weight loss and health

There are special times in everyone's lives when you feel that you want to live forever...watching your child involved in a graduation ceremony picking up a diploma, holding your first grandchild, standing on a beach watching the sunset on a secluded beach....these times and many others amplify just how great life can be and you would pretty much do anything to allow youself to live as long as possible to partake of all of these times.

Then there are other times in which you may go through stresses such as job unhappiness, financial deterioration, relationships gone sour, negative world events etc, and you feel that "what the heck, who cares whether I am around to see/be involved with this s--t?

What does this have to do with weight control? The answer is that when we focus on the "good times" we will be more apt to work out to stay healthy, and part of this most certainly is being aggressive in your weight loss efforts. Reducing caloric intake, exercising, etc will ne more likely to occur. Conversely, during negative times/thoughts we really do not care how many double stuffed oreos we eat..it just doesnt matter.

I ask my patients to think about the loved ones in their lives...spouses, children, other extended family, friends, etc, and think how they would feel if you were not around to be involved in their lives. Sometimes this type of thinking will motivate the person to rise up and allow the intellectual part of the brain win out over the instincyual part of tbe brain. The choices then will be the healthy ones and you will, in fact, have a much higher chance to be here to see those grandchildren grow and more peaceful sunsets on the beach.