Strive to be Fat and Not Obese Anymore!

I just gave away $1500 of prize money to the winners of “The Power of Ten.” It was really cool! As I mentioned in last week’s article when this challenge to lose and/or maintain body weight through the toughest months of the year began, I wasn’t quite sure how it was going to end. Tonight reaffirmed the difficulties yet the simplicities that it takes to maintain and/or lose body weight. It can be the hardest thing you ever do, yet it’s so simple. It was great to listen to some of the feedback and challenges that this competition created. With that being said, I’d like to share the results with you and some of the discussions generated.

When the final weigh-in occurred, there were only nine individuals who chose to stay in the “maintenance group” throughout the 5 months. Remember that at each weigh-in, everyone put $10 into the winner’s pot! All the maintenance finishers ended up winning their $50 bucks back, plus an additional $10 and a fun gift. Yes, they did well! There was a universal result that occurred where all the “maintenance” competitors were able to maintain their initial weight but they were unable to lose and/or maintain any kind of additional weight loss. By January, they all weighed-in plus or minus 2 pounds of their October weight. This to me means that they maintained their body weight and with this capability they will combat “creeping obesity.”

Those eight individuals who chose to join the “weight loss group” had a different mind-set and they not only lost their ten pounds, most of them lost more than that! Just like on “The Biggest Loser” (the T.V. program) I determined the biggest winner according to the percentage of weight lost. This is the only “fair” way to calculate weight loss because it’s much easier for someone who weighs 300 pounds to lose 30 pounds, than it is for someone who is 150 pounds. Once a person gets closer to their “core” body weight, the pounds become harder to shed. If you have more to lose, it’s easier to lose those initial pounds. Remember that after the second “weigh-in” the weight loss group really took off!

While talking to a friend about the results, they suggested that maybe it’s necessary that most of us need a greater goal in order to reach a simpler goal. Do you think it’s true that in order to reach and maintain a “10” you need to continuously strive for a “15” so that we will realistically and comfortably settle into that initial goal of ten? Hmmmm, something to really think about! Very interesting thought, if you ask me. Human nature is a crazy thing.

I asked the question “how’d you do it?” and all of the competitors said that they ate less and exercised more. One of the winners asked me “does it ever got easier”? They feel like their entire life focuses around exercising and eating and it’s not fun and it’s not natural and quite frankly, it’s hard. I could tell through our discussion that they were worried about the next stage of weight management after successfully losing 20 plus pounds. Can they and will they be able to keep off the excess body weight?

From my experience, both personal and professional I believe that most individuals think about weight management completely wrong, you let the anxieties and emotions drive your eating patterns. It’s like driving in rush hour traffic. Ok, not here in Estes but in Denver or any other big city. You know the stress you feel when you are anxious and ready to be home, yet the traffic is only going twenty miles an hour and you can’t get there fast enough. You want to be home “Now” but you can’t be and you are an anxious mess. Just like when you are on a diet! You get yourself all worked up about the “what’s and when’s and how much’s” you need to eat and the “how long’s” it’s going to take you. When the reality is a simple, straight forward highway. Don’t live or drive your life to eat (by thinking about and always concerned about the next meal)! Eat and drive your life to live. Eat what you need and only what you need to live and don’t get all worked up about it. And don’t eat in excess, your tank is only “so big” and only “so much” fuel can fit inside. When you are “full” or you have eaten a “significant amount” of food, then stop! It’s nothing to get all worked up about.

One of the winners stated that his goal in this competition was “to be fat and not to be obese anymore!” Wow, and he did it! Congratulations to all our winners and maintainers!

 

Deborah Holmes

January 29, 2008