Many people struggle with weight gain after their spinal cord injury. With limited mobility, weight gain can happen quickly and the tricky truth about weight gain and using a wheelchair - it makes everything more difficult, from transfers to getting dressed, and it can be dangerous to your health causing pressure sores, chafing, and more.
Maintaining weight can be difficult even when your doctor gives you spinal cord injury weight management advice. This advice, calorie-cutting, is the same for all people with spinal cord injuries. This method however does not work for everyone. There are in fact several ways to lose weight post-injury. We've compiled some of the most recommended methods for people with paralysis below.
Intermittent Fasting
One of the most popular ways people are losing weight is with intermittent fasting, and this method is popular among people with spinal cord injuries as well. The reason this method has become so popular is because of how effective it is and is easy to do. You simply eat in a small window of the day and don't eat any more food until that window once again arrives.
The eating window is usually between 1:00 pm - 8:00 pm, with a 16-hour "fast." Limiting eating to a smaller window has proven to help the body lose weight in a healthy matter for people with spinal cord injuries and many swear by it, especially if they have struggled with other methods.
Keto
Another diet many people with spinal cord injuries swear by is the ketogenic diet; the diet known for letting you eat plenty of meat and cheese but no carbs or anything high in protein and high fat. This is a great diet if you're a meat lover, and it will help you lose weight quickly as long as you don't need things like bread, potatoes, or rice. One thing to note: This diet may disrupt your bowel program so be careful when starting to see how your body responds.
Cut Calories
The tried and true method of calorie counting, or rather cutting calories, is one of the most reliable methods for losing weight. Many doctors recommend this method as well. People with spinal cord injuries are typically recommended to consume no more than 1500 calories per day, even less for those with severe quadriplegia. This is due to the lack of leg movement in walking.
While this may seem like a very small amount of calories, it is a healthy amount for the body on a daily basis and it will definitely help you lose weight if you stay within these parameters. An easy way to cut calories when starting this diet is removing any calories from your drinks, and eliminating desserts and unnecessary things like high-calorie condiments.
Weight Training
Lifting weights is an excellent way to lose weight. The science behind it is simple - by building additional muscle mass, the muscle will then help burn more calories throughout the day. Lifting weights itself is also a great way to burn calories. For people with spinal cord injuries, however, weight training can be intimidating since there are so many muscles they are unable to use. Try to focus on what you are able to move/train, and don't think about the latter.
Many people with low-level quadriplegia like to use Velcro arm weights since they're easy to put on and off without assistance. And universal gyms with weight pulleys are another great way to weight train from a wheelchair since there is usually plenty of room in the pulley area.
No Processed Foods
When losing weight with a spinal cord injury, a great place to start is by eliminating processed foods from your diet. Everywhere there is processed food which makes this a difficult task but if you’re able, cook all of your meals at home or with the help of a family member or caregiver, and strictly only eat whole foods, ie, fresh meats, fresh/raw fruits and vegetables, simply-made loaves of bread, and sides. Purchasing "clean" pre-made food items also works. The theory behind eliminating processed foods is that you are eating more enriched food and fewer empty calories and chemicals, and this all helps with weight loss.
Cardio
For many people with spinal cord injuries, cardio continues to be a popular workout method for weight loss because it's so effective, but getting a good cardio workout can be difficult with a spinal cord injury because moving can be difficult. Popular cardio workouts include Zumba, aerobics, hand-cycling, pushing a wheelchair, and adaptive sports such as wheelchair basketball, rugby or swimming, or dancing.
Cardio is all about moving the body and increasing your heart rate. The body burns calories when the heart rate is elevated and loses weight. It is recommended that you do a cardio workout 3-4 times a week in 20-minute sessions for cardio to be effective.
Only Water as a Beverage
As previously mentioned, one of the easiest ways to lose weight is by no longer drinking your calories, and this means cutting soda from your diet or any other high-calorie drinks you may be drinking on a regular basis. It can be easy to drink high-calorie drinks without even realizing it, such as frozen sweet coffee drinks from the coffee shop that can be as high as 700 to 800 calories. Alcohol can also be high-calorie, especially beer and sugary mixed drinks.
More Smaller Meals
Another popular method for losing weight is eating several times a day, typically 5-6 times a day in smaller amounts. This method is based on the idea that the body is constantly looking for its next food fix. By eating in small amounts at frequent times throughout the day and not eating a huge amount of food all at once, the body is never allowed to fall into the state of being famished.
No Sugar
Although many of us love sugary sweets, white granulated sugar is not a food item the body was meant to consume on a regular basis and therefore can cause several bodily problems. One of the worst is weight gain and the accumulation of body fat in the stomach area. High sugar intake is never good for the body and in high amounts, it will add extra fat to the stomach to store it. Swapping organic honey for sugar is a great start.
If after trying several weight loss methods you’re still struggling to lose weight, we recommend contacting your doctor for further advice as there may be an underlying medical issue.
