weight loss: are you really ready for it?

I saw a fridge magnet once, that says:

I keep trying to lose weight, but it keeps on finding me.

I'm sure that tickles some of you. To some, it may pinch. More so us that really can associate with that sentiment. Weight (re)gain is a seriously sticky matter, and I can't even begin to tell you how frustrating that is.

Writing for this blog, I try not to associate with the issues personally because my intention is to simplify medical and health knowledge in a way that people who don't want to spend 5 years in medical school can still understand it. But this issue has been a personal struggle for myself, so bear with me.

The secret to weight loss is actually very simple. It's a short and mind-blowingly straight forward. Here it is:

Less Intake + More Activity = Weight Loss

Mind blowing isn't it? If only the body conforms to mathematical formulae, yes it is going to be easy. Unfortunately (or fortunately) the body is (much much) smarter than that, and there are going to be a thousand and one factors that come into play when it comes to body weight regulation. 

I have also been sucked into trying myriads of diet fads and magical pills that promises weight loss when I eat, when I don't eat, when I just drink, when I just eat certain type of foods, you name it, I've tried it. Perhaps short of stomach bypass surgery, yeah I've tried it all.

The only thing that will work, however, is also simple. It may be just as mind-blowingly straight forward, but executing it involves a lot of will power, mental preparedness, positive social environment, and a determination made of steel.

Clean Eating + Regular Physical Activities + Targeted Exercises 
= Healthy Weight Maintenance

I've replaced the word weight loss to healthy weight maintenance because the word "weight loss" can create an unnecessary stress to achieve an unreasonable weight goal. Every person might be created to have equal rights in many ways, but one thing that we'll never be equal is in our shapes and sizes. 

To start with, we are loosely classified into 3 large groups, based on our body frames: ectomorph, endomorph and mesomorph (more about these later). If we were to aspire a body weight that is right on the dot based on our BMI, we'd all be mesomorph. Which is not logical.

First and foremost, we have to understand ourselves. How our body works and how our mind works. Over the next few entries, I will be discussing a method of understanding our own mental state and personal preparedness for behaviour change, particularly in the effort to lose weight and maintenance of health. Just as the title questioned: are we really ready for it? It may sound silly, because I cannot remember a day in my life that I didn't want to lose weight, but believe me, weight loss process takes more of mental readiness and will power than just a desire.

In a nutshell, I will be discussing the transtheoretical model of behaviour change (if you can't pronounce it, it's okay, read on, I'll break it down for you). This model was first developed more than 35 years ago (older than I am, believe it or not) from multiple theories in psychotherapy. Today it is one of the most dominant model used to discuss health behaviour change in the areas of depression / stress management, adherence to medication, smoking cessation and of course, weight management.

You may have seen the diagram above that explains the stages that people go through when making a behaviour change. We will be discussing the stages in the coming entries, and hopefully that may help you to assess your own preparedness for change, and deciding for a healthier lifestyle.

Stay tuned!