The key to weight loss: Make a mental shift

 

The internal dialogue you have with yourself can make or break your weight-loss success. Watch out for these negative thinking patterns. Sure, you want to lose weight, but are you in the right mindset to make it happen? Stop sabotaging your efforts with a self-defeating outlook and stay motivated to reach your goals with these effective techniques. Negative beliefs and self-talk The internal dialogue you have with yourself influences your actions. Thoughts such as “I’ll never lose weight” or “I’m no good at exercising” can weaken your self-esteem and stall your progress. Replace these thoughts with positive statements. Instead of: “I can’t stick with an exercise program,” tell yourself: “I can meet one realistic goal today.” Unrealistic expectations Many people imagine that losing weight will solve all their problems. Your life will likely change with weight loss — but probably not in all the ways you imagine…… Losing weight doesn’t guarantee a better social life or more satisfying job. Keep your expectations focused on those very real benefits like more energy and higher self-esteem. Inflexibility Words such as always, never or must place undue pressure on you. Telling yourself you’ll never eat chocolate again or you must walk two miles a day can lead to guilt-ridden lapses. Instead, treat yourself now and then in ways that make sense — when you’re out to dinner with friends, not when you’re feeling sad. All-or-nothing thinking One setback doesn’t mean failure. If you eat too much one day, you haven’t blown your plan. Counteract this kind of thinking with moderation — no “good” and “bad” foods, for example, and it’s OK to have dessert once in a while. Remind yourself you can get back on track tomorrow. Be flexible on your weight-loss journey. Don’t expect perfection. If you have a slip-up, learn from it and move on. http://diet.mayoclinic.org/diet/motivate/key-to-weight-loss-mental-shift?xid=nl_MayoClinicDiet_20150909

Weight loss: Strategies for success

 

Make your weight-loss goals a reality. Follow these proven strategies. By Mayo Clinic Staff Hundreds of fad diets, weight-loss programs and outright scams promise quick and easy weight loss. However, the foundation of successful weight loss remains a healthy, calorie-controlled diet combined with exercise. For successful, long-term weight loss, you must make permanent changes in your lifestyle and health habits. How do you make those permanent changes? Consider following these six strategies for weight-loss success. 1. Make a commitment Permanent weight loss takes time and effort — and a lifelong commitment. Make sure that you're ready to make permanent changes and that you do so for the right reasons. To stay committed to your weight loss, you need to be focused. It takes a lot of mental and physical energy to change your habits. So as you're planning new weight-loss-related lifestyle changes, make a plan to address other stresses in your life first, such as financial problems or relationship conflicts. While these stresses may never go away completely, managing them better should improve your ability to focus on achieving a healthier lifestyle. Then, once you're ready to launch your weight-loss plan, set a start date and then — start. 2. Find your inner motivation No one else can make you lose weight. You must undertake diet and exercise changes to please yourself. What's going to give you the burning drive to stick to your weight-loss plan? Make a list of what's important to you to help stay motivated and focused, whether it's an upcoming beach vacation or better overall health. Then find a way to make sure that you can call on your motivational factors during moments of temptation. Perhaps you want to post an encouraging note to yourself on the pantry door, for instance. While you have to take responsibility for your own behavior for successful weight loss, it helps to have support — of the right kind. Pick people to support you who will encourage you in positive ways, without shame, embarrassment or sabotage. Ideally, find people who will listen to your concerns and feelings, spend time exercising with you or creating healthy menus, and who will share the priority you've placed on developing a healthier lifestyle. Your support group can also offer accountability, which can be a strong motivation to stick to your weight-loss goals. If you prefer to keep your weight-loss plans private, be accountable to yourself by having regular weigh-ins and recording your diet and exercise progress in a journal. 3. Set realistic goals It may seem obvious to set realistic weight-loss goals. But do you really know what's realistic? Over the long term, it's best to aim for losing 1 to 2 pounds (0.5 to 1 kilogram) a week. Generally to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, you need to burn 500 to 1,000 calories more than you consume each day, through a lower calorie diet and regular exercise. When you're setting goals, think about both process and outcome goals. "Exercise every day" is an example of a process goal. "Lose 30 pounds" is an example of an outcome goal. It isn't essential that you have an outcome goal, but you should set process goals because changing your your habits is a key to weight loss. Next Feb. 26, 2014 References See more In-depth página 2 4. Enjoy healthier foods Adopting a new eating style that promotes weight loss must include lowering your total calorie intake. But decreasing calories need not mean giving up taste, satisfaction or even ease of meal preparation. One way you can lower your calorie intake is by eating more plant-based foods — fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Strive for variety to help you achieve your goals without giving up taste or nutrition. In particular, get your weight loss started by eating a healthy breakfast every day; eating at least four servings of vegetables and three servings of fruits daily; eating whole instead of refined grains; and using healthy fats, such as olive oil, vegetable oils and nut butters. In addition, cut back on sugar, choose low-fat dairy products and keep meat consumption to a 3-ounce portion (about the size of a deck of cards). 5. Get active, stay active While you can lose weight without exercise, exercise plus calorie restriction can help give you the weight-loss edge. Exercise can help burn off the excess calories you can't cut through diet alone. Exercise also offers numerous health benefits, including boosting your mood, strengthening your cardiovascular system and reducing your blood pressure. Exercise can also help in maintaining weight loss. Studies show that people who maintain their weight loss over the long term get regular physical activity. How many calories you burn depends on the frequency, duration and intensity of your activities. One of the best ways to lose body fat is through steady aerobic exercise — such as brisk walking — for at least 30 minutes most days of the week. Any extra movement helps burn calories, though. Think about ways you can increase your physical activity throughout the day if you can't fit in formal exercise on a given day. For example, make several trips up and down stairs instead of using the elevator, or park at the far end of the lot when shopping. 6. Change your perspective It's not enough to eat healthy foods and exercise for only a few weeks or even months if you want long-term, successful weight loss. These habits must become a way of life. Lifestyle changes start with taking an honest look at your eating patterns and daily routine. After assessing your personal challenges to weight loss, try working out a strategy to gradually change habits and attitudes that have sabotaged your past efforts. And you have to move beyond simply recognizing your challenges — you have to plan for how you'll deal with them if you're going to succeed in losing weight once and for all. You likely will have an occasional setback. But instead of giving up entirely after a setback, simply start fresh the next day. Remember that you're planning to change your life. It won't happen all at once. Stick to your healthy lifestyle and the results will be worth it. Previous Feb. 26, 2014 References See more In-depth

