The Motivational Guide to Achieving Weight Control

By Peter Slade

This book presents a bespoke (individual) approach to achieving weight control. The first three chapters describe the main diets, medications and forms of exercise available and invites the person to select the most suitable for him/her. The book then focuses on motivational and other psychological factors, in particular psychological roadblocks to success and how to overcome them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Peter Slade
• Release date: Apr 4, 2012
• ISBN: 9781452448701

Peter Slade

I am a retired clinical psychologist with a long-standing interest in the problems of weight control. I believe that there is no simple solution to the problem which will suit everyone. Rather, I believe that each person needs to find their own individual bespoke solution. My book on The Motivational Guide to Achieving Weight Control shows you how to go about doing this.

Book preview

The Motivational Guide to Achieving

Weight Control

Published by Peter Slade

at Smashwords

Before starting any weight loss

program and prior to applying

the methods described in this book,

readers are advised to discuss

the suitability of the program

with their physician.

ISBN:9781452448701

Copyright 2012 Dr Peter D. Slade

The Motivational Guide to Achieving

WEIGHT CONTROL

Table of Contents

Chapter_1

What is the Best Diet for me? Choosing between Diets

Chapter_2

What Medications can help me with my Diet?

Chapter_3

What Type of Exercise will help me with my Diet?

Chapter_4

Increasing Personal Motivation to Diet and Exercise

Chapter_5

Initiating Behavior Change

Chapter_6

Removing Psychological Barriers to WeightControl:

Learning to Relax

Chapter_7

Removing Psychological Barriers to WeightControl:

Learning Problem Solving Skills

Chapter_8

Removing Psychological Barriers to WeightControl:

Changing Negative Styles of Thinking

Chapter_9

Self-Esteem Building

Chapter_10

Increasing Social Support for Weight Control

Chapter 1

What is the Best Diet for me? Choosing between Diets.

Why Diet?

The first law of thermodynamics states that matter can neither be created nor destroyed. And this applies to human matter just as much as it does to physical matter. When you eat some food, only a limited number of things can happen. The food can be used by the body in the repair and maintenance of bodily organs and tissues; or it can be converted into energy and used up in physical activity; or it can be eliminated from the body in the form of body waste or through evaporation; or it can be stored by the body in the form of body fat.

And that just about covers all the possibilities.

In order to avoid the last of the above (the continual storage of food as body fat) we need to make sure that the first three processes account for most of our food and liquid intake. And given that we have limited control over both bodily repair and the elimination process, that means ensuring that food intake and energy expenditure are in balance. If we want to lose weight, we have to make sure that the balance is a negative one - that energy expenditure exceeds food intake. Historically, the hunter-gatherer and the energetic farmer had little difficulty in achieving this objective. But we live in a very different world - at least those of us who live in western societies do. And that’s why dieting has become such an important, if not essential, part of our lives.

What do we mean by Dieting?

Dieting simply means paying attention to one’s diet - to what we eat and drink. And in the presence of a bountiful and mouth- watering selection of foods, it means limiting what we eat and drink in some way or other. There are many ways of doing this, as the large array of diet books and magazines clearly demonstrates. We will look at some of these in a moment. But let’s get one thing clear from the start - there are no quick fixes. It would be wonderful if we could eat-as-much-as-we-want and still lose weight. But that could only be true for super fit athletes engaged in regular strenuous physical activities; and even then there are limits.

The truth is that in order to lose weight we have to reduce the quantity of food we take into our bodies and at the same time increase our bodies’ utilization of this food - in short we have to eat less and exercise more. For most of us, trying to obtain control over our weight is definitely DDA (Damn Difficult to Achieve).

All diets, whatever form they take, involve cutting down on the amount of basic foodstuff absorbed by the body. This is usually measured in the form of calories, although many diets prefer to avoid using this C-word which has become so unpopular with dieters. But whatever else they do, successful diets lead to a reduction in the number of calories absorbed by the dieter’s body.

