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Self-Defeating Weight Loss Thoughts

Some of you have come to know me as the Fitness Mythbuster. In my never ending saga to convince people that what they might be doing could be making things worse, they sometimes will create new ideas that are not serving them very well even when they are doing the things they are supposed to. Does that sound confusing? Let me explain two of the most common I hear:

1. "Now that I am exercising, I can eat anything I want" - This hits the top of my list, as it is the one that I most often I encounter with most clients. If your goal is to lose weight, you can't just eat anyway or anything you want. At first I believe most people realize this, however, once they have lost a little weight they go back to their old habits and the fat becomes stagnant. This leads to frustration. (Some people flat out refuse to make a change and still get frustrated). You have to remember that there are a whole lot of calories in a pound of fat (3,500 calories to be exact). So, even when you are exercising and you burn 2,500 calories in a day (combined with exercise), and you eat 3,000 calories, that fat weight is not going to go. The worse part though, is that most of those calories are coming from empty calories like alcoholic beverages, late night snacks, and ice cream. To have any long-term success, you are going to have to learn how to eat supportively. Sure, every now and again, you should be able to eat a piece of pie or have a hamburger. You just can't do it everyday, but very sparingly.
   
   
2. "I haven't lost any weight, so I guess it isn't working. I might as well give up!" - Ask anyone who has been working out (using synergy) for more than a year, they will tell you that weight doesn't magically disappear. They will also tell you that it will go in spurts. The good news is, when you lose weight the right way it stays off. When it comes to losing weight through diets, you will gain the weight back with interest. There are a couple of things you have to remember. One is you have to remember how long it took you to gain the weight. It took longer than a couple of weeks to gain; it will take more than two weeks to lose it. Besides, the weight loss on these diets is primarily water loss and muscle loss, not fat. Second is weight is nothing more than gravity pulling an object toward Earth. It is not a true measurement of your body composition. You can have positive changes in you body composition, your flexibility, your health, energy, etc. So, don't just throw it all away because of what the scale says.

Here's a thought for you. Investing into a mutual fund is not something that you can get rich quick off of. Over time, it builds and grows. It may even lose some money. But in the end, you have got that $250K+ you were waiting for. Weight loss is not much different. True, safe, effective FAT loss and maintenance occurs not in the course of one week, or one month. In a year's time you will see a dramatic difference. Yet, it never stops. You must always continue to invest in yourself, just like a mutual fund. The good new is, it doesn't take 20 years to lose weight like most interest bearing accounts or properties. The point is, it takes time.

Kelly Huggins, B.S., ACSM HFI
The Fitness MythBuster
404.303.8305 kelly@kellyhuggins.com