Too many voices
One of the biggest struggles I face as an overweight woman is knowing whose advice to follow. There are so many options for plans that work and so many things to try. And yet, many of them contradict each other and leave me feeling hopeless to find one that actually works.
Another obstacle is the controversy about whether or not you can lose significant weight. I've read entire books by well known authors that claim a set point from which your body will only vary +/- 20 lbs. Any attempt to change that is futile. Granted, I look like both of my grandmothers, but does that mean there is no hope for change?
Then other books make it sound like all I need is the right psychological or physiological trick, and my body will drop the weight and thinness can be a reality. But can I really change 20 years of ingrained behavior by drinking water whenever I feel hungry until I am freed from over eating (or whatever else is going on)?
What about the exercise controversy? Do women really need to workout 1 hour a day to stay at a healthy weight, much less to lose weight? An hour a day?! That seems like a lot; especially when trying to get in 20 minutes feels like climbing Mount Rushmore.
For those of us that have tried many plans, it starts to seem impossible when nothing works. It's not a lack of dedication, commitment or journaling but a lack of getting the weight to move. This is a reality for a lot of women. The weight simply will not come off.
I truly don't mean this to sound like a giant complaint. It comes out of frustration of wanting to find transformation but feeling blocked on all sides. How do we figure out what the truth is? Who is right? Where do we start?
Another obstacle is the controversy about whether or not you can lose significant weight. I've read entire books by well known authors that claim a set point from which your body will only vary +/- 20 lbs. Any attempt to change that is futile. Granted, I look like both of my grandmothers, but does that mean there is no hope for change?
Then other books make it sound like all I need is the right psychological or physiological trick, and my body will drop the weight and thinness can be a reality. But can I really change 20 years of ingrained behavior by drinking water whenever I feel hungry until I am freed from over eating (or whatever else is going on)?
What about the exercise controversy? Do women really need to workout 1 hour a day to stay at a healthy weight, much less to lose weight? An hour a day?! That seems like a lot; especially when trying to get in 20 minutes feels like climbing Mount Rushmore.
For those of us that have tried many plans, it starts to seem impossible when nothing works. It's not a lack of dedication, commitment or journaling but a lack of getting the weight to move. This is a reality for a lot of women. The weight simply will not come off.
I truly don't mean this to sound like a giant complaint. It comes out of frustration of wanting to find transformation but feeling blocked on all sides. How do we figure out what the truth is? Who is right? Where do we start?
Comment
-
Comment by jlaramsey on March 30, 2010 at 9:44pm -
I totally appreciate your thoughts! I just thought it was funny that this popped up on mainline news right after saying something. It's funny how that can happen.
-
Comment by Andriana Verdi on March 30, 2010 at 5:00pm -
Oh, I agree, there is plenty to be confused about :( and I wasn't suggesting I had the one right answer by any means! But like I was saying, simplifying things is probably your best bet. In that article, the exercise and nutrition experts said:
"Exercise experts say the most important message is to be active, regardless of the latest studies. How much one should exercise depends on personal fitness goals."
"The key to exercise is that some is better than none. More is better than some. Too much is difficult to get."
They seem to be saying exactly what I find to be a helpful rule: exercise can only help. It's almost impossible to work out too much (what with life and time constraints getting in the way). So better to err on the side of exercising as much as you can, and specifically focusing on healthy eating habits.
Like expert Stephen Ball says, "If you take in lots of calories, it doesn't matter how much you exercise. It takes a lot of exercise if you don't watch what you eat."
-
Comment by jlaramsey on March 30, 2010 at 4:35pm
-
Well, I'm not the only one who is confused :)
Here is an example of the confusing nature of the discussion: http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/03/30/exercise.guidelines.confusion/...
-
Comment by Andriana Verdi on March 29, 2010 at 1:42pm
-
I completely agree with you that the idea of losing weight can become just that; an idea, not a reality.
There are plans and rules and studies and books that will tell you a million different things. But there is one thing that is undeniable, no matter what anyone says. Exercise will always help- it can never hurt in the quest to lose weight.
I was complaining once about running with no physical results, and my dad broke it down into the simplest of terms. He said, "If you burn more calories in a day than you ingest, you will lose weight for that day. If you eat more calories than you burn in a day, you will gain weight for that day. If they are equal, you will maintain your weight for that day."
NOW, I am not one to count calories, in fact I strongly disagree with it because as a long-term lifestyle, it's basically impossible. But the idea, which I think could be helpful at the beginning of a weight loss journey, gave me a really logical way of looking at weight loss. If you choose to calculate it, you have to remember that just being alive and breathing burns calories, as does any movement. So if you're on a treadmill and you've eaten 2000 calories that day, do NOT thing you have to burn 2001 on the treadmill to lose weight. You can calculate about how much your body burns during the day here:
Simplifying things is definitely the way to go with weight loss (unless of course you have specific health problems or risks, in which case you should be working with a doctor). Just remember, exercise is good. It will keep you healthy and help your body to build strength, stamina, heal itself, and find it's boundaries. Don't bog yourself down with rules and studies. Eat well, exercise, and get a full night's sleep.
Oh, and be sure to use this community! Support is essential!
© 2013 Created by Whole Living.
You need to be a member of Whole Living Community to add comments!
Join Whole Living Community