Dr. Allan Horowitz, published newspaper article, Richmond Hill Liberal, Copyright January 31, 1990
Today’s column will continue with the weight loss series I began last week. I have already discussed why you should lose weight, how much weight to lose, as well as some other generalities about weight loss. Today’s column is going to anger many people, and I am sure I will be receiving many letters and phone calls telling me that I don’t know what I am talking about. My information is old, outdated, or just plain wrong they will tell me. In defence, before I am even accused of any wrong doing, I will say that this information comes from a magazine called “Self,” and this was the November 1989 issue I used for these facts. The first fact that sticks out is one I’m sure no one reading this will doubt. Americans spent $29 billion on diet books, groups, foods, videos, and gadgets. That was billion, as in “government deficit.” What is the best way to diet? You can read a book, watch a video, attend group sessions, undergo hypnosis, have acupuncture, take pills, starve yourself, become a vegetarian, or stick your finger down your throat every time you eat. Some of these methods will work, others will kill you. How do you know which method is best for you? Ask successful dieters. Those who have previously lost weight and kept it off will be more than pleased to offer their ideas on how you too can look slim and trim. In my experience, most people who have lost weight and kept it off did one thing that made them successful. They made one change in their life. They began to eat in moderation, when they were hungry. They would stop eating after they had just enough to satisfy them. Not enough to fill them. They would then eat again when their hunger told them to do so, and not when the clock or a friend or spouse told them to. A change in eating habits is what is common to all weight loss groups now. Everyone recognizes the importance of modified eating behaviours. Can you change your eating habits by sticking your finger down your throat after each meal? Obviously not, although it might change the eating habits of those around you when you do this! Can you change your eating habits by loading up on protein one day, watermelon the next, oranges the next and melba toast the next. No way. You need something that you can stick with for the rest of your life. Do you want to go to acupuncture forever? Not me. Do you want to be hypnotized before each meal? Unlikely. Do you want to look up in your little calorie counter book before you order at the restaurant? Poor manners. So what am I saying? You need a book or a group to help you modify your eating habits enough to allow you to drop the weight you need to lose, and then allow you to enjoy eating that way for the rest of your life. That will ensure that the weight stays off. Can you honestly say that you will never eat another piece of chocolate again? All diets will forbid you from eating chocolates and other naughty treats that many people crave once in a while. If you have a bite of something that you know you shouldn’t have, you have two possible reactions. You can admit failure and retreat to a period of binging, only to feel depressed and start up another diet a week later. The other option is to say “O.K., I had a bit of chocolate. I know it’s not good for me, but boy did it taste gooooood. That’s out of my system now and I wont have anything like that again for a while.” Then this person immediately returns to his/her proper eating habits. There is nothing wrong with snacking a bit at a party even if you are trying to lose weight. If you know there is a party later in the day, eat a light lunch, drink a lot of water to fill you up, and then eat a bit of whatever you want to at the party. No one can exist and be happy if they cant enjoy, at least a little bit, the foods they really like. But if they know these foods are not good for them, they must be careful to stay away from them, and only cheat once in a while. Cheating and getting away with it is essential to staying on a diet plan and making it successful in the long run. In other words, tell someone who loves pizza that they will never, ever have another piece of pizza, and they would most likely say that they would rather stay fat. Tell them that for the next two months (while they are on a “diet”) that they will not be allowed pizza and they could probably handle that. However, as soon as the two months are up, they will eat pizza like their life depended on it. They will then gain back all the weight they just worked so hard to lose. But, tell them that pizza isn’t really too good for them and they really shouldn’t eat it too often, they will lose weight, and once in a while they will have a piece of pizza, just to satisfy their desire. This is a much more realistic plan, and one which works much better than trying to tell someone that they can never again eat the food they really love. More next week.