You may remember me asking you to fill out a survey from the post Obesity: Shame & Blame Needs to Change in an effort to open up the discussion around obesity and weight management.
Turns out that over half of the respondents (more than 1,100 total!) have been concerned about being overweight and the health concerns around it for more than a decade. The good news is more than 60% have spoken to their healthcare provider about weight management, and of these respondents, 34% felt supported in their efforts for a healthy lifestyle and validated in their health concerns.
Okay, so what stops us from successful weight management?
Too much stress (57%)
No kidding. As a mother, I can speak from personal experience that this is how my self-care gets booted to the bottom of the to-do list. Between meals, laundry, bath time, bedtime, snack time, grocery shopping, cleaning, and general care for people other than me, I’m pooped. By the end of the day, I just want to sit in front of the t.v. with a salty sweet assortment with no one touching me.
Lack of time to exercise (56%)
See list above. I suppose I can fit in some exercise once I’m finished the laundry and preparing food for everyone. That’s ten past never.
Inadequate sleep (48%)
In the evenings when I’ve carved out 16 seconds of ‘me time’ when everyone is in bed, I plan to get up an hour earlier the next morning to have a brisk run. In the morning, I lie in bed and think that right after dinner is a better time for a walk. I was relieved to hear that I’m not the only one who is dead tired and doesn’t feel like a jaunt around the block.
So what do we do?
It looks like one key is the We need to stock up on certain people. I like to break it down this way:
Emotional people
These are the people who give you the pep talk when you think you can’t do it, the ones who back you up when a co-worker is trying to force feed you the sheet cake in the break room, the ones who cheer your progress without being threatened by it. The don’t have to be gym bunnies, they just have to ‘get it’.
Practical people
These are the ones who watch the kids while you exercise, the ones you hire to help you set goals, the ones who swap a load of laundry for the dog walk, the ones who deliver groceries. (I also need someone who guards my lunch until noon so I don’t eat it at 10 am.)
Inspiring people
These are the real or virtual people who you surround yourself with to keep your eye on the prize. The ones who you book the walk with so you know you’ll show up. They are the kick in the ass we all need to see that you can have a healthy lifestyle and be happy in it too.
Sure, this is one piece in a bigger puzzle, but it’s good to have this village in place when you start making real changes.
I’d love to know what your roadblocks and strategies are.
Is there anything that you do for successful weight management?
While I have you here, you can also help by taking this survey – not only will it help the medical community understand the barriers around obesity, you’ll also receive further education on the topic and be entered for a chance to win 1 of 10 $50 VISA gift cards.
It takes less than 15 minutes to complete. Survey responses are anonymous and will be shared only in aggregate.
Once you’ve completed the survey, you will be asked to provide your email address if you’d like to be entered into a drawing administered by SOMA Strategies to win 1 of 10 $50 VISA gift cards. If you choose to enter, your email address will not be sold, kept, or stored; email addresses are used only to randomly draw the winners and notify them of their prize.
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Our next recos:
Obesity: Shame & Blame Needs to Change
We ought to stop focusing all our energy on changing the numbers on the scale and start focusing on behaviors that we can change that have a real effect on our health. Eat healthier, move more, (try) to get enough sleep, de-stress. These behaviors are within our control. Change those to feel better and (studies show) actually get healthier – who cares about the scale anymore!
So true.
With a past history of eating disorders, I’ve found that intuitive eating works best for me. If/when I notice that I am gaining weight, I go back to the root of the problem and pay more attention to what I’m eating, how I’m eating it (standing/on the go/in the car), when I’m eating, and why I’m eating (stress, tiredness). Making small changes consistently will add up to large changes later. Pick a goal every 2 weeks to remove something from your diet (soda, sugary yogurt, etc.) or add something new to your diet (extra serving of veggies every day, swap chips or fries for extra protein sources). If you can keep up the habit for 2 weeks then add in another habit it will help you retrain your eating habits.
This is so helpful. I love that this is actionable advice. Thank you!
I’m probably going to sound like I work for them but I don’t, I just had incredible success with weight watchers. You still have to do the work, but it certainly helps to fill your tool box with strategies, apps, and support from people who are on a similar journey on a weekly basis. For me, finding a great meeting/leader, having the support of my husband and parents, and many in my circle also following the plan has been key. I lost over 35lbs within 6 months on the plan and more importantly I have kept it off for almost a year. I have goals to lose more but at this point I’m incredibly happy that I’ve been able to maintain the loss and stopped the yo-yo cycle.
I love to hear positive stories like this! Thanks for sharing it.