weight management

Fall into Healthier Habits with the Change of Seasons

By Dr. Kushner / October 19, 2022 /

Falling leaves and cooler weather can signal a change of seasons but it can also indicate it’s time to change up your healthy lifestyle routine. A change of seasons is the perfect time to try new things in your quest for better health. Whether you’re looking to improve your diet, become more active, get a…

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3 Tips to Make Healthy Eating Easier at Home

By Dr. Kushner / October 2, 2022 /

Though your home is the one environment you have most control over, my patients often struggle to take charge of the foods that are available at home. I tell them that successful weight management occurs when you can better control all the ‘eat now’ and ‘eat more’ temptations in your home. If you’re interested in…

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Make Progress, Not Perfection

By Dr. Kushner / September 17, 2022 /

A common misperception my patients struggle with is thinking they have to strive for perfection in order to be successful managing weight and boosting health. But this perfectionistic mindset only sets you up for failure because eating and exercise rarely go perfectly each and every day. Since managing weight tends to be a lifelong endeavor,…

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Strive to Try New Things as You Progress in Your Weight Management Journey

By Dr. Kushner / September 2, 2022 /

Living a healthier lifestyle and better managing weight have many benefits you may be unaware of. I’ve found that as individuals get healthier, many also start feeling motivated to try new things. I especially enjoy seeing my patients having new confidence as they set and attain new goals previously thought unachievable: One patient ran a…

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The Weight-Focused Visit

By Dr. Kushner / August 3, 2022 /

Whether you’re a patient or a provider, you know how quickly time can pass during a health care encounter. Your provider’s priorities may be to discuss your chief complaint, medications, lab results and other chronic medical problems. This doesn’t leave a lot of time to counsel you on managing weight. That’s why I recommend that…

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Time to Update Your Heart Health

By Dr. Kushner / July 20, 2022 /

The American Heart Association has a new checklist for lifelong good health. It’s called Life’s Essential 8, which was recently updated by a panel of experts who reviewed 2500 scientific papers since 2010. Better cardiovascular health helps lower the risk for heart disease, stroke and other major health problems. The 8 factors correlate well with…

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Shared Decision-Making in Weight Management

By Dr. Kushner / July 13, 2022 /

Shared decision-making is a process whereby health care providers take into account each person’s personal preferences, priorities and goals before selecting a specific treatment plan. As a weight management expert, it’s a process I’ve been using for most of my career to help my patients lose weight and get healthier. Getting to know each patient…

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Stop Unhealthy Habits to Achieve Better Health

By Dr. Kushner / June 25, 2022 /

As you move through your weight loss journey, you will encounter two kinds of habits – healthy habits you want to create (such as eating more fruits and vegetables) and less healthful habits you want to stop (such as drinking sugar-sweetened beverages). You will find that it’s more challenging to stop an unhealthy habit than…

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Is Lifestyle Modification for Weight Management Still Worth Your Time and Effort?

By Dr. Kushner / May 15, 2022 /

With all the exciting new drugs being developed to help people better manage weight, you may wonder if the time you’re spending on improving health habits are still worth your time and effort. Choosing healthier foods, becoming more active, getting more hours of restful sleep and better managing stress do take lots of time and…

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Rethinking Weight Goals

By Dr. Kushner / April 24, 2022 /

In my practice, patients often have high hopes of losing a large amount of weight in a short period of time. I tell them that it’s important to have realistic expectations about what is practical and achievable; otherwise, they will be disappointed. I also discuss the importance of putting weight into the context of overall…

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