Weight Reduction And The Social Stigmas Associated With Obesity
It sounds simple enough doesn't it? You burn more calories than you take in in order to lose weight. To gain weight you burn fewer calories than you take in and to maintain weight you balance calories eaten with calories burned. If only weight management were that easy in real life. But it is not. So how do you find out how to lose weight fast?
Obesity On The News
Turn on the news or pick up any newspaper and you are bound to see a story on the obesity epidemic. More and more children are getting fatter and fatter, developing heart disease, diabetes and high cholesterol all before they hit adulthood. The predictions for this generation are grim. Experts agree that this will be the first generation in a century that will not outlive their parents. Adults are fat, too. Around one-third of all adults can be considered obese. Clearly there is a problem.
Smacking Ourselves Into Line
It is no secret that being overweight sets you up for a myriad of health problems. We know in our heads that it would be best if we achieved some fat burning. Still, many do not even try. Others try and regain the weight. Some people develop eating disorders and laxative addictions. Why does it not seem to matter that we can die at an earlier age? Part of the answer is that food is more than just something we eat to stay alive.
Resigning Ourselves To Our Fates
Maybe we should all just give up the struggle and get more and more unhealthy and obese. Ultimately, that does not seem like a very attractive option. Maybe we should go on a very low calorie diet and get rid of the weight once and for all. That is too drastic for most people to do for very long. Before you decide to give dieting one more try, look at your expectations of yourself. Chances are you are expecting yourself to achieve 100% compliance with your diet. Your success is doomed before you even begin. Nobody can be 100% compliant with anything 100% of the time for any extended length of time. Life gets in the way.
Re-framing Expectations
What if we re-framed our expectations to something more reasonable? Let's look at the issue from another angle. Percentages. Could you eat healthy foods 50% of all of your meals in a day or a week? What about 60% of meals? 75%? Could you eat healthy for 90% of your meals? What is the highest percentage of meals you think you could reasonably achieve with a minimum of stress and anxiety? Start there. Increase that percentage over time until you are eating healthy 90% of your meals. That means you ultimately have 10% wiggle room built right into your eating plan.
To boost weight loss, approach exercise in the same manner. Would it be possible for you to exercise 10 minutes a day three times a week? Start there and work up to 30 minute sessions five days a week.
Acknowledging The Fear Of Being Deprived
Has listening to that critical voice in your head helped you to understand how to lose weight fast? Probably not. It is time to take another track and acknowledge the fact that not having access to or eating our favorite foods to our heart's content is frightening for many people. Food is a comfort and the thought of being deprived brings up a lot of anxiety. What if we respect that? Have a talk with yourself. Let that scared part of you know that you are not out to deprive yourself. You will have a chance to eat that beloved food, but not in excess. Make sure you tell yourself that you will take fat loss step by step so that this time you will have permanent success and be kind to yourself in the process.
Published August 10th, 2010
Filed in Health