I’m going to start this article by telling you that you are beautiful. The way that you are right now, while reading this blog, you are beautiful - inside and out no matter what. As humans, we are exceptionally self-critical so it can be hard to hear it, but you need to know that having extra weight doesn't stop you from being beautiful. You can be thin and beautiful and you can be big and beautiful - confidence is beauty and if you have it, don't let that go.

It’s important that you know that weight gain can happen slowly over time. There are so many ways that we are exposed to diet culture today, and each of these things are not always healthy. However, you know your body. If something happens that you’re not comfortable with, your body is going to shout it in your ear whether you like it or not! When you sprain your ankle, the pain signals radiate to your brain and you feel that on a spiritual level – because let’s be honest, sprained ankles are really sore! When you gain some weight, you may not notice it that fast. When you do notice it, it’s because your body has reached a point of being uncomfortable.

Whether it’s because you’ve noticed that you can’t jump as high as you used to, or all of your clothes in your wardrobe started to fit a little bit too snugly, you might start thinking about the best meal replacement shakes to help you to bring your weight back to a more manageable level. The reason it’s so important for us to be able to tell you that you are beautiful, it’s because being overweight doesn’t make you any less of a beautiful person and it doesn’t mean that you’re not perfect on the outside. That being said, it’s also important to recognise when you need to lose some weight. Not only to feel good about your health, so that you don’t have to spend all of your money buying a whole new wardrobe! Let’s take a look at 10 signs that it’s time to get back on the scales and see what’s happening

1. You just know that it’s time. The chances are that you know right now whether you’re feeling comfortable within your body or not. It’s easy to turn around and tell yourself that everything is fine, nothing has changed. If you’re not feeling comfortable, if you notice that when you are running you’re losing your breath too fast, if you notice that your jeans don’t fit you the way that they have fit you for such a long time, it’s probably time to lose some weight.

2. Your fitness levels have dropped. Exercise is supposed to be a challenge, but if it’s a challenge because you’re now feeling self-conscious in your gym clothes, or you find it too hard because your weight is now holding you back from your optimum fitness levels, that’s a pretty good sign that it’s time to see if you can shed a few pounds. Being too heavy can be difficult when you’re exercising, because it’s an obstacle to your fitness. Of course you have the Catch-22 that when you gain some weight your fitness levels can go down, but you need to exercise to bring your fitness up. Exercise may be harder, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it.

3. Your doctor says that you’re risking your health. There is research to show that obesity itself damages your health; however, if your doctor is telling you that your blood pressure is going up and your cholesterol is going up, this is something to pay attention to. There are plenty of slimmer people out there that can have high cholesterol, and there are plenty of slimmer people that can have high blood pressure, but with extra weight on your body, you could end up putting more strain on you than is necessary.

4. Your snoring is out of control! Well, you could snore and still be a healthy weight, but excess weight can actually lead to sleep apnoea. This is a condition where your breathing stops for 10 seconds or more while you sleep. It can lead to decreased oxygen in the blood, and it can wake you through the night, which prevents you from getting a decent night of sleep.

5. The gain is steady no matter what you do. You really shouldn’t be gaining several pounds per year unless you are eating to excess. If you are accumulating a few extra pounds per year, and your weight only goes up without coming down, it could be time to lose weight.

6. Your knees are hurting. Not just your knees, but your back and your hips aching is connected to excess weight. Extra weight puts pressure on your joints and on the tissues around them. This makes movement uncomfortable, and you deserve better than that.

7. You are making excuses. A good sign that you do need to shed a few pounds, is if you spend a lot of time explaining to yourself and to other people why you need to size up your clothing. You talk about the fashion industry and their unrealistic expectations. You talk about the fact that you are a size 12 in one shop but a size 18 in another shop so therefore, you don’t know what size you are at all. It’s funny, though, that these excuses were not present in your life until your weight started to go up. Maybe examine that and decide whether now is the time for you to lose weight. 

8/ Going upstairs hurts. You should be able to breathe correctly when you’re climbing the stairs in your own home. If you have gained a few, then use the stairs more and they should come right off.

9. Your clothes no longer fit. Your loved jeans and your favorite dress no longer go where they should go or sit where they should sit. If they’re extremely tight all of a sudden and they don’t fit then it’s time to shed a few extra pounds and keep your wardrobe. This will prevent you having to spend on the new one!

10. You’re just not comfortable. You don’t have to look at your BMI score to know whether or not you are overweight. We can feel it in ourselves, and the BMI thing is a bit of a bogus scam made up by somebody who decided to turn weight into a number for insurance purposes. If you’re not comfortable in yourself, then you should do something about it and make yourself feel good.