Category Archives: Lose Weight Fast

share

pin

email

These days, 33-year-old Leandie Williams loves to travel and explore the outdoors she recently went zip lining in Asia, and often goes hiking and swimming near her home in South Africa. But four years ago, those feats were nearly impossible.

Williams, who lives in a town called Port Elizabeth, was on a flight to Johannesburg for work when she realized she couldn't fit the seat belt across her lap. At the time, she weighed 275 pounds.

Leandie Williams before she embarked on a journey to lose 100 pounds

"I was too embarrassed to tell anyone that the seat belt didn't fit and I was scared that alarm bells or something would go off," she told TODAY. "The flight attendant walked past and I kind of covered it up, so she couldn't see it wasn't fastened."

"Just knowing that it was my fault, that I'd compromised my safety, was a big thing for me," Williams continued. "It probably made the biggest impact on me to change my life. I'd been overweight for about eight years, but I didn't know it had become so bad that I couldn't fit in chairs anymore."

There were other signs that her weight was a serious problem: Williams had recently been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, she was having trouble finding pants that fit and she couldn't walk more than a few steps without getting winded. She'd also gotten some tough love from her closest friend: her mother.

Leandie Williams after losing 100 pounds.

"She was the only one who was honest with me," Williams said. "She said, 'You need to do something it's out of control. You're so overweight.'"

"I was livid, so angry," she continued. "I looked at her and said, 'How could you say this to your child?' Everyone else, they lie to you: 'You're great the way you are.' That's good and well, but if it affects your health, it's critical (to change)."

Four years later, Williams' weight fluctuates between 175 to 183 pounds. Her weight-loss journey isn't over, but she's come a long way. After the flight, she got a personal trainer so she could learn her way around the gym, and traded fast food for a high-protein, low-carb diet of home-cooked meals.

Before losing weight, Williams ate mostly fast food. "I don't enjoy cooking, but I find it helps me stay on track," she said.

"I don't enjoy cooking," she said. "I find it a waste of time, but I know it will help me in the long run."

The gym was the hardest part, she said.

"It's very difficult to work out being so overweight, because you have no strength," Williams said. "I started training with my own body weight and recovery was very tough for me. But it just got better."

And the weight fell off quickly, at first. She soon lost over 60 pounds, but then plateaued and had to switch up her routine. Williams found that heavy lifting, as opposed to cardio, helped her the most. She also joined BodyBuilding.com's online community for accountability and to discover new workouts.

Now Williams spends her weekends exercising, going on hikes and swimming.

Now Williams wakes up every day at 4 a.m. and hits the gym for an hour before getting ready for work. She sits at a desk all day for her job as an administrator, so the workouts are especially important. But the effort is worth it: Now Williams can shop at regular stores for clothing, go mountain biking on the weekends and best of all, she can travel without worrying about the seat belt on planes.

Williams has also noticed something she didnt expect: how people treat her differently after she lost the weight.

People are more open to talking to me, she said. Its like people were afraid of me when I was overweight. People are more accommodating now. It doesnt feel fair. People didnt give me a chance back then. Guys, lets say I had a crush on them, they wouldnt give me the time of day...It puts me off, people like that. But its also humbled me. I wont treat overweight people badly, because Ive been there. I can relate to them.

What it's really like to lose 100 pounds Play Video - 1:01

What it's really like to lose 100 pounds Play Video - 1:01

Williams shared her top three tips for losing weight.

Williams said getting a trainer was a huge help in kick-starting her own transformation. So many people go to the gym and they dont know what to do, she explained. But when you know what to do, and where to go, you have so much more confidence when you walk in there.

Social media helped Williams with accountability and following like-minded people reminded her of her goals. Choose people to follow that will motivate you, she said. It will help so, so much.

The only competition is yourself," Williams said. "When people fall off the wagon, they think they should give up. But it happens to all of us. It doesnt help to dwell in the moment. Life happens. You just pick yourself up, dust yourself off and move forward.

For more inspiration, check out our My Weight-Loss Journey page.

View post:
After being embarrassed on a flight, this woman lost 100 pounds - Today.com

By Chioma Obinna

African women, particularly Nigerian women had always longed to be big, that is, fat. Mostly for married women, being fat was seen as a sign of affluence on the part of their husbands. The bid to achieve this so-called status then in the country made so many husbands to work so hard such that their wives will be the envy of others.

But, today, things are different. Apart from chronic health conditions which force many to go on diet, women who even have less than 28 Body Mass Index, BMI, in Nigeria are being advised to lose weight by every means possible. The craving to be slim has, however, caused damages to many women unknowingly. Some have even lost their lives in the process.