The key to weight loss: Make a mental shift

 

The internal dialogue you have with yourself can make or break your weight-loss success. Watch out for these negative thinking patterns. Sure, you want to lose weight, but are you in the right mindset to make it happen? Stop sabotaging your efforts with a self-defeating outlook and stay motivated to reach your goals with these effective techniques. Negative beliefs and self-talk The internal dialogue you have with yourself influences your actions. Thoughts such as “I’ll never lose weight” or “I’m no good at exercising” can weaken your self-esteem and stall your progress. Replace these thoughts with positive statements. Instead of: “I can’t stick with an exercise program,” tell yourself: “I can meet one realistic goal today.” Unrealistic expectations Many people imagine that losing weight will solve all their problems. Your life will likely change with weight loss — but probably not in all the ways you imagine. Losing weight doesn’t guarantee a better social life or more satisfying job. Keep your expectations focused on those very real benefits like more energy and higher self-esteem. Inflexibility Words such as always, never or must place undue pressure on you. Telling yourself you’ll never eat chocolate again or you must walk two miles a day can lead to guilt-ridden lapses. Instead, treat yourself now and then in ways that make sense — when you’re out to dinner with friends, not when you’re feeling sad. All-or-nothing thinking One setback doesn’t mean failure. If you eat too much one day, you haven’t blown your plan. Counteract this kind of thinking with moderation — no “good” and “bad” foods, for example, and it’s OK to have dessert once in a while. Remind yourself you can get back on track tomorrow. Be flexible on your weight-loss journey. Don’t expect perfection. If you have a slip-up, learn from it and move on. s: www.mayoclinic.org

One of the most difficult challenges in weight loss is keeping the weight off over the long term

 

A new report combining perspectives from a range of obesity experts identifies genetic, epigenetic and neuro-hormonal differences between individuals as one of the key challenges associated with weight loss and long-term weight control. The authors, led by Paul MacLean, PhD, and Rena Wing, PhD, reinforce that maintaining weight loss over the long term can be a major challenge. They recommend a number of novel approaches to improve obesity therapeutics, including more emphasis on an individualized approach to weight-loss treatments and maintenance, and the integration of physiology and behavioral psychology to identify effective and sustainable interventions. "Despite advancements in our understanding of obesity, weight regain after weight loss remains the most substantial problem in obesity treatment -- with both the body and the mind conspiring against individual efforts to maintain weight loss," said Dr. MacLean, co-chair of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) working group who authored the report, "Innovative Research to Improve Maintenance of Weight Loss," published in the January 2015 issue of the journal Obesity. "There are many differences in individuals ranging from genetic to behavioral that lead some to do well on one approach, whereas others do not. Therefore, what works for a friend or coworker may be very different from a weight-loss program that's most effective and sustainable for you over the long term." The NIH Working Group report summarizes the results from a recent conference and includes various perspectives from experts in integrative physiology, genetics, endocrinology, and behavioral and cognitive sciences. The report is accompanied by a commentary in Obesity by research and treatment pioneers and TOS past presidents, George Bray, MD, of Pennington Biomedical Research Center and Thomas Wadden, PhD, of the University of Pennsylvania. In their commentary, Drs. Bray and Wadden called individualized weight-loss strategies "promising," highlighting it as the most important issue identified by the working group to bridge the divide between basic and clinical sciences and better target obesity treatments. "In all weight loss trials, whether behavioral, dietary, exercise or pharmacological, some individuals lose a great deal of weight, others an average amount, and some even gain weight," they say in their response. Drs. Bray and Wadden go further to call the area of personalized treatment an "essential focus" that should be combined with political and societal actions to change our food and activity environments, which currently exacerbate the struggle for most people who are trying to lose weight and keep it off. "Personalized medicine is not a new idea; it is one that is applied and encouraged across many areas of medicine. Why not apply it to obesity treatment?" said Chris Ochner, PhD, TOS Public Affairs co-chair and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "Weight loss is not a sprint; it's a marathon." Working group co-chair Dr. Wing also stresses that current treatment approaches to improving maintenance of weight loss often do not adequately counter the many physiological and behavioral changes that occur when a person loses weight. "Development of more effective approaches to weight-loss maintenance requires the integration of physiological and behavioral perspectives and a more concerted collaboration between basic and clinical researchers," she said. TOS agrees that collaboration between physiological and behavioral researchers is needed to advance the science behind individualized treatments and develop better weight-maintenance strategies. In 2013, the Society launched the Bio-Behavioral Research Section to encourage greater research into the complex interactions between biological, behavioral and environmental factors that influence obesity. The Section, led by Chair Myles Faith, PhD, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, strives to bridge people, ideas and methodologies from distinct scientific "silos." "Understanding individual differences in treatment response requires expertise in biology and behavior," Faith said. "Seasoned clinicians, who are keenly observing and working to harness the strengths of individual patients every day, are an integral piece of the puzzle. Individual responses to treatment are at the scientific 'heart' of the matter for understanding weight-loss maintenance." The NIH working group report in full seeks to identify barriers to successful weight loss, review strategies that have been previously employed to improve success, and recommend novel solutions that could be investigated in future long-term weight control studies. In addition to more personalized weight-loss strategies, the authors recommend further exploration into the following areas to improve weight-loss maintenance: • Pharmacological strategies to counter the physiological changes that occur after weight loss, which require adjustments to the drug development process (e.g. pairing different medications or combining medication and behavioral approaches). • New ways to improve adherence to physical activity programs. • Foods engineered to maximize palatability and satiation to improve long-term adherence to a lower-calorie diet. • Strategies to decrease the perceived reward value of foods and increase impulse control. • Technologies (e.g. smart phones, tablets, GPS) and social networking to keep individuals engaged and goal-oriented. Story Source: The above story is based on materials provided by Obesity Society. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. Journal References: Paul S. MacLean, Rena R. Wing, Terry Davidson, Leonard Epstein, Bret Goodpaster, Kevin D. Hall, Barry E. Levin, Michael G. Perri, Barbara J. Rolls, Michael Rosenbaum, Alexander J. Rothman, Donna Ryan. NIH working group report: Innovative research to improve maintenance of weight loss. Obesity, 2014; DOI: 10.1002/oby.20967 George A. Bray, Thomas A. Wadden. Improving long-term weight loss maintenance: Can we do it? Obesity, 2014; DOI: 10.1002/oby.20964

Three Simple Solutions To Shedding Pounds

 

There are few secrets when it comes to the basics of how to lose weight.

But, for a task whose fundamentals are so basic and so universally recognized,slimming down is a goal that eludes a great many adults.  What are the surest ways to shed pounds?

The big two are known across the globe: Diet and exercise. The third key, though, is one that everyone will need in order to accomplish their mission of sticking to the first two—discipline.

Stay hydrated by drinking lots of water. It’s good for you, and it has neither a calorie nor a gram of sugar or fat. If you drink milk, drop down a notch from what you’re used to drinking: If you drink whole milk, reduce that to 2 percent milk, if you like 2 percent, drink 1 percent instead.

As far as diet is concerned, reducing the amount of sugar, fat and sodium in your diet will go a long way toward reducing your weight. You might be eating less fat and less sodium and still have trouble losing weight. In that event, pay special attention not only to what you eat, but to what you drink. Sugar and/or corn syrup is such a prevalent ingredient in so many of our beverages that even if we’re minding our diets by cutting down on the burgers, fries, salty chips and sweet desserts, we might still be failing at fat-loss by continuing to drink sugary sodas and fruit drinks.

In terms of exercise, aerobic activity like swimming, walking, jogging or bicycling is great for cutting calories, and it’s beneficial to your cardiovascular system, too. If you really don’t like to sweat, go for a walk. If you live close to a downtown area, walk to town instead of driving. Dedicate yourself to at least a half-hour of exercise a day. And if you’re stuck behind a desk in an office five days a week, make sure you frequently get up, stretch your legs, walk around and get your blood circulating.

Whatever steps you take in terms of either diet or exercise to embark on a weight-loss program, you’re going to need something else: Commitment. It takes a world of self-discipline to push yourself to exercise every day, or to push away that second piece of pie for dessert, or that salty bag of potato chips to accompany your noontime sandwich.

Remind yourself that achieving goals takes discipline. Shedding pounds is as much about having the right attitude as it is about eating the right food or partaking in the right amount of physical activity.