|
 By: Dean Micalizio As a practicing chiropractor whose offices are health-club based, the one question that arises more than any other over the past 20 years has been, "Doc, can you help me lose weight?". The answer to that has always been, "Yes, I can... and no, I can't."
I can tell you and guide you to what you really need to do, but in the end it's really up to the individual to make the decision to make the lifestyle changes that they need to make in order to reverse the 5, 10, 15 or however many years of bad habits and abuse that they have put their bodies through. Most Americans don't like to hear that.
With more than 60% of our population in the United States being a minimum of 30 pounds overweight, being healthy and fit must be a personal lifestyle decision. A great many people make that decision every year and fail. They fail due to a lack of education and guidance - not to mention the fact that food is everywhere! Portions are growing, as well as the amount of fat, sugars and empty carbs that are in those foods.
Fad diets are also everywhere, as are quick weight loss schemes. Be they exercise machines or magic shakes, or whatever the next miracle is... there is always something new. My experience as a physician has shown me that most of these programs don't work for long-term weight loss. Most people work out way too hard at the beginning, hurt themselves and quit, or the "diet" that they are trying is just impossible to live with.
Finally, I've seen people restrict their food intake and workout. All that will do, of course, is cause loss of lean muscle, and there is only so long that one can starve oneself. Nobody can live for very long like that.
What generally happens with most "diets" is that they are just not livable, and the individual's weight loss is temporary and they end up gaining all the weight back and then some! I personally hate the word "diet". In my mind, diets have a beginning and an end. A truly healthy change that will yield long-term results is finding a program that contains components of a healthy lifestyle and nutrition. More importantly, those components have to be ones that the individual can live with for the rest of their lives, not just for a few weeks or months and then revert back to all the things that caused the obesity to begin with. The secret to maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle is finding something that can become part of their lives.
The New England Journal of Medicine had a recent article on long-term results from weight loss programs and found that the programs that provided the most supervision and were based on a real lifestyle change had the greatest long term impact on its patients. Those lifestyle changes included proper nutrition and moderate exercise. 
To View Articles On Healthy Diets & Nutrition, Click Here.
With all the clinical implications of obesity, including heart disease, diabetes, and arthritis it would be in the best interest of everyone who is contemplating loosing weight to find a way to change their lives to make that happen. Remember, having help has shown to be better than going it alone. If you have been sedentary for a long period or have any health issues, always get the 'okay' from your doctor before starting any program. But whatever you do, as Nike says, "Just Do It!"
Since I implemented a lifestyle modification program as part of my practice, I am personally seeing the power that realistic lifestyle modification therapy can have with people who are trying to lose weight and get healthy. I can't stress the importance that the program needs to be safe and livable. It also must have a strong level of accountability. Without these, the chances that the results will remain long term will be smaller. If you think that I am wrong about needing accountability, here is an interesting statistic. Harvard University also did a study pitting self-motivated programs against programs that provided accountability and long-term follow-up.
While 60% of the people who had accountability were able to maintain weight loss for 4 years, less than 2% of the group who did a self-motivated program was able to maintain their weight loss. I guess this shows that we all need a 'coach' of sorts.
  Click Image To Enlarge. We All Need A Coach. In this case, your coach should have a strong medical background and be able to closely monitor your progress. He or she should also have a good foundation in clinical nutrition, so that you may be guided safely and in a healthy manner. Finally, the provider must have a practical knowledge so that the exercise component is safe and effective.
With these tools and knowledge, you should not have to fight your weight. Your only problem will be having to go shopping for some 'skinny' clothes!
About The Author 
Dean Micalizio, DC is a practicing chiropractor whose practice focus is on weight loss and rehabilitation. We work with people all over the country to achieve success. Contact Dr. Micalizio at +1 (602) 430-6671. More information is available at TriForLife.net. "Tri For Life" (TFL) is a physician supervised weight loss and lifestyle program. We can turn the cycle of weight gain and frustration around, using sound principles and a scientific approach that is proving 100% successful! Recommend this article to a friend by e-mail here!
Related Articles
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sign in for more FREE features and tools!
|
|
Give Us Feedback:
Report A ProblemSite Feedback |
Follow Us:
|
Bodybuilding.com Newsletter
Receive exciting features, |
