Weight Loss Programs & Weight Loss Support

Staying Connected to The Weight Management Center - January 19, 2010

Once in awhile I’ll get an email from someone that says that she’s been reading my emails for quite some time, and that she is finally ready to get back on the slopes. She’ll mention shat wasn’t able to address her weight gain when it first started happening, but somehow, one day last week, something shifted and she is ready and willing to take serious action. Now.

I am not sure what it is that causes us to shift internally. I don’t know how in one moment we can be terrified, shut down or avoiding our present circumstances, and then the in next moment, clear as day, be ready to move forward. No question about it, no insurmountable obstacles, just ready to do what it takes to stop feeling bad, take some direction and get back on track. Read the rest of this entry »

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Staying Connected to the Weight Management Center - January 5, 2010

“Thinking about all of this is a lot harder than I thought. It gets even harder when I realize how much stuff I have been putting off dealing with. It’s not just making good choices, it’s having a plan about how to live this way permanently.” Exhausted and frustrated, one client confessed, “I just thought I could put it down at some point and get on with my life. What I’m finding is that this is my life.” As far as I can tell, she’s right. We have deal with our stuff, make good choices, and have a plan - every day.

Why? Because if were as simple as ordering the dressing on the side or skipping dessert we’d all have things handled. We all know about record keeping, using two beverages a day, ordering grilled chicken and the importance of eating a variety of fruits and veggies every day, yet, here we all are still struggling. We can’t make a decision, we waffle, we wonder. What’s next? Should I buy new running shoes or the latest fad diet book? No. We know what we need to do. The next step is a moment-by-moment strategy of how to do it. A strategy that we can live by even when we are tired, overwhelmed, isolated or bored, even when the kids, our jobs, our parents’ or friends’ needs seem to be more important, even when it would be easier to do something else. Read the rest of this entry »

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Staying Connected to the Weight Management Center - December 17, 2009

The thing about the holidays is that they bring up all kinds of stuff.  Sure, there’s a certain amount of excitement, anticipation, and magic.  Right? Once a year foods, gatherings with family and friends, gift giving and sparkling lights make this time of year ever so special.  And then, there’s the inevitable the reality:  moments of disappointment, overwhelm and exhaustion.  I’m not sure which part causes us to overindulge more.  Is it our happy, “oh, what the heck, it’s the holidays” mentality? Or is it the “I can’t do this anymore, hand over the canolies” (ok, so I’m Italian) attitude that pushes us over the edge?

I’m not sure.  What I do know is that I hear the same thing from patients every year. I feel it too.  The holidays are hard for a number of reasons.  And the reality is most of us want to put off looking at what we need to change during the holidays or any other part the year as long as possible.  There’s always Monday.  Or next year. Read the rest of this entry »

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Staying Connected to The Weight Management Center - November 3, 2009

“A patient I worked with recently told me she’s afraid to answer the phone. “Why?” I asked. “Stefanie, I say yes, when I mean no. I say yes when I mean maybe. I say yes because I don’t even know what I want.” I probed further, “What does it mean to you - to say no?” She went on, “I’m not sure. It’s been so long since I’ve even thought about what I really want; I can’t even tell you.” She paused. “Mostly, I’m overwhelmed, exhausted and I find myself doing things I don’t necessarily want to do - especially with food.” Read the rest of this entry »

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Staying Connected to The Weight Management Center - September 28, 2009

“Life just happens for me. It’s good, and I love it, but it’s killing me,” said a patient in one of our Living IT groups this week. We were talking about the importance of making plans to maintain weight loss. She was commenting about how it feels like she “doesn’t have the discipline” to do what she knows is necessary to maintain her weight. In fact, this patient said healthy eating goes right out the window when it’s a choice between what she is “supposed to do” or “what’s fun.”
Why? First of all, it’s exhausting to imagine doing without our favorites for the rest of our lives. Eating is one of life’s true pleasures. And in our hurried, over worked, over committed lives, we need the mini-vacation that a good meal provides. I recall one patient, an attorney for a large international law firm, recently telling me that lunch at his favorite restaurant was his “only opportunity to be off duty” each day. Who would want to give that up forever?  Read the rest of this entry »

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Staying Connected to the Weight Management Center - September 3, 2009

How to climb a mountain

“Make no mistake. This will be an exercise in staying vertical.
Yes, there will be a view, later, a wide swath of open sky, but in the meantime: tree and stone. If you’re lucky, a hawk will coast overhead, scanning the forest floor. If you’re lucky, a set of wildflowers will keep you cheerful. Mostly, though, a steady sweat, your heart fluttering indelicately, a solid ache perforating your calves. This is called work, what you will come to know, eventually and simply, as movement, as all the evidence you need to make your way. Forget where you were. That story is no longer true.
Level your gaze to the trail you’re on, and even the dark won’t stop you.”

- by Maya Stein

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Staying Connected to the Weight Management Center - August 18, 2009

Sitting here at my computer, my horizons broadened by the trip to France, I feel more focused, more invested in living the kind of life that I’ve been trying to live since deciding beginning my work in the field of wellness and obesity. What does this mean? Well, after 9 days away from my routine, I am totally discombobulated, thus, more intent on getting back to my healthy living plan. In fact, after a ten hour plane trip, followed by intense jet lag, plate after plate of jambon, fromage and baguettes and the old “what the heck, I’m in Paris” attitude, let’s just say, I’m a bit off plan. Read the rest of this entry »

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Staying Connected to the Weight Management Center - July 29, 2009

Well, I’m finally going to France, ladies and gentlemen. Yes, it has been a goal of mine for many years now, and the dream is becoming a reality at last. In fact, I’m leaving in 8 days. Heading to Paris first, then to meet up with a woman who teaches private cooking classes in the Loire Valley. If you can believe it, I found her on the internet (check out her website, www.lacucinaditerresa.com), while dreaming about the things I’ve always wanted, yet hadn’t figured out how to make space for in my life. Until now. Read the rest of this entry »

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Staying Connected to The Weight Management Center - July 7, 2009

“I want to stop craving ice cream and candy”, or “I want to learn to cook, so I can eat at home”, are things patients frequently say to me as they begin to contemplate new lifestyle changes that will hopefully lead to lasting weight loss. Unfortunately, it is not likely that restricting calories enough to lose 20-30 pounds in three months will also result in changing a 30 year-old habit of using sweets to manage difficult feelings.

If only the path to changing familiar, deeply entrenched coping skills was paved with perfectly balanced meal plans and calorie controlled menu items. Read the rest of this entry »

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Staying Connected to The Weight Management Center - June 4, 2009

Decisions are hard to make. And, they are even harder to stick by once they’ve been made, aren’t they?  Stuff comes up, it’s difficult to stay on the straight and narrow and contemplating what it will be like to live without the thing that we are most comforted by is just plain terrifying.  In fact, in the heat of the moment, I find myself regressing (if not completely, at least partially) by giving in on one or more levels to the very thing I’ve decided to stop doing.  Why?  What happens when we wake up and make the decision: I will eat 1,100 calories today. Yet, by 5:30 our resolve is out the window? Read the rest of this entry »

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