Although it is natural for anyone trying to lose weight to want to lose it very quickly, it can take time and effort; unfortunately, many people are impatient to get into shape and want a quick-fix diet. Slimming pills appear to be taking over the gradual and healthy weight loss programme as recommended by medical experts. The order of the day is now goodbye to sweaty sessions in the gym and lifestyle modification. But how safe are these weight loss supplements said to be natural and plant-based? Sunday Vanguard x-rays the pros and cons of the products.

Today, you cannot escape unsolicited advertisements on slimming pills and teas. They are everywhere. On your facebook, twitter, name it, they pop up. The messages are clearly written, It is pure natural, Lose weight in 10 days, This can burn your fat fast. They will say the ingredients are plant-based green tea extract, bitter orange, raspberry ketones and harmless. Some of the products have been widely advertised as safe and miraculous. Medical experts, however, say the pills have dangerous consequence.

According to the World Health Organisation, WHO, an unhealthy diet is one of the major risk factors for a range of chronic diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes and other conditions linked to obesity. However, specific recommendations for a healthy diet include eating more fruit, vegetables, legumes, nuts and grains; cutting down on salt, sugar and fats. It is also advisable to choose unsaturated fats, instead of saturated fats and towards the elimination of trans-fatty acids.

Evidence abounds that people who lose weight gradually and steadily like 1 to 2 pounds per week are more successful at keeping weight off. Health watchers are worried that healthy weight loss is not just about a diet or programme but also about on-going lifestyle that includes long-term changes in daily eating and exercise habits.

Unfortunately, due to impatience, many people go for slimming pills and teas. There are stories about people who have died of the slimming pills and teas. In 2013, a Delta State-based Nollywood location manager reportedly died after a brief illness which was believed to have been aggravated by the slimming tea he took.

He was said to have died after he drank the tea. Reports said he complained of weakness and was taken to hospital but he did not respond to treatment.

Also in 2014, the autopsy carried out on one Betty Kums who had died linked the death to the side effects of a slimming tea.

Meanwhile, some victims are alive to tell their stories. When Ngozi Onyekwus doctors counselled her about the implication of her abnormal weight which was almost about 130 kilogrammes (kg) then, she became agitated.

It became an emergency for her. She could no longer rely on the recommended diets and exercise regimen. She went for slimming pills.

I was in my early 40s, about 51/2 feet 10 inches tall and weighing about 130kg. Living a normal life was a problem for me. I was totally obese. Friends were pressuring me to try the pills. It could be embarrassing when people stare at you because of your weight. I decided to try one without prescription. Each time I took the pills, my appetite for food will cease, she narrated.

Though I started shedding weight within two weeks of treatment, I developed some complications, ranging from constant headache to insomnia and a higher level of blood pressure.

I took it for three weeks before things went from bad to worse. I lost my composure. It was as if I was going to pass out. I became restless. I knew something was wrong. My already elevated blood pressure got worse. It was over 150; I had never experienced that in my life. I opened up to a friend who encouraged me to throw the pills away.

Ngozi was forced to seek the services of a dietician who has been able to bring her weight down to 90 kilogrammes through a change in her diet, more exercise and a more active life.

According to medical experts, some diet pills may cause stroke and panic attacks. And worrisome is the fact that it is easy to buy the pills online and without a doctors prescription.

Ordinarily, the pills should be prescribed to those with a BMI of 28 and above, or those who have health problems associated with weight and for a short-term period. In essence, diet pills should only be used under medical supervision.

But although, it is illegal to sell prescription drugs without a prescription in Nigeria, slimming pills are sold without prescription even online. The pills can be addictive and therefore difficult to withdraw from. They may well suppress your appetite, but studies have shown that the chemicals in the diet drugs, which act like adrenalin by increasing the heart rate, can also affect your blood pressure, give you mood swings, cause tremors, severe headaches and heart attack or stroke.

In a chat with Sunday Vanguard, Assistant Director of Dietetics, Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile Ife, Osun State, Dr Ogbonna Obinna, said there is no benefit in taking slimming pills because they pose grave danger in the long run to users.

Obinna listed the side effects of using slimming pills to include high blood pressure, restlessness, fast heart beats, dizziness, psychological distress and hormonal distortion.

According to him, slimming pills bring nothing but pains in the end.

Nature determines our morphological expression (i.e. our body size). If you inherited a large body frame, the best you can do is to watch what you eat, the expert said.

There is no gain in taking slimming pills, because it is like solving one problem and creating more serious problems at the end. One of the side effect of the pills is elevated blood pressure which if not controlled can lead to acute/chronic renal failure, that is, your kidneys may stop functioning. The victim may either struggle for survival by dialysis or total kidney transplant and these are very expensive. It is like using the popular pidgin axiom in Nigeria to explain, Iyanga dey sleep trouble dey wake am.

He further advised that carrying excess weight is not the best. Your body weight and frame should synchronize. If this is not so, you may either be overweight or obese with its health consequences.

