Losing Weight

When Writing Is Good for Your Waistline

Fat waistline

Image: iStockphoto

Is losing weight as simple as doing a 15-minute writing exercise? In a new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, women who wrote about their most important values, like close relationships, music, or religion, lost more weight over the next few months than women who did not have that experience.

Wray Herbert discuss the two major reasons for unhealthy weight, in A Simple Weight Loss Strategy. Really. Maybe. in today’s Huffington Post .

One is a simple lack of self-control. We live in a society where every day we confront an abundance of high-calorie foods. Not overeating in this environment requires extraordinary discipline. The second is an inability to cope with stress. Struggling with ordinary but constant life stresses can drain the cognitive energy needed for discipline, weakening our resolve. Stress-related eating packs on unhealthy calories, contributing to weight gain — and over time to obesity.

“We have this need to feel self-integrity,” says Christine Logel of Renison University College at the University of Waterloo, who cowrote the new study with Geoffrey L. Cohen of Stanford University. When something threatens your sense that you’re a good person, like failing a test or having a fight with a friend, “We can buffer that self-integrity by reminding ourselves how much we love our children, for example,” she says. [continue reading…]

If you want to increase your chances of losing weight, reduce your stress level and get adequate sleep. A new Kaiser Permanente study found that people trying to lose at least 10 pounds were more likely to reach that goal if they had lower stress levels and slept more than six hours but not more than eight hours a night.

losing-weight

iStockphoto &Twitter

The paper, published today in the International Journal of Obesity, was the result of a study funded by the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

Nearly 500 participants from Kaiser Permanente in Oregon and Washington took part in the study, which measured whether sleep, stress, depression, television viewing, and computer screen time were correlated with weight loss. Several previous studies have found an association between these factors and obesity, but few have looked at whether these factors predict weight loss.

“This study suggests that when people are trying to lose weight, they should try to get the right amount of sleep and reduce their stress,” said lead author Charles Elder, MD, MPH, an investigator with the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research in Portland, Ore., who also leads Integrative Medicine at Kaiser Permanente Northwest. “Some people may just need to cut back on their schedules and get to bed earlier. Others may find that exercise can reduce stress and help them sleep. For some people, mind/body techniques such as meditation also might be helpful.” [continue reading…]

Wanna know the best way to lose weight?

losing-weight

iStockphoto &Twitter

Roll -up, roll up wanna know the best way to lose weight? Ah ha! Got your attention? great.

I’m sure at one point or another we’ve all struggled to find the best way to lose weight and keep it off. And sure you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to grasp the few basic principles of how to lose weight—Its pretty simple, consume fewer calories than you expend. Yet if it is really so easy, obesity would not be the nation’s number-one lifestyle-related health concern. So why are extra pounds so difficult to shed and keep off?

Dr David Freedman shows how the concepts of behavioral analysis, ( roughly translated psychologists are the ideal professionals to support you in reaching your goal),…. underlie most successful programs for losing weight.

Take the Scientific American poll to see how your weight-loss attempts compare with other survey-takers. At the end, you will learn about four general rules of thumb that researchers believe increase the chances of losing weight and keeping it off.

As a footnote those who follow my regular posts will remember my own New Years Resolution…… Shrinkgurl wants to shrink her waistline.So far I have lost 1 inch and 6 pounds. Surrounded by psychologists I am an ideal example of someone who has ample behavioural support!
Watch this space I may even post pics 😉

Source: Scientific American

I am a great fan of the Heath brothers books Made to Stick and Switch! (this is not an affiliate link). As we all set about making promises to ourselves about how this will be ‘the’ year we “lose weight, exercise more, write that novel, climb that mountain”, I thought that it would be interesting to share this video where Dan Heath talks about just why change is so hard.

Fat waistline

Image: iStockphoto

Visit the Heath Brothers at their website to find out more.  This is my take away tip from the brothers Heath, who encourage us to use the power of peer pressure ( ‘cos it works). Maybe we should fess up and tell everyone what or resolution is. Oh did I tell you mine by the way? I’m predictably obvious…. I want to shrink my waistline. Oh yes how boring you’re probably thinking. But there! Ive just been and gone and done it now. Ive told you guys. Now you can keep tabs on me, and bug me and maybe even come out to bat for me achieving my goal!

Happy New Year all…  I hope you make this the year you stick to your resolutions 😉