The First Step for Lasting Weight Loss

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The first thing most people do when they want to lose weight is to go on a "diet." This is the exact WRONG thing to do. The only way to achieve LASTING weight loss and improved health is to make lifestyle changes that you will continue even after you reach your goal weight. Give up the idea that you will be able to go back to eating the way you ate that caused you to gain all your weight. Once you achieve your goal weight, you will be able to liberalize your eating to some extent, but you will need to continue to eat healthy, whole foods, limit simple carbohydrates, and exercise regularly. There are some studies that show it requires more exercise to MAINTAIN one's weight once it is lost, that it does to LOSE it.

Therefore, the FIRST step to lasting weight loss is to accept that you must make certain LIFESTYLE changes that will be PERMANENT. As mentioned above, this includes eating healthy, whole foods such as fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats and dairy. It also means limiting simple carbohydrates such as sugar, processed grains, white rice, and potatoes. How severely one must limit their carbs depends upon their degree of insulin resistance.

Finally, accept that exercise in some way, shape, or form must become a part of your life. Even disabled people can incorporate some form of exercise into their lives. Ideally you should do at least 30 minutes of cardio 3 times a week (preferably more), and weight-training a minimum of twice a week. The cardio burns fat while the weight-training improves your metabolism and helps to sculpt your body as the fat comes off.

Therefore, the FIRST step you need to take if you want to achieve LASTING weight loss is to understand that you are going to need to make a permanent lifestyle change. Once you accept this fact, you will be ready for the next steps, which we will cover in future posts.

Happy Holidays,
MommyDoc

Lasting Weight Loss

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Sixty-seven percent of the American public is overweight and 34% are obese. The diet and weight loss industry is a huge one that preys upon these people and their hopes and dreams of acheiving a normal weight. The secret is that there IS NO SECRET when it comes to losing weight. These companies try to sell you quick fixes that DO NOT WORK in the long term. LASTING and HEALTHY weight loss can only be achieved through a negative calorie balance, carbohydrate restriction, or bariatric surgery (or a combination of the three).

A negative calorie balance refers to burning more calories than you ingest. One pound of fat equals 3500 calories. Therefore, a negative balance of 500 calories/day will lead to a weight loss of about a pound a week. It is not reasonable or healthy to lose more than two pounds per week if you want LASTING weight loss (unless you are also drastically limiting carbs or have had bariatric surgery). The negative balance can be achieved either through calorie restriction (diet) or calorie burning (exercising). Ideally, it should be achieved using BOTH methods.

As we age, it becomes more difficult to lose weight because our metabolism slows down. Exercise helps to rekindle our metabolism. It is VERY difficult for someone, especially a woman, over the age of 35, to lose weight without the benefit of exercise. Interval exercise, with some weight training, is the most effective combination to increase your fat-burning. You can do intervals with any type of aerobic exercise. The key is to exercise at a moderate level to warm up for about 5 minutes, then kick it up to close to your maximum level for 1-2 minutes. Then scale back to moderate for 1-2 minutes. Repeat this sequence for a total of 5 times. Then do a cool down bringing yourself down to a low level of exertion for 5 minutes before stopping to stretch. This can be done with walking, jogging, elliptical, dancing, spinning, stair-stepping, swimming, biking. Just about any form of aerobic activity you can name will do. Mixing up your workups is the key to avoiding boredom.

Weight training is essential to increasing your muscle mass, which will help to increase your metabolism and is a key component to a plan for lasting weight loss. It will help to sculpt your body as you lose weight. The amount of weight and reps that you do will depend on your goals, and the exact types of exercises you do will depend on your goals and the equipment you have available to you. There are plenty of activities that can be done using your own body weight, a set of inexpensive dumbbells, and a resistance band.

I have battled my weight all of my life. I have never been obese, but I have yoyo-ed between a healthy weight and overweight since I was about 10 years old. I am now pushing 50. As a physician, I have taken my medical knowledge and applied it to the various diets and plans I have found out there. My conclusion is that the only successful plan is going to be an INDIVIDUALIZED plan. Some of the diets out there have merit, but they are not for everyone. An ideal plan is one that is customized to an individuals food and exercise preferences, as well as lifestyle. I am hoping to be able to offer this service if there is enough interest.

Would you be interested in a customized diet and exercise plan based on your needs and preferences?? I would want information such as food likes and dislikes, current eating schedule, work schedule, how often you eat, lab results, current weight and height and measurements, goal weight, how much you currently exercise, if you EVER exercised, preferred exercises, available equipment, etc. I plan to be very thorough. I would review and interact with each person WEEKLY and send you your diet and exercise assignment weekly also. I would interact more often as necessary.

How much would you be willing to pay for such a service? I was thinking of a tiered approach with discounts for longer terms, but want to get a feel for what people think is appropriate. I am investigating what other, non-individualized programs charge, but I wanted to get an idea from readers who would be interested as to what they might be willing to pay.

I welcome any comments and feedback with open arms. I look forward to hearing from you and hope you feel free to express your opinions on how I can improve my blog and my service to you.

Happy Healthy Holidays to you and yours!

Mommy Doc