According to him, theres no magic bullet for losing weight as the most effective way to lose weight and keep it up is through lifestyle changes. Eat a healthy low-calorie diet with lots of fruits and vegetables and be physically active, he advised.

Lifestyle and diet modifications are the answer and not necessarily taking slimming pills that you get addicted to. There is need for you to change your sedentary activities and become more active based on advice from your physiotherapist

There is need for you to change or modify your dietary pattern by cutting down on your carbohydrates intake especially refined foods and simple sugars, pastries etc with professional counsel from a dietician.

Also speaking, a Consultant Surgeon and Medical Director of Jeokem Hospital, Lagos, Dr Emmanuel Enabulele, warned against the use of quick-fix weight loss products, adding that there are chances of rebound obesity when people use slimming pills.

Enabulele, who is also the Chairman, Board of Trustees, Health Writers Association of Nigeria, HEWAN, described the pills as death trap when used wrongly.

According to him, the pills could make one slim between10 and 20 days but cause a lot of damages to the health system.

It is risky to take these products; one may also suffer nutritional deficiency. I also advise against taking slimming tablets and teas, because they all contain harmful materials. They contain preservatives which can be harmful to the system, he said.

Another reason I advise people against using slimming drugs is because many of the products contain nutrients that are designed to make one feel full. It gives one false satisfaction. By the time one stops taking the product, the person may either dry up or blow up his body structure because you cannot take the product for life.

Noting that the best remedy for weight loss is healthy eating pattern, he added that many people eat anything that is readily available.

One of the benefits of losing weight through diet and exercise is that you wont feel sick as your normal physiology would not be altered.

Secondly, your liver would not be challenged from the metabolism or breakdown of pills. It saves you headaches. There are less chances of rebound obesity as dieting could be habit forming and sustainable.

Many diseases we battle with could have been stopped right from the mouth. The food we eat goes a long way in determining our health status

In as much as I advocate for constant exercise, embracing diet plans comes before exercise. Many people have the mind-set of going through excessive exercise to lose weight.

This has always proved to be the secondary aspect of weight loss after dieting. You will get nowhere in losing weight if you exercise often and yet continue having high calorie intake. You must embrace the attitude of good diet, and to achieve that takes discipline.

Weight loss could be achieved by cutting down on carbohydrate. If you want to lose weight you should start by avoiding sugar and starch (like bread). There is infinite number of weight-loss diets based on eating fewer carbohydrates. Dozens of modern scientific studies have proven that low carbohydrate is the most effective way to lose weight.

The Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Health, Dr.Modele Osunkiyesi, echoed the experts perspectives, saying losing weight through diets and exercise was natural and sustainable.

Osunkiyesi said there are no systemic complications attached and no likelihood of rebound and side effects.

Read more from the original source:
'Slimming pills work fast but bring great pains in the end' - Vanguard

I was living away from home for the first time in my early 20s when I met James. We became a couple, moved in together and quickly fell into terrible eating habits. There were a lot of takeaways near us and the temptation was just too much. All fruit and veg went out the window and we survived on fast food and junk. Id skip breakfast, then put away a fried egg sandwich for lunch, with two eggs and three thick pieces of bread.

For dinner Id gorge on curry, pizza or Chinese and Id also snack on four or five bags of crisps, a couple of cake bars and four or five bars of chocolate every day.

So it was no surprise that I managed to pile on 6 stone over just 18 months, ballooning from 12 to 18 stone, and going from a size 14 to a 24. As well as bad eating habits at home, I was in a bad cycle at work. Sat behind a desk and bored with my office job, I snacked out of boredom. I had no energy, but I was in love and happy. James put on weight too, but not as much as me.

James and I married in 2014 and I didnt care that I was a big bride; I had my man and I was content. The only thing that was dampening my spirit was the daily headaches Id started suffering. I went to the doctor every six months to ask for help, but every time I got the same response: Theyre tension headaches, take some paracetamol.

When I went for a routine eye check-up in 2015, instead of a new prescription, I unexpectedly started to get an answer as to why I was getting headaches. The optician told me there was something showing up behind one of my eyes. He didnt say what it was there was just a blur and sent me to hospital.

I was terrified. My mind automatically jumped to the worst-case scenario and I was convinced I had a brain tumour. I was sent to the neurology department, and after tests a consultant explained I had a condition called Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension (IIH). I listened in shock as I was told my weight had put far too much pressure on my brain.

The only way to stop it was to lose weight. If you carry on and get bigger, you will go blind, the consultant warned. The extra weight had been put on so quickly it was putting pressure around my brain. If it got worse, then the force on my cranial nerves could progress to enlargement of the blind spot, blurring of vision and ultimately a total loss of sight.

I was dumbstruck. I couldnt believe my weight could be responsible for my headaches and could be putting me at so much risk. Sure, I knew I was responsible for my weight gain and I knew about the common side effects of that but to lose my sight because of it? It was a massive shock and it took a while to get my head around it.

