If your weight loss journey has been marked by ups and downs, you’re not alone. Hormonal imbalances, pesticides in our food, and high levels of stress make it tough to keep off the pounds. Autoimmune diseases and chronic issues with our detoxification organs, like the liver and intestines, also affect body weight. If you’re doing everything ‘right’ and the scale won’t budge, consider trying herbal teas and supplements for weight loss. Unlike fad diets, the healing herbs in these teas and supplements have been used for thousands of years to achieve mind-body wellness.

Evaluate Your Overall Wellness Score

Before you take herbal teas or supplements for weight loss, you need to evaluate how your habits affect your health. All the natural remedies in the world won’t make up for an unhealthy lifestyle. Give yourself 3 points for each item in your wellness routine:

• Taking 1-3 Daily walks (20 minutes each)
• Getting 7-8 hours of sleep each night
  
• Maintaining a regular sleep-wake schedule
• Drinking fewer than once per week
• Eating whole grains and organic produce
• Eating red meat fewer than 2 days per week
• Abstaining from marijuana and cigarettes
• Doing self-massage (dry brushing, lymphatic drainage)
• Hydrating regularly throughout the day
• Cardio (HR in the fat-burning zone) 3-5 times per week
• Performing a relaxing activity 3-5 times per week
• Going to your ND or MD for regular check-ups

If your overall wellness score is under 21 points, consider making healthy changes before you try herbal teas and supplements. Getting proper rest (and keeping a consistent sleep schedule) is the most important factor in losing weight.

5 Herbal Teas to Digest and Detox

Herbal teas are full of antioxidants

Tea has been used for thousands of years to balance the body. Keeping off the weight starts with supporting your liver and digestive organs. The powerful polyphenols in these herbal teas may get you closer to your goal weight:

Ginger tea

Ginger gently stimulates bile production and digestion. It’s also an excellent remedy for bloating. Before you confuse poor digestion with weight gain, try ginger tea to flatten your tummy.

Oolong tea 

This tea contains antioxidants that may lower bad cholesterol by means of eliminating excess lipids. If you can’t avoid eating a fatty meal, detox with oolong tea.

Tumeric tea

An ancient remedy for liver support. Detoxifying your liver can lower inflammation; in turn, this promotes weight loss. Tumeric tea may also lower harmful liver enzymes. 

St. John’s Wort

A powerful tea with a mild anti-depressive effect. If your mood makes it tough to work out, a cup of St. John’s Wort tea may help. (Before you buy, consult with your doctor and read about drug interactions.)

Triphala tea

Constipation causes toxins to recirculate through the body, which harms your liver and lowers energy. This Ayurvedic remedy has been used for centuries to promote good health.

4 Supplements To Shed the Pounds

Before you reach for the coffee, consider trying supplements. These supplements will help you ace your workouts without taxing your adrenals:

Try Açai Berry for an all-natural energy boost

Green Tea Extract

The chlorogenic acids in green tea help reverse insulin resistance, a major cause of stubborn belly fat. If you have PCOS or type 2 diabetes, you need to try green tea extract.

Fish Oil

Fish oil is filled with omega-3 fatty acids that offset the overabundance of omega-6 fatty acids in the typical Western diet. Its ability to lower inflammation may improve conditions that hinder weight loss, particularly autoimmune diseases.

Açai Berry

This fruit is hailed as a superfood for a good reason: it’s linked to lower lipid panels and better heart health. Taking Acai Berry every day could give you the extra energy you need to regularly exercise.

Chlorella

As a relative of spirulina, chlorella is packed with all your daily nutrients. If you suspect a haywire immune system or heavy metal toxicity are slowing down your metabolism, give this one a try.

Before you buy, make sure to research how your herbal teas and supplements may interact. For example, allow your body to absorb the nutrients from your fish oil supplement before you detox with Triphala tea. Finally, no matter what herbal tea or supplements you try, the foundation of weight loss is CICO: calories in, calories out. Healthy eating doesn’t cancel out inactivity!

A Meditation to Make Peace With Food

Rose Quartz with amethyst soothes anxiety during mindfulness exercises

If there’s one overlooked component of winning at weight loss, it’s having a healthy relationship with food. That means identifying how often you eat and why you eat, as well as making peace with your cravings. Try this meditation to improve your eating habits:

1. Retreat to a quiet space. Relax with a few deep breaths, then set the intention of the exercise by saying aloud, “I want to make peace with food,” or, “I want to let go of my cravings for [X] food.” The goal is to make yourself open to having a spiritual dialogue with yourself about food.

2. Welcome any thoughts and feelings you have about food to come into your mind. Notice how your body reacts. Gently massage or stretch any areas that become tense – watch out for the shoulders, jaw, and upper back. (Wearing a Rose Quartz with amethyst pendant can ease distress during this step and promote self-acceptance.)

3. Combine healing affirmations with visualization to address any fear or sadness you feel toward food. For example, you might visualize yourself being given the choice between chocolate or a piece of fresh fruit. Picture yourself biting into the fruit. Repeat aloud or in your mind: “I rely on food to nourish my body, not my feelings.”

4. Close the meditation with the intention to achieve one weight loss goal this week. Make it a promise to forgive yourself if you can’t meet that goal. Weight loss takes time; being kind to yourself will keep you motivated for the long haul.

Please note: If you are pregnant or nursing, taking medication, recovering from surgery or illness, morbidly obese, or elderly, consult with your ND or MD before making major changes to your diet.

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