Why you are not losing weight
Do you wonder why so many people who are otherwise smart, capable and motivated in every other sphere consistently fail when it comes to shedding weight as hard as they may try? You might be one of those. You have often been told that genetics, gender, and lifestyle are some of the key drivers that influence weight loss. Adopting a ‘healthy lifestyle’, without following any fad diets is also touted as a sustainable and manageable way to lose weight over a period. Perhaps some of you have succeeded and experienced great outcomes by following this advice. However, if you are like most people, you may still be struggling. Your weight has continued to creep up at the cost of your health and your self-esteem has perhaps also taken a beating.
As a health coach I am frequently asked about losing weight and keeping it off. The statistics in this context are rather bleak, showing that as a species we are getting fatter, and no amount of education or effort seems to be paying off. Around 2 billion people worldwide are now overweight and 600 million are obese (Ng,M., Flemings. A systematic analysis for the global burden of disease study. The Lancet, 384(9945), 766-781). Obesity is now a bigger problem in developing nations than malnutrition.(http://www.fao.org/hunger/key-messages/en/). The Middle East for instance, has some of the highest per capita rates of Type 2 diabetes in the world with 20% of the adult population being diabetic.(IDF Diabetes Atlas,7th ed. p.79). “Cheap, calorie-dense food has abolished starvation in the rich world, but it encourages diabetes. Sedentary, white-collar also promote obesity and heart disease.” (The Economist, June 2022).
Most people believe that exercise is an effective way to lose weight. However, this notion has been labeled as one of the most common misconceptions in the field of obesity. (Flatt JP. Issues and misconceptions about Obesity.2011,19(4) 676-86). Don’t get me wrong about exercise though. It has wonderful physical and mental benefits. Improving memory, attention, and learning capacity, staving off Alzheimer’s and other dementias, boosting the immune and cardiovascular system are just some of its many benefits. However, it is not a tool for effective weight loss.
So, what then is the answer? Is being overweight a moral shortcoming or a lack of willpower on your part? No. You are overweight today because your brain has been blocking you from losing weight. Modern times have changed many human behaviors and circumstances wreaking havoc on some of the critical processes of the brain making sustainable weight loss nearly impossible. Here I will talk about one of the features that has prevented you from losing weight.
Willpower: As a dieter you probably rely heavily on willpower to control what you eat thinking it gets more effective with increased commitment. But willpower isn’t what you think it is. Though it is a simple brain function, it is not merely a mental faculty that resists temptation. It also governs many other things such as the ability to focus, regulating emotions and helping to make choices. Have you experienced that feeling of not being able to make yet another decision at the end of a taxing day? This is because you can’t and scientists call this “decision fatigue” (2011, Aug17, The New York Times Magazine). And it is at this point that you are prone to making poor food choices. Pizza and ice cream for dinner sound familiar?
Until 1998 scientists didn’t know that willpower was measurable. Roy Baumeister, a professor of Psychology and a leading expert on willpower changed this perspective. He proved that exerting self-control in one area of our lives uses up this limited resource of willpower and prevents regulation of other functions. (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,94(5),883-898)
Many of your daily actions depletes willpower and resisting temptation is one of the main things that deplete it. This is particularly apparent when your blood sugar levels are low after a long, tiring day. You become incapable of making wise decisions about eating as your decision-making capabilities abandon you. It is then that you frequently fall into what is known as the” willpower gap.” (Susan Pierce Thompson, Bright Line Eating). Every day you spend an average of about four hours trying to resist some form of craving. And the foremost craving amongst them is food. Do you know that you make about 221 food related choices every day?! (Wansink B,. & Sibal, J.(2007). Mindless Eating.)
Diet programmes that are dependent on willpower and focus mainly on what and what not to eat and how much to exercise fail because they do not incorporate one very basic protocol. This is behavioral change. What you need is a plan that leaves nothing to willpower because at any given moment you may not have any. Your plan will still work however as it leaves nothing to chance.
The limitations of willpower combined with the stressors of daily life leave you open to unhealthy food choices. These unhealthy food choices trigger off a series of activities in your brain and create two other things: insatiable hunger and overpowering cravings. Look out for my subsequent blog posts on these very interesting topics.
If you feel that it’s time for you to make this important behavioral change don’t despair! I will be there for you, guiding you every step of the way. All you have to do is reach out to me by filling in the subscription form at www.rimabhealth.com. In the meantime, continue watching this space for exciting updates on health and wellness.