They couldnt put a timeframe on the risk to my sight, but I needed to stop piling on the weight or else Id end up blind. If I continued I would literally be eating my sight away. My vision had been declining for about three years, but Id had no idea this was why.

They carried out a lumbar puncture, which is a big injection to drain the excess fluid, to ease the pressure off my brain and give me a few weeks respite.

I was so big they couldnt find the spot they needed in my spine and had to perform a second one under an x-ray. That stopped the headaches for a couple of weeks and then it was down to me. If I didnt overhaul my lifestyle, the headaches were going to return and I would go blind. As motivation goes, that worked pretty well for me.

I managed to lose 3 stone through a mixture of Slimming World and Weight Watchers, but found I put weight back on as soon as I stopped going to the support meetings or following the plans religiously. Every time the pounds started creeping back on I would panic that I was going to end up back where I started and lose my sight. I needed to break the cycle.

By Christmas 2015 I was yo-yoing around 15-17 stone, which was good enough to keep the headaches at bay and I was discharged from the hospital as an outpatient on the promise Id continue to look after myself. The IIH wasnt gone, but I was in remission. If I put on weight quickly it would come back, and if I fell pregnant itd be high risk.

I was relieved to have saved my sight, but I knew I needed to do something once and for all to slim down and stop me falling into old habits again. Without the motivation of the regular weigh-ins at hospital I knew it would be easy to let the weight start creeping back on again. I was also fed up with having to change my wardrobe every few months as my dress size fluctuated with my weight.

I cut my portion sizes in half then halved them again, so I was eating a quarter of what I used to. I also made healthier choices, like swapping a fried egg sandwich for poached egg on toast. Then a few months later I changed jobs and started working as a health care assistant. I was on my feet all day, and I was so busy I didnt even have time to think about snacking; and thats when I really noticed the weight coming off.

I got to my goal weight of 10st 2lb in March 2017 going from a size 24 to a 10 where Ive always wanted to be. Its the first time Ive ever been a size 10 in my life and I sometimes forget I'm smaller than I used to be.

Sadly, I split up with James around the same time, as we realised we had drifted apart. Were better off as friends and well always stay that way, so I havent lost him completely.

Ive always been self-conscious and Im still not used to being a size 10, so now Im working on building my confidence and hoping to get the new me out there and on the dating scene again soon. And no longer having to worry that I might suffer the horror of going blind is such a relief. The future is looking bright.

IIH (Idiopathic intracranial hypertension) is a rare neurological condition defined by increased intracranial pressure around the brain without the presence of a tumour or disease.

It affects one in 100,000 people, which increases to 1-4 per 100,000 of women of childbearing age and to 19 per 100,000 with a BMI higher than 30.

Monre than 90% of patients diagnosed with IIH are overwight women and recent studies have shown weight loss is an effective treatment to reduce optic disc swelling and for curing IIH.

Read the original:
'Lose weight or you'll turn blind' - Doctor's shock warning spurred woman's dramatic weight loss - Mirror.co.uk

If you love running for the sake of running, great. That's awesome, and you'll probably be a healthier and happier human for it. But if you're picking up running because your friend lost 30 pounds as soon as he started jogging in the mornings and you're trying to lose the same, please stop.

In this episode of What's Good, Greatist founder Derek Flanzraich explains the ways running for weight loss can be physically and mentally damaging to youas well as some other effective strategies you can try if you want to lose weight.

Sources:

Schwingshackl L, Dias S, Hoffmann G.Impact of long-term lifestyle programmes on weight loss and cardiovascular risk factors in overweight/obese participants: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.Systematic Reviews. 2014;3:130. doi:10.1186/2046-4053-3-130.

Wilks DC, Sharp SJ, Ekelund U, et al.Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Fat Mass in Children: A Bias-Adjusted Meta-Analysis of Prospective Studies. Gravenor M, ed.PLoS ONE. 2011;6(2):e17205. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0017205.

Low fat loss response after medium-term supervised exercise in obese is associated with exercise-induced increase in food reward.Finlayson G, Caudwell P, Gibbons C. Journal of obesity, 2010, Sep.;2011():2090-0716.

Acute effects of exercise on energy intake and feeding behaviour.Imbeault P, Saint-Pierre S, Almras N. The British journal of nutrition, 1997, Jun.;77(4):0007-1145.

Derek Flanzraich is Greatist's founder and CEO. What's Good is his take on the news, trends, and issues worth talking about in health and wellness. Sign up and get his column (plus puppy GIFs and other funsies) delivered every Sunday.

See original here:
Stop Running for Weight Loss - Greatist

Is the scale a friend or foe in weight loss?

A new study from researchers at Penn and Drexel University found that female college-age students who weighed themselves regularly -- averaging a daily basis -- saw a greater drop in body mass index (BMI) and body fat percentage, while those who didnt weigh themselves daily saw, on average, no BMI declination.

