During the weekly visits, I almost always ask my patients about their exercise for the week. Often, the answer I get is "I walked". I then pry a bit deeper to find out if the "walking" was done during a dedicated time outside, work out cl;othes on, etc., but most frequently I am told that the walking is in the environment of work.
Clearly, rather than admit initially that really no "exercise" is being performed, the "walking" answer makes it seem that the person is doing some exercise, so I will not start pounding my chest and telling the patient how important exercise is, and they are failing in their efforts.
NOOOOOOOO!!!!!! Please remember, my staff and I are NOT judgmental about your weight loss success/less success in any given week. We are here to help you in your weight loss efforts and support you. So if you ate a funnel cake (gotcha Paul) or did not "exercise", we do NOT get angry or upset with you.
Getting back to the exercise issue: Many people do NOT formally exercise. Walking at work is not exercise. Yes, walking from office to toffice , parking further away from the workplace, using the stairs etc...all of these are great ancillary activities. However, for long-term weight loss efforts, a rreasonable exercise program should be utilized. The reasons why most people do not exercise are simple: It takes time and when you have a fulltime job, kids/family to take care of, etc., the day does not have enough hours AND exercise for most people DOES NOT FEEL GOOD. Laying in bed and getting an extra 45 minutes of sleep feels much better than getting youself up and getting on that treadmill or elliptical.
Often, orthopedic limitations make it difficult to exercise aggressively, However, there are less strenuous exercises that can still be done.
We encourage you to call Joanne, our personal trainer, and find out how to start a program that makes sense for "you". We certainly do not expect everyone to run 5 miles a day, train for marathons, etc. However, for long-term weight loss, some sort of real exercise will greatly help.
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Good Morning Dr. P. We made it back home from our trip and while away, did NOT consume funnel cakes, Thrashers Fries, Fishers Pop Corn, or Cotton Candy!!! Actually smelling all those "aromas" together was sickening. I must confess the only exercise we got was walking...3 miles on the "boards" and finding local parks to hike the trails each day...hope this counts. (We know, back in the gym now). Did you know that parking further away from our planned destination we call "planned inefficiency"?
I advise travelers that if possible, you need to carry with you a small cooler for snacks or search out stores while driving (we like Wawa) that carry grab to go packs of veggies, fruit, cheese, salads and yogurt. Being prepared causes less stress when being surrounded by fast food "joints".
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