Genetics, Emotions, Society, Exercise, and Calories: Factors in Healthy (and Unhealthy) Weight Loss
Nov 28 '00
I think before you consider going on a diet, examining the underlying issues behind your weight problem is in order. Although there are many factors that play into obesity, I see the following as key: genetics, emotions, society, exercise, and calories. Examining how these are influencing your weight can help you set reasonable goals. Ultimately, I believe the goal-setting process should focus on overall emotional and physical health.
Note: If you are having weight problems see your doc to rule out diabetes, thyroid problems, etc.
The issues
1. Genetics
Genetics do play a role in determining how fat or lean an individual is. This has been clearly shown in mice, and already genes have been identified in humans that play a role in severe obesity. Current research indicates that an individual has a natural weight range they will fall into even if they eat a little less or a little more. It is just a matter of time before subtle genetic changes are identified in humans that are responsible for this. This is why there are some people who can eat the most incredibly fattening foods and never gain an ounce, and others seem to gain weight by just looking at food. This is important to consider, because you have to be realistic about your genetics when setting goals and designing a weight loss plan. This does not mean you are completely helpless in regards to your weight; it just means that you do need to consider what role genetics may be playing in your case.
2. Emotions
It is common to turn to food during times of emotional distress. Evaluate how much emotional dependency you have on food. For long term success, this must be addressed if it's a problem; otherwise, life circumstances in the future will inevitably have you eating again to temporarily make you feel better. Severe emotional dependence and overeating can cause a weight problem even though your genetics wouldn't predispose you to be fat.
3. Society
Who is really fat? How much social pressure are you caving in to? Was Marilyn Monroe fat or just voluptuous? Is Kate Moss or Anna Nicole Smith the ideal, or is it somewhere in-between? I know many women who think they are fat when they wear size 8 and are of average height! They don't look fat to me; they just look normal and healthy. A little weight is not necessarily unhealthy, and I wish our society would realize that. There is nothing wrong with big bones and a bigger build, as long as your weight doesn't put you in a high-risk group for certain medical conditions. If you are planning to diet, I think you should consider how much of your goals are shaped by society rather than what is personally healthy to you. This is easier said than done, I know, but if you allow society to dictate to you what you should look like, you won't just have to lose weight but you may also need all sorts of enhancing and reducing surgery everywhere...
4. Exercise
Why are people getting fatter and fatter? I would argue that more important than what we have been eating the last 50 years, it is our lifestyle that should be blamed. Right now as I am typing this I am SITTING, and when you read it you're most likely SITTING! Although there is nothing wrong with sitting (otherwise I am a hypocrite for writing anything at all on epinions!), most everyone will agree that our society is more sedentary than ever. I think that so many faddish diets are popular because they offer a seemingly easier way to lose weight than exercise, but without exercise, beware! If you are fighting a genetic tendency to fatness, dieting can be the most dangerous thing for you. You can put yourself into a starvation mode with major caloric reductions, and you will pay later by being even heavier than before you started. The best way to fight a genetic tendency is to realize that exercise burns calories, and exercise actually gives your metabolism a needed boost to burn even more calories, even when you're doing other daily activities.
5. Calories (Energy)
So, just how much do you eat? Are you currently gaining or losing weight (assuming no underlying medical condition)? If you are losing weight, you are eating less calories than you need to sustain your weight, and if you are gaining, you are eating more calories than needed to sustain your weight. If you are at a plateau, you are sustaining your weight. This seems simplistic, but it is a way of determining your current metabolism status at your level of exercise (if any).
Putting it all together: Self-Evaluation and Goal Setting
Try to take a good look at yourself and your habits. You probably already have an idea if you have a tendency to be fat or thin. If you have tendency to be heavy, you have to realize that your battle will require work on your part, and that you also may need to be very realistic about your goals. Don't plan to look like Kate Moss if your body is never going to cooperate! I personally think that if you are overweight, the best thing is to work towards achieving a weight that is healthy--not based on societal standards but medical standards. There are so many complications resulting from severe obesity, and if you reduce your weight to a more healthy level, you'll look good, too. You'll also feel good about your newer, although not stick-thin weight, if you realize that you have pushed your own body beyond it's predisposed state. That is quite an accomplishment.
Do you know you have emotional food-dependency issues? Perhaps you can work on them on your own, or perhaps joining a support group or even getting some counseling may be in order. Learning to manage your emotions better will not only help your weight, but also your overall health as well.
After you start addressing your emotional issues and set reasonable goals, then you can think about your exercise and food plans. As I mentioned above, exercise is key to long term success. Most people need the boost in metabolism, and exercise is the only way to do that without drugs (which I do not recommend!). Many people would be much happier with their weight if they just added a little exercise; you don't have to be an exercise maniac. If you are really out of shape, you can try doing something simple once or twice a week, and work up to 3 times a week. Go slowly but steadily. Try to find something that you like and incorporate it into your weekly routine. Perhaps alternate activities by season. There are many other good epinions out there that suggest workout ideas. It may take a while to notice a difference in your body size, but even before you see physical results, you already know that you are building stronger bones (with your new weight training routine) and a stronger heart (with your new aerobic training routine), as well as getting a natural metabolism boost.
The caloric changes that you make actually shouldn't be that painful. Based upon your calorie analysis, if you are at the maintenance level or are gaining weight, unfortunately, cutting a few calories may be necessary (in conjunction with your exercise routine). If you are only slightly overweight, you may not need to cut out much; adding some simple exercises may be sufficient, and if you do decide to cut calories, perhaps cutting down just 2-5% of your caloric intake will be adequate. If you are more severely overweight, you still don't want to cut down your calories too drastically (otherwise you'll change your metabolism for the worse), but you may want to try cutting 15-20% off your caloric intake; do this by cutting down on portion sizes (fill your plate as normal, and don't eat about 1/6th of the food) rather than giving up foods you really like (or by living off of diet shakes). Also, don't worry about single meals that go over a specific calorie limit, but rather, look at your weekly calorie intake. After a few weeks, see you whether you are still gaining/maintaining your weight. Repeat the process until you find a level that lets you slowly shed pounds. If you find that your weight plateaus before you have met your realistic goal, repeat again until you do reach your goal.
As a calorie side note, I definitely do not recommend the all-fat or no-fat diets! Both tend to be so extreme! If you want to really be able to maintain your weight when you're done with your diet, eat foods you like. If you go the low-fat/carb rich diet, you'll tend to want to eat more because you won't fill up very quickly, and this won't help you out. Both types of diets tend to cut out favorite foods, and that just means you'll break during a weak moment and eat large quantities of a forbidden food! Eating a nice meal can be one of life's pleasures--why deprive yourself of that? A sinful food item here or there is not going to kill you! Of course, I am not recommending that you just live on less junk food than more junk food, but meeting all your nutritional needs is another subject. I will assume you know to incorporate veggies (that you like, of course) in your diet if they are not already there, although you could still lose weight by eating less junk but still only junk (but that would defeat the healthy end-goal).
My "diet" plan, if you can call it that, requires patience. It will lead to slow but sustainable weight loss. It will also give you a higher chance for long term success, because it doesn't require anything drastic. Setting a realistic goal is very important--you can push your body quite a bit but you can't change your DNA (at least not yet). By considering what is contributing to your weight problems, hopefully you'll be able to better fight back.
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A baby, school, and a new house; lots to write about but no time.
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