Penn Medicine News reported that the BMI for the women who self-weighed daily saw a BMI decrease of about .5 units by the end of their first year.

The study is the latest piece to a long-running debate running throughout both the scientific health and the fitness and wellness communities about the role the scale and daily weigh-ins make in helping people achieve their weight loss goals.

Advocates of the scale cite this and similar studies that link daily scale checking to weight loss progress. Diane Rosenbaum, an author on the study and psychologist at Penn, said the behavior can be useful.

Daily self-weighing only adds a few extra minutes to someones morning routine, but it has the potential to help individuals stay on track with health goals, which is another reason it could offer a lot of utility for folks looking to watch their weight, she said.

It gives you more opportunities to see the impact of your behaviors on your weight, and helps you to identify when you may need to make adjustments sooner rather than later.

Conversely, of course, the scale could have the potential to discourage people who may be gaining weight as the replace fat with muscle -- that is the big point of debate among many fitness leaders outside of the science community.

One of the things that people critique about using BMI is that it can sometimes be confusing to interpret in people who are high in muscle mass, Rosenbaum told Penn Medicine News. Rosenbaum and other experts have noted that body fat percentage can be an even better marker of body progress, which is why Penn and Drexel used that measurement in the study as well.

If we look at body fat specifically, we can say a lot more concretely that the changes we are seeing are related to gaining body fat, as opposed to any other type of weight gain or loss. And thats useful because we know that excess body fat is one of the things that can be a predictor of future health problems.

Researchers arent thrilled with the number of people who advocate for swearing against the scale as online trainers and wellness communities throw so many new dieting ideas into the ether. As more research begins to observe the role of self-weighing, however, more and more experts are pointing toward its benefits.

My training is in health and clinical psychology, so my clinical recommendations come from a research-based perspective, said Jena Shaw Tronieri, director of Clinical Services at Penns Center for Weight and Eating Disorders.

Most research suggests a relationship between regular self-weighing and better weight loss or weight loss maintenance, though further studies are needed to determine that one actually causes the other.

Check out the full report from Penn Medicine News here.

Continue reading here:
Study links daily check-ins to weight loss, but does the scale tell the whole story? - PhillyVoice.com

Amy Childs has caused a stir on social media after posting about a weight loss supplement, with some fans accusing her of putting pressure on new mums and how they look.

The reality TV star posted a before and after picture of herself on Instagram, showing off the results she's achieved with the product in an 'after' bikini shot since welcoming her daughter Polly.

'I never expected to lose this much weight. I feel like @skinnycoffeeclub has changed my lifestyle for the better.'

'Any new mums will understand how hard it can be to look after yourself as well as caring for your new baby, so when I found Skinny Coffee Club day night coffee I was delighted as it fits in perfectly with my daily routine and requires minimal effort.'

'For anyone looking on losing weight safely but quickly then I would definitely recommend joining the @skinnycoffeeclub program.'

While many fans commented on Amy's picture to congratulate her on her amazing post-baby body, some criticised the mum for putting pressure on other mums to lose weight.

One wrote: 'Yay! More pressure on new mum's to lose weight. Well done Amy, you must be so proud,' whilst a second commented: 'You look amazing @amychilds1990. But some mums don't have that confidence, I used be size 8 now a 14. It's just ignorance!'

A third agreed: 'Nobody just takes this and loses weight like you have in your picture, this must have been achieved by a few other things e.g diet, exercise and maybe a few procedures. Young girls these days don't need more pressure put on them.'

It's not the first time fans slam Amy for promoting weight loss products on social media. Mere days after giving birth, the mum-of-one took to Instagram to post about the meal supplements that she later admitted wasn't taking.

Continued below...

At the time critics pointed out that it was irresponsible to promote the products as new mums shouldn't breastfeed while drinking the shakes, which prompted Amy to take down the post and apologise to fans.

More here:
'More pressure on new mums to lose weight' Amy Childs slammed by fans for promoting weight loss product on Instagram - goodtoknow

SWNS

Amber Wagner, 23, and husband Bo, 25, were slim when they fell in love at 16 but their combined weight DOUBLED to 50st after they tied the knot.

The childhood sweethearts guzzled 10 cans of soda a day between them, devoured ice cream for breakfast and sometimes binged on fast food three meals a day.

Other days they would munch through bags of pizza rolls, corn dogs and potato chips or cook hearty casseroles.

When they met, customer services rep Amber weighed 9st and machinist Bo 15st, but after three years of marriage they had both ballooned to a staggering 25st.

In that time they had two children, Gavin, now four, and Octavia, one, and not only had they piled on the pounds, they had only had sex 10 or so times because they were "too big" and it "wasn't fun".

But it wasn't until Bo lost his job and they hit "rock bottom" and were pushed to the brink of divorce that they decided something had to change.

