HEALTH & BEAUTY :: AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2008
Don’t Believe the Myths & Stop Making Excuses!
Despite numerous claims to the contrary, reaching a weight loss goal is rarely easy. Along the way, we often encounter issues that can weaken our commitment or make us give up altogether. When confronted with problems that threaten our weight loss plans, finding an excuse to give up is often easier than finding a reason to move forward.
When we identify a reason for weight gain or lack of progress, we generally do so with the intention of correcting the problem. Excuses, however, have the opposite intention. They not only make it impossible to solve the problem, the make it okay to not even try.
Look at the following list and see if any of these excuses sound familiar.
- I have big bones: It is possible your bones weigh more than the average persons but that won't make you overweight. You may be tall and your limbs may be long, but being overweight comes from carrying extra fat, not from the framework underneath.
- It's heredity, my whole family is big: Having overweight parents and siblings more than likely results from everyone eating similar food and having similar activity levels. Even if a genetic trait makes you more prone to becoming overweight, this does not mean you have no choice in the matter.
- My metabolism makes me big: Your metabolism may be slow but that doesn't automatically lead to being overweight. Metabolic testing is a simple procedure that provides weight loss professionals with key information about how your body works, and what weight loss strategy will work best for you. Simply adjusting your eating and exercise habits can change your metabolic rate to help process food more efficiently.
- Diet foods and healthy eating is too expensive: Eating healthy food may cost a little more than eating junk food, although with planning, the cost difference doesn't have to be high. The big savings come from reduced medical bills and the benefits you receive from feeling better and having more energy.
- It's the middle-age spread, everyone gains weight as they get older: When exactly is middle age? Obesity affects our children, our elderly, and everyone in between. Things certainly change as we get older but it is possible to prevent weight gain as we age.
- I have children and I was eating for two: Once you give birth, you don't have to eat for two anymore. During pregnancy, women often learn to eat more and nine months is enough time for the eating change to become a permanent habit. You may be eating for two, but your body only needs calories for one.
- I love chocolate: Getting healthy doesn't mean denying yourself everything you enjoy. It does mean settling for a couple of chocolates instead of the whole box though. Equating food with love is common for many of us. Sorting out the connection and loving yourself more than chocolates will result in much deeper happiness than a quick chocolate fix.
- I am happy with me just the way I am: This usually only lasts until the consequences of being overweight start to appear. People are generally less happy when joint problems, type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea and the host of other weight related issues begin affecting their lives.
- My wife/husband/child loves me for who I am, not how I look: You are blessed to have someone who truly cares about you. So why aren't you doing whatever you can to be with this person for as long as you can? Being overweight ruins your health and will take you away from your loved one faster.
- I am healthy. I have good blood pressure and my cholesterol is under control: Good health is not simply the absence of illness. Health conditions related to obesity may take years to manifest but, with time, they will begin to appear. Regardless of what you may tell yourself, if you are obese and sedentary, you are not healthy.
Excuses conceal the truth and it takes character to push past them to find the reasons for weight control problems. Sometimes the reasons are too difficult to identify without the help of someone who understands why people really gain weight and has heard all the excuses before. Getting professional help with weight loss is a more difficult approach than simply finding a plausible excuse, but the reward of a healthier life more than makes up for the extra effort.
Dr. Linda G. Everett is pleased to announce the recent opening of The Center for Medical Weight Loss. As a practicing Internist, she sees the effects of obesity on a daily basis and decided to start taking a proactive approach to the epidemic. At The Center, she offers rapid, long-lasting weight loss even for the most difficult cases. Unlike commercial programs, Dr. Everett is able to use products and techniques only available to medical doctors. These include FDA approved prescription appetite suppressants, medically prescribed low calorie diets, and metabolic enhancing injections. Emphasis is also placed on behavior modification and exercise, which is the key to long term weight management. Dr. Everett conducts one on one counseling sessions with each patient at every visit and monitors all medical conditions that may be affected by rapid weight loss.
Since insurance coverage for the treatment of obesity is variable, insurance is not accepted for care at The Center, but she does provide the necessary information so that eligible patients can submit their own claims for reimbursement.
Dr. Everett received her undergraduate degree at Johns Hopkins University, and her Medical Degree at Jefferson Medical College. She also has a Masters in Healthcare Administration from Widener University. She completed her residency in Internal Medicine at Christiana Hospital in Newark, DE. Dr. Everett is board certified in Internal Medicine, and has received extensive additional training in bariatrics. She is a member of the American Society of Bariatric Medicine, and the American College of Physicians.
The Center for Medical Weight Loss is located at 2217 Baltimore Pike, Oxford, PA. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 610-467-0446.
