When to Know You’re Ready to Visit a Health Resort

But sometimes unhealthy behavior becomes habitual, and then it becomes harder to recalibrate. When you get into a rut of overeating, binge drinking, or avoiding exercise, it can be difficult to pull yourself out, particularly when surrounded by the temptations that got you there in the first place. Health resorts provide an optimal setting for resetting or developing healthy behaviors. What are the signs that it might be time for you to consider one?

Your lifestyle has become unfulfilling and unsustainable

Do you wake up feeling exhausted and unmotivated? Do you know your lifestyle is unhealthy but feel powerless to change it? Perhaps you’ve fallen prey to binge eating or drinking, gained an unhealthy amount of weight, or lost the will to keep up your fitness routine. Maybe you feel older than your years, with aches and pains that seem to have developed out of thin air.

Some people who book a stay at a health resort, report that they woke up one day realizing that they desperately needed a change. If this feeling resonates with you, a stay at a health resort may be the perfect way to rededicate yourself to developing healthy behaviors so you can get more out of life.

Your doctor has expressed concern over your health

Although you may be able to lie to yourself about your health, your doctor is going to give it to you straight. If they have told you that your health is being jeopardized by your lifestyle—particularly if they have mentioned this more than once over time—it may be time to consider making significant lifestyle changes. Led by board-certified physicians and other health and fitness experts, programs at health resorts can help you do just that.

When you stay at a health resort like Pritikin you’ll have extended face time with doctors, nutritionists, behavioral health specialists, and fitness experts that will likely be much more in-depth than any you’ve experienced before. Depending on the package you sign up for, you may have medical screenings to gain pre- and post-program data related to specific health concerns. At Pritikin, you’ll also get a “fitness prescription” with exercise recommendations customized to your specific needs.

All of the education and the techniques you learn at a health resort will be designed with sustainability in mind. The professionals supporting you during your stay will be dedicated to helping you create habits that will be easy to integrate into your individual life. And if you choose to transform your lifestyle at one of these facilities, it’s likely your doctor will have better news to report at your next visit.

You’re tired of being dependent on medication

Do you feel like you’re a walking pharmacy? Poor diet and inactivity can lead to medical conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol, all of which require medication to regulate. Although some chronic health conditions will always require medication, many can be managed through lifestyle change alone. This, in fact, was the founding principle of Pritikin Longevity Center and Spa, where many guests are able to stop taking medication for conditions such as high blood pressure and cholesterol after integrating transformative changes into their lifestyle.

The team that will guide your care at a healthcare resort will help you get to the source of your unhealthy behaviors and equip you with strategies to ward them off in the future. Learning how to integrate healthy habits in your everyday life—through activities such as practicing grocery shopping and ordering healthy menu items at a restaurant—is key to managing health conditions that detract from your quality of life. If you want to have fewer pills rattling around in your medicine cabinet, you may want to book a stay at a health care resort.

You feel like you can’t do it on your own

Changing ingrained habits is hard, and it gets harder the older we get. Perhaps you’ve tried various diets and fitness regimens that just haven’t worked for you, and now you’re feeling defeated or even depressed. Sometimes it feels like everyone else has it figured out. You’re ready to make a lifestyle change but are afraid you lack the discipline or simply don’t know where to begin.

Poor eating habits, in particular, often develop in response to emotional triggers. Popular culture perpetuates this trend, suggesting that eating decadent foods or drinking alcohol is the way to celebrate happy occasions or soothe ourselves in sad moments. Many also struggle with the urge to overeat at night, even when they are not hungry.

Food that is high in sugar and carbs triggers a powerful response in the body, releasing endorphins that make us feel good—at least temporarily. But the feeling of satisfaction is only temporary, and it is typically followed by a feeling of sluggishness or exhaustion.

If some or all of what you’ve read here sounds familiar, don’t beat yourself up! Because much of our relationship with food and fitness goes back to patterns from childhood, it’s common to need a little help creating healthy lifestyle goals in adulthood. And it’s quite likely that the people you know who seem to effortlessly maintain an excellent diet and fitness routine also got some outside help somewhere along the way. Health resorts such as Pritikin can connect you to the knowledge and professional guidance you need to get the vitality and longevity you deserve.