The couple say the fear of breaking up prompted them to overhaul their lifestyle and they lost more than 22 stone combined, with Amber dropping to 11st and Bo to 17st.

Now the loved-up duo are happier than ever - and Amber kick started her weight loss by following one rule; she was only allowed seconds after dinner if she got up off the sofa to get it.

Getty

1 of 22

Nigella Lawson has lost almost 3 stone in recent years

SWNS

Size 14 (UK) Amber, of West Virginia, US, said: "When I was big I was miserable. It was the worst time of my life.

"I didn't want to get up off the couch. We were gross people. We never cleaned or took care of anything, we would just let the dishes pile up and whine and complain.

Bo added: "I never stopped loving Amber but we were not very happy and we were both unhealthy.

"We were always tired and we would fight a lot. We almost got a divorce - we were really serious about that - but it ended up being a turning point.

The couple met in 2011 through their families and it was "love at first sight". The following year, Amber fell pregnant with their first child.

Amber, now a mum of two, said: "I was eating for two and he ate with me. I could sit and eat five or six hot dogs in one go and we would get through three 24 packs of soda a week. If we didn't go out for fast food at least once a day I would be surprised."

By 2015, the new mum's weight had shot up to a staggering 25.7stone while Bo tipped the scales at 25 stone.

Amber was wearing a size 28 (UK) while Bo squeezed into XXXL shirts. To make matters worse, the couple estimate that they spent a toe-curling $20,000 (15,000) on junk food since moving in together

Amber added: "We were quite selfish in my eyes. We just felt sorry for ourselves. But we hit rock bottom after Bo was laid off and we lost our house in 2014.

"Up until that point we had never thought about getting a divorce but there was one day that we got into an argument and talked about it. That was all it took for us both to say, 'Something has to change.'"

First, Amber started limiting what she ate by introducing a rule - if she wanted a second plate of food enough to get off the couch to get it, she could have it. Often couldn't bring herself to walk to the kitchen so she started eating less - and Bo followed suit.

Then the pair cut out red meat, instead eating turkey - and within one month of making that change, in November 2015, they both lost 1.5 stone.

They stopped drinking soda and banned fast food - but still eat home-cooked potato fries or peanut butter jelly sandwiches for lunch and cheesy enchiladas for dinner.

SWNS

Losing weight has 120 per cent improved our relationship

Amber Wagner

They also wake up at 6am every morning to work out for an hour, so in spite of their not-totally-healthy diet, Amber and Bo slimmed down drastically.

Bo said: "Now people I haven't seen in a month stop me and say, 'Holy cow, where did you go?. Life is better. When we have an extra $50, instead of spending it on dinner we are doing things with the kids.

"Our sex life has improved too. When we were big, in the first three years of marriage we had two kids and had sex about 10 times. We were too big, it was hard and it wasn't fun.

"But now we are feeling better that has definitely definitely got much better. It's crazy how much how you are feeling has to do with it. I really believe that losing weight has brought us back together again."

Amber said: "Losing weight has 120 per cent improved our relationship. It gave us common ground again.

"We both knew the other was miserable but losing weight together gave us something to bond over and we reconnected. The fear of breaking up spurred us on."

Continued here:
Weight loss: Obese couple lost 22 stone by enforcing THIS simple diet rule - Express.co.uk

CHRISTINA D'ADAMIO

Last updated13:56, August 4 2017

123RF

Not all movement is good movement when it comes to weight loss.

If you want to maximise your workout and lose weight faster, you might want to rethink your workout routine.

We consulted with DrLuiza Petre, board-certified cardiologist and weight management specialist, to get you the worst exercises for fat loss (and what to do instead).

It's important to remember that not all exercises lead to weight loss.

MURRAY WILSON/STUFF

CrossFit isn't for beginners. If you're not in tip-top shape, it's best to opt for a less intense workout.

"While weight loss is an awesome side effect of working out, exercise can benefit your brain, your mood, and your overall health, too," Petre says.

READ MORE:* 'Dramatic' weight loss possible without counting calories* Why is exercise useless for weight loss?* Expensive meal plans not needed for weight loss* 10 best exercises for weight loss

Extended cardio sessions can lead to muscle loss if they're not balanced with strength training.

"However, not all movement is good movement when it comes to weight loss. While I encourage all types of fitness for more reasons than just weight loss, if your focus is dropping pounds, you should know that not all forms of exercise are as effective for weight loss as others.

"In fact, there may be more bad exercises than good ones when it comes to losing weight and building muscle."

Instead, give strength training a chance. The not-so-simple workout can do wonders for your fat loss plans.

123RF

Yup, they're great abs. Nope, you're not getting them by doing 500 crunches a day and nothing else.

"If you do any kind of strengthening or toning exercises to stay healthy and to remove inches, I encourage all efforts, for more reasons than just weight loss," she adds.

