Staying Connected to The Weight Management Center - July 7, 2009
July 7, 2009 – 8:52 am
“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. If only controlling our portions was enough to control our thoughts, feelings and behaviors, then we might find the rate of recidivism lower than it currently stands. What does this mean? Current studies state that at one year out, one of every two people will have regained 100% or more of the weight they initially lost on almost any diet. Unless there are some major lifestyle changes firmly rooted in someone’s day to day routine, the other half usually have another year or so before old habits typically resurface and the weight creeps back up. Why? Life. It just keeps happening.
That’s the other thing people tell me more times than you can imagine when we discuss regain. “The demands of life took a back seat while I focused on my diet program. Then, I just sort of let things slip. A little at a time at first, and then something snapped. I stopped my efforts altogether.” Something snapped? Pick a something, anything, that after awhile wears down our initial resolve to stay focused: a birth, job change, death, moving, relationship difficulty (that may have always been there, but, finally is no longer avoidable), the holidays, the holidays. Need I say more? We’ve all been there.
So, how will I know when I am ready for real change? How can I assess my level of readiness before starting my next weight loss attempt? The only answer that even remotely seems to make sense is that it is a procession of smaller action steps-not one giant leap to the finish line. Find something, anything that you are ready to do today that will bring you closer to your health goals. Do that same thing tomorrow, and again the next day. Try out what it feels like to stay with it, and you’ll know if that action is something you can stay with over time. Let me know if you need help figuring out what that step is, that’s what we’re here for.
We hope to see you in class soon!
Stefanie C. Barthmare, M.Ed., LPC
Licensed Professional Counselor, Supervisor
Weight Management Center
The Methodist Hospital
6501 Fannin, NB1-001
Houston, TX 77030
713-441-4944
Email: sbarthmare@tmhs.org
http://weightloss.mymethodistblog.com
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