may need more herbs to adjust the yin energy. When the herbs are properly used, it will help the body eliminate the waste and make you feel lighter.
No.3: Try acupuncture, ear seeds and cupping
Acupuncture stimulates the meridians, strengthens the digestive system.
Acupuncture could stimulate energy flow in the meridians of the spleen, stomach, liver and kidney. With accumulated stimulus, it could strengthen the digestion and increase the metabolism of the body to eliminate the dampness. Another benefit of acupuncture is that it could help to adjust the sleeping quality and manage stress. Both of them are related to weight gain and weight loss as well.
Ear seeds manage the cravings.
Ear seed is an acupressure treatment which places adhesive tape with cowherb seed on several acupuncture points in the ear to manage the cravings. Some common acupoints we will use include: endocrine point, shen men point, spleen point, stomach point, hunger & thirst point. It is convenient that you could press on the seeds to generate stimulus by yourself at home to prolong the treatment effect.
Cupping gets rid of dampness and other toxins
Cupping would leave some marks on the skin. The darker the marks, the deeper the toxins. During the cupping process, it generates a power to force the dampness moving from inner layers to the superficial layers of the body. And, during the recovering of the marks, it also brings more blood flow to the meridian points we place the cups, which further helps the body to get rid of the waste and restore more energy.
No.4: Adjust the lifestyle with routinely exercise
In traditional Chinese medicine practice, we believe that moving the body is a natural way to regulate the blood and qi flow. Thus, increasing the metabolic rate. Tai Chi and Baduanjin are 2 exercises we recommend in weight control. Both of them require a balance between the physical body and the mind with proper breathing exercise. They are not highly intense, which makes it easier to cultivate into a routine.
Weight loss is a tough journey if you aim for a healthy body. It requires more than physical work, adjusting mental attitude, and controlling the diet. Hope the information above could bring you some hints and motivations. Take it easy and carry on.