The essential trick is to find some way to achieve this goal of calorie-restriction while making the dieter feel satisfied with what they are able to eat. Of course, the actual content of such a satisfying diet is likely to vary from one individual to another. Thus it is unlikely that the principle of one size fits all can ever apply to diets. This is one of the reasons why we believe, along with the largest internet diet company in the US (E-Diets),

That every individual needs an individual diet tailored to their individual needs. We will return to this point later. For the moment let us look at some diets.

Healthy Diets

Some years ago the US Federal Government produced guidelines for a healthy diet, which were couched in the form of a Food Pyramid.

At the base of the pyramid was the bread group. The recommended daily intake was a total of 6-11 servings, where a serving was composed of the following: 1 slice of bread; 1 ounce of ready-to-eat cereal; and ½ cup of cooked cereal, rice or pasta.

The second level up was the vegetable and fruit group. The recommended daily intake was 3-5 servings of vegetables and

2-4 servings of fruit (the commonly quoted figure now is at least

5 servings overall). A serving of vegetables was defined as 1 cup of raw leafy vegetable; ½ cup of other vegetables, cooked or chopped raw; and ¾ cup of vegetable juice. While a serving

of fruit was defined as 1 medium apple, banana, orange, etc.; ½

cup of chopped, cooked or canned fruit; and ¾ cup of fruit juice.

The third level up was the milk and meat group. The recommended daily intake was 2-3 servings of milk and 2-3 servings of meat. A serving of milk was defined as 1 cup of milk or yogurt; 1.5 ounces of natural cheese; and 2 ounces of processed cheese. While a serving of meat was defined as 2-

3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry, or fish. Each ½ cup of cooked dry beans, 1 egg, or 2 tablespoons of butter counts as 1 ounce of lean meat, poultry, or fish.

And at the top of the pyramid was the fats, oils & sweets group. The advice here was to use sparingly.

These were the recommendations for a normal, healthy, balanced diet. A number of National Bodies such as the American Heart Association and the National Dietetic and Diabetic Associations are now stressing a number of refinements to the guidelines for a healthy diet.

These include:

● Choose fiber-rich whole grains, legumes, and fresh fruits and vegetables.

● Avoid saturated fats as much as possible, but eat unsaturated fats from vegetables, fish, legumes and nuts.

● Limit salt intake.

● Limit alcohol (no more than1drink per day for women and 2 for men).

Several other apparently-healthy diets which have received attention recently are the Mediterranean Diet, the Ornish Program and the DASH Diet.

The Mediterranean Diet is rich in heart-healthy fiber and nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants. The diet recommends the following:

● A relatively high fat intake (about 35% to 45% of daily calories, mostly in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats)

● Daily glass or two of wine

● Fish as the primary source of protein

● Lower than normal carbohydrate intake

● Food seasoned with garlic, onions and herbs

The Ornish Program limits saturated fats as much as possible, reduces total fat to 10%, and increases carbohydrates to 75% of calories. However, it is a difficult program to pursue, not least because it requires the dieter to exercise for 90 minutes at least three times a week.

The DASH Diet has been promoted as an important step in managing blood pressure. It makes the following recommendations:

● Avoid saturated fat (although include dairy products that are low fat)

● Select monounsaturated oils such as olive or canola oils

● Choose whole grains over white flour or pasta products

● Choose fresh fruit and vegetables every day

● Include nuts, seeds, or legumes (dried beans or peas) daily

● Choose modest amounts of protein (preferably fish poultry or soy)

● Oily fish is especially beneficial.

There are many points of agreement in these various guidelines for a healthy diet

● The avoidance of saturated (bad) fats in favor of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated (good) fats.

● The emphasis on fresh vegetables and fruit.

● The preference for protein in the form of fish or white meat rather than red meat.

But there is one area which is a continuing matter for dispute

- and that is the role of carbohydrates. I shall return to this issue when we discuss the Atkins diet.

Calorie Controlled Diets

The food pyramid described above gives recommendations for a healthy, balanced diet. In order to achieve weight loss, at