"But if your number one goal is weight loss, you may want to reprioritise your workout schedule. And most importantly, if you are doing an exercise that causes you real pain, your body is trying to tell you 'STOP!' But do not go to the other extreme and completely neglect strength training."

That being said, if you want to slim down, don't put your body through stress just to reach your goals.

ALTER EGO

An average 68kg person will burn only 150 calories in an hour of doing regular yoga.

"The key to all weight loss goals, and health improvement at the same time, without bringing your body to the risk of injury, is balance," Petre says. "Start with a good, healthy balance of strength training and a bit of cardio to build your endurance so you can continue shedding pounds and reach your goals."

WORST: CROSSFIT

"CrossFit-style workouts are exploding in popularity around the world and are often promoted as the best way to get in shape and improve health," Petre says.

MARY FITZGERALD/STUFF

Boot camp: A great way to share the pain and shed the pounds.

"I don't want to be controversial, but if your goal is to lose weight and improve health, CrossFit is the number one exercise you should avoid. It's too intense for many people, and often includes high-risk activities."

"The number one rule about losing weight through exercise is that you can't exercise to lose weight if you're injured," she adds.

"If you're a fit, active, and athletic individual, CrossFit might be the best workout for you, but if your body is not already in top shape, don't unnecessarily risk injury. You're likely to lose more weight if you combine a healthy diet with a moderate exercise program that's more sustainable."

123RF

Lifting weights has been shown to increase resting metabolic rate, which means you continue to burn calories after working out.

WORST: YOGA

"Yoga represents the polar opposite to CrossFit, but this doesn't mean that it will shed those layers of fast food on the body," Petre says. "In fact, a 150-pound [68kg] person will burn only 150 calories in an hour of doing regular yoga, compared to 311 calories for an hour of walking at 3mph [4.8kmh]."

"Increasing your physical activity is a good first step towards losing weight," she says. "It's true that yoga can help you gain strength and tone up, but if you aim to shed pounds, you want to work as much of your body as possible to lose weight and stimulate your metabolism."

WORST: EXTENDED CARDIO SESSIONS

"If you're only doing cardio and not balancing with strength training, it can lead to muscle loss, which is not ideal," Petre says.

"Strength training builds lean muscle mass, which increases both your metabolism and decreases fat. The more muscle you build, the more calories you burn on a day-to-day basis."

"From a cost-benefit angle, extended low-effort exercise, such as steady state cardio, can burn more fat in relative terms, but not in absolute amounts," she adds.

"What counts the most is your overall calorie expenditure, not the fuel source. But before you switch to high-intensity training, remember that this type of exercise is not without a risk of injury. Preserve muscle mass by keeping your cardio workouts to approximately three 30-minute sessions per week."

WORST: PILATES

"Pilates, like yoga, has a lot of health benefits that will help you live better, ranging from improved flexibility and balance to deeper relaxation, but fast fat burn is not one of them," Petre says.

"Because it helps you gradually build and strengthen your muscles, it can be a great way to prevent getting injured while training. However, you need to do heavy compound weightlifting on the big muscle groups along with cardio to maximise fat loss, and Pilates does not incorporate either type of exercise."

WORST: SPOT REDUCTION EXERCISES

"Many people want to lose fat from one specific part of their bodies," Petre says. "But, due to human genetics, we cannot pick and choose areas to burn fat from. This means that if you wish to trim down your midsection, performing only abdominal exercises is not going to give you the results you want.

"The same is true for every other body part and muscle group. Why? Because the only thing exercises target is your muscles, not the fat that is covering the muscles.

"You can lose that fat only by creating caloric deficit through a combination of diet and exercise. In other words, you should consume less calories than you burn, forcing your body to burn your own stored body fat for energy instead."

BEST: TABATA

"Tabata is a dream come true for anyone whose biggest excuse for skipping a workout is lack of time," Petre says.

"It's designed to be just a few minutes of high-intensity interval training that consists of 20 seconds of hard effort, followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated eight times.

"The best thing about Tabata is that you can perform these short trainings with your own body weight in the comfort of your own home. Simply pick four exercises, such as jump rope, squats, squat jumps, and mountain climbers, then do each for 20 seconds as hard and fast as you can.

"It will raise your heart rate, pump up your muscles and increase your fitness level."

BEST: BOOT CAMP

"You'll definitely lose extra weight and boost your cardio fitness with this type of training," Petre says.

"Boot camp training takes the military workout out of basic training and into gyms and homes everywhere. Typical boot camp workouts combine intense aerobic exercise with muscle building, resistance exercises, and challenges that boost flexibility and coordination.

"These workout programs are so popular because they work every muscle group, don't require any equipment, and can be done anywhere. Daily boot camp training burns fat and builds muscle, therefore increasing weight loss and supporting maintenance of a healthy weight."

BEST: STRENGTH TRAINING

"If weight loss is a goal, incorporating strength training into your routine is essential," Petre says. "The key to shedding pounds is a strong foundation, and the best way to build muscle is with weights.

"Lifting weights has been shown to increase resting metabolic rate, which means you continue to burn calories after working out. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn throughout the day. By increasing your base metabolic rate [BMR]and burning more calories at rest, you also increase your calorie deficit, which is necessary for weight loss.

"While it's true that cardio-only routines get your heart working harder and help your body burn calories, strength training is what will give your weight-loss goals that extra boost," Petre adds. "This doesn't mean that cardio training should be completely ignored.

"Weight lifting, cardioand your diet combine to make your body burn fat for fuel instead of muscle. Practice these types of training three times a week to burn around 1 to 1.5 pounds of fat per week."

BEST: HIGH-INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING (HIIT)

"High-intensity interval training is a form of exercise characterised by periods of hard work followed by brief periods of recovery or rest," Petre says.

"You can perform it using various cardio formats, gym equipment, and weighted or bodyweight exercises. When you do high-intensity interval training, your body and metabolism function at a higher rate of burned calories for hours afterwards. It means you're burning calories while watching your favourite TV show in the comfort of your home.

"According to the American College of Sports Medicine, this type of workout routine tends to burn anywhere from 6-15 per cent more calories compared to other training methods, thanks to the calories you burn after you exercise.

"High-intensity interval training can be performed up to fourtimes per week. The only downside is that it takes your body quite a bit of time to recover, and you can physically only do it for 20-30 minutes at a time before you become too exhausted to continue.

"If you listen to your bodyand pay attention to results, this type of workout will take your training to the next level."

BEST: STRENGTH-BASED CIRCUIT TRAINING

"Compared to traditional strength training, strength-based circuit training will help you lose more fat while still building muscle," Petre says.

"Since you're performing high-intensity movements with short rest periods, you will also get the added benefits of metabolic conditioning. It's slightly less intense than HIIT or Tabata as it's less about short bursts of maximum effort and more about completing quality exercises with good form over a longer duration set.

"Strength-based circuit training is very effective at helping burn fat," adds Petre. "It provides both strength and cardio benefits, it takes less time than a normal strength workout, and focusing on the entire body in a single workout maximises calorie burn and movement function."

- This story original appeared at Rodalewellness.com.

-MCT

See the article here:
The five worst exercises for fat loss - and what to do instead - Stuff.co.nz

Oprah Winfreyhas somehow managed to carve out a private life for herself,despitebeing one of the most famous women alive.

She goes out with longtime partner Stedman Graham,she and BFF Gayle Kingare nothing if not the picture of vacation goals and, obviously, if you end up on a yacht with Barack and Michelle Obama, Tom Hanks and Bruce Springsteen, long-lens photos will be taken. But for the most part,she haspointedlykept the particulars of her personal relationships largely under wraps.

Except for one, that is.

Namely, her highly public relationship with her weight. That love-hate relationship has been playing out on TV and the covers of magazines for years.

Even if you're not a fan of Winfrey for whatever reason (that much success, combined with her longevity, relative ubiquity and her status as one of the most powerful African-American women in the world, in 2017one of the world's only two black female billionaires,has certainly made her a target for haters as well), you're most likely familiar with Oprah's roller-coaster weight loss journeywhich, at this point, is as much a part of her life story as anything.

Thatstory has been told time and again, and it never gets less impressive. Though we've yet to check in with everybody, ever, it can often feelas if no one has made more of her life after starting off withless than Winfrey has.Over the course of her career, a trajectory that dreams are made of, Winfreyhas simply become one of the most influential personalitiesof all time.

Said to be worth roughly $3.1 billion now, her lifestyle rocketed past "attainable" decades ago, but there are countless ways in which Winfrey has endeared herself to people of all ages and from all walks of lifestarting with her warm, boomingpersonality that makes you feel as if you've known her for years.Then again, we have known the 63-year-old multi-hyphenatefor years, be it through her talk show, her magazine, her philanthropy, her cable channel or everything else that made heracting careerwhichwould have been significanton its owninto almost a hobby, something she's returned to on and off over the years when she felt like it, when the right projects came along as a performer orproducer. (We're in the midst of a scripted-Oprah renaissance, with the recent HBO movieThe Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and the upcoming big-screen adaptation ofA Wrinkle in Time.)

Butwhile she's never been one to shy away from sharing her life's considerable low points (they're part of why she's such an inspiration to so many), including the emotional effects of crashdieting and her other stabs at rapid weight loss over the years, it's still hard to picture Winfreythe queen of self-reliance and self-made glorynot having conquer-the-world-level self-esteem. Because if she's not living her best life 24/7, what hope is there for everyone else?

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

Yet that's exactly why Winfrