Working with people all day, every day, who are trying to lose weight, one of the most important things I have learned is that there is no one-size-fits-all for weight loss. It’s true that genetics play a significant role in your ability to lose weight. But so do many other important factors, including where you carry your weight (hips/thighs vs. waist); medical issues, like abnormal blood sugar and high cholesterol; food preferences; lifestyle (travel, entertaining, young kids); job type (seated, standing, labor); daily general activity level; and exercise preferences/abilities. To be successful in the long term, a weight-loss plan must take into account as many of these variables as possible. This is not easy to do without seeing you in my office, but I have devised a similar to my daily approach with patients, to help you customize your weight-loss program.
Determine Your Readiness to Lose Weight
Before we begin customizing your weight-loss program, try to determine your weight-loss readiness and take a good look at your current life circumstances (no, just buying this book does not indicate readiness, though it’s a good start). Many people fail at weight loss, not because they have chosen the wrong diet but because they are just not ready to do what it takes, both mentally and physically. They set themselves up for failure before they even start. There will never be a perfect time to start a diet, but even for people with no time to lose, there are better times than others. See how one of my most successful patients initially failed at weight loss because she was just was not ready.
AL is not only one of my most successful patients but also a great example of the importance of readiness and motivation to lose weight. She initially came to see me one October with the goal of losing thirty pounds by her wedding, the next summer. She was finishing school and lived a chaotic, disorganized life. Her eating and exercise were erratic at best, and she did not seem interested in trying to figure out how to improve her eating habits. She blamed her fast-food diet and sporadic workouts on her busy and n approach very stressful schedule. She continued seeing me for about two months, during which time she went up and down the same three or four pounds, several times. She would binge eat, and then binge exercise. She was not recording what she ate and was going for hours without eating. After Christmas I did not hear from her, so I decided to not contact her.
