Regardless of how big or small your weight-loss goals are, you probably need to make a few adjustments to start seeing progress. Yes, diet and exercise are paramount, but other things come into play when tipping the scale—including your mindset. According to Debbie Ramos, all of these aspects were important, and when she started to prioritize them, she was able to drop a whopping 116 pounds.
RELATED: 62-Year-Old Woman Loses 106 Pounds By Making These 4 Simple Changes.
Ramos spoke with TODAY.com about her weight-loss journey, which began when she was turning 50. At the time, her doctor asked her a frightening question about whether she "wanted to have a heart attack or stroke, because that's where I was heading."
She revealed that she had high blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels, weighing 286 pounds in 2018. While she saw some progress after adopting a gym routine, she ramped things up when she saw photos of herself on a family vacation and realized her weight would impede her abilities to be a caretaker for her mother.
After her health insurance plan, Blue Shield of California, matched her with WeightWatchers and provided her with a FitBit tracker through their Wellvolution platform, she was able to drop 10 pounds in just three weeks. She went on to drop 116 pounds in total over a longer period of time, per TODAY.com.
According to Ramos, her mindset was a pivotal part of her weight-loss journey. Meditation, in particular, has helped her "see where I struggled and where I can make changes." Ramos told the outlet that she uses the Headspace app for 15 minutes when she's stressed or has food cravings, and she also sees a therapist.
"My therapist is helping me have a kinder dialog with myself about my weight-loss journey," she told TODAY.com.
RELATED: This Food Can Trigger a 15% BMI Weight Loss—But You're Probably Not Eating It.
According to Headspace's website, meditation is helpful in weight loss due to the "mind-body connection."
"Just as meditation can help us with stress, sleeping, focus, and much more, it can also have an impact on our relationship with eating and managing our weight," a post on the app's website reads. "Keep in mind that weight loss is not simply physical, and it’s not simply black and white. As humans we’re emotional beings, and acknowledging that fact is helpful in developing a healthy relationship with food, and potentially losing body fat or maintaining whatever weight is healthiest for our bodies."
The post also points to different scientific studies to illustrate this point. One meta-analysis found that weight loss regimens that included mindfulness helped participants lose and keep weight off. Another study found that meditation helped lower cortisol, which is important because consistently high cortisol levels are associated with obesity over time.
For Ramos, switching up her routine was helpful. In addition to reframing how she thought about herself and her relationship with food, she told TODAY.com that Instead of sleeping in on Saturdays, she is now up early to go to a WeightWatchers meeting and makes an effort to stay active throughout the day. During the work week, she is up early to go to the gym when it opens at 5 a.m. If, for some reason, she can't get to the gym, she goes for a walk at night.
Ramos also highlighted the help that WeightWatchers provided and noted that she's smarter about planning her meals rather than being super strict with her diet.
"I don’t ‘cheat’ on my diet because I’m not on a diet. I indulge, enjoy and treat myself," she told TODAY.com. "There’s nothing I can’t eat, and that’s why I’ve stuck with it."
Cutting out alcohol was helpful, too, as was buying smaller packages of foods she might otherwise overeat.
