What do you have to gain
by losing weight?
Finding some good reasons
to lose weight can take you from just thinking about losing
weight to actually doing something about it. People don’t take
action unless there are good reasons for it! And, most
importantly, having good, meaningful reasons to reach your goal
can help you maintain your weight goal once you get there.
Reason #1 - Look Better
No matter what age we are,
we have an ideal of what we want to look like. How we look to
ourselves (and to others) is rarely “good enough” and for
anyone who is overweight, it’s a real motivator to lose.
Unfortunately, this starts at a very young age. A recent study
published in Pediatrics concluded that as early as age 5, girls
with higher body weight reported lower self-esteem than girls
with lower body weight.*
Men typically want a
flatter stomach, and women are usually concerned about having
smaller hips and thighs. This makes sense since the deposition
of body fat is heavily influenced by sex - women tend to gain
weight in the lower part of their body and men tend to carry
extra weight around the mid-section. For awhile, you can cover
up extra body weight by choosing looser clothing, but eventually
there’s a point of no return!
What’s the first thing
that happens when you lose weight? People say “you look good,
have you lost weight?” Have you ever heard anyone say, “I bet
your arteries look great” or“ how’s that blood pressure
now that you’ve lost 20 pounds?” And, doesn’t it feel good
when you can fit into the “thin” clothes you hid in the back
of your closet?
So, looking better is a
great reason to lose weight, but you might want to be concerned
if it’s your only reason. And, take a reality check. Looks and
body type are strongly influenced by genetics. Making the best
of what you’ve got is much more reasonable than trying to look
like someone else.
Reason #2 - Feel Better
Getting a few pounds off
can make a big difference in energy level, it’s a simple
matter of physics. When you carry extra body fat, it’s like
dragging around a 10-pound case of butter. Extra body fat is
just storage tissue, it doesn’t make you stronger like 10
pounds of extra muscle. So, the extra fat weight drags the body
down, zapping energy, and over time it adds up to being less
energetic. Studies of body movement and calorie burning have
shown that obese people tend to move less. This makes for a
cycle of - extra body fat - less energy - move less - gain more
weight - move even less!
Body weight takes it’s
toll on joints, particularly ankle, knee and hip joints because
they have to bear the weight. This joint pain, of course, makes
it much harder for people to move and once again, makes it
harder for an overweight body to burn the calories needed to
lose weight.
But going on any diet
doesn’t necessarily make you feel better. “Crash” diets
can make the problem worse! Quick weight loss leads to loss of
water and muscle, and less fat. Eating too few calories doesn’t
give you enough energy to lose the right kind of weight!
Reason #3 - Get Healthy
If you’re under the age
of 30, you may not be too motivated to lose weight for health
reasons. After all, the diseases that are strongly associated
with obesity like heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure,
and diabetes typically happen to those over 30. You’ve got
other things to think about now - your education, career,
finding someone to share your life with. Your reasons for
wanting to lose weight are just as valid, but good health may
not be one of them yet.
For those who are over 30
and are overweight, health concerns can become a major priority
and it can hit home very quickly. Eating well and getting into
better shape so that you can be around to enjoy your children
and live life to its fullest are great reasons to make changes
to your eating habits. And of course, looking better and feeling
better is part of the whole package.
If you’re
making the effort to lose weight, the more reasons you have to
follow through and the more meaningful those reasons are to you,
the more likely it is that you’ll be successful. Remind
yourself of what those reasons are and follow a plan that doesn’t
just take you to your goal, but keeps you there.
*Pediatrics, Vol 107, No.1, January
2001
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| Dear
Carolyn,
What
is the best way to get started on a diet/ lifelong eating
change because every time I try to start there will come a
time when it’s just easier to eat the fast food instead
of taking a salad. Do you have any suggestions for
those that have not really successfully ‘dieted’ to
start into a program? You know, first things
first…
Any
helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I
have at least 30 lbs to lose by next summer and I’d like
to get on a good start right away.
Thanks,
Julie
|
The first
thing that must change is your attitude about diet and
nutrition. Most of us are taught to think of diet as a
short term project to get the weight off. When you go
"on" a diet, it implies that there is an
"off". Then, it's back to old eating habits and
the weight returns. When your focus is on making some
permanent, positive changes to your diet, it's an ongoing
process towards a new way of thinking about food. Every
time you eat, you are "starting" again. You have
choices to make each and every time it's time to eat for
the rest of your life - it's unavoidable and you're
already doing it. The difference is your commitment to
make the best eating decisions in the worst of conditions
(office birthday parties, fast food lunches, etc.), and
the knowledge of what are the best choices. Sometimes it's
just eating a smaller amount of the "junk" food
than you would otherwise have - that is a very good
alternative to complete avoidance. A healthy eating style
has balance - you can enjoy the occasional
"junk" and fun foods, but they are simply put
into proper prospective. A good sign is that you are
planning to lose your 30 pounds within a reasonable time
frame. It takes about two months to really make a behavior
change that one might consider a new habit, and a
reasonable, healthy rate of weight loss is no more than
1-2 pounds a week, on average.
Carolyn Classick-Kohn,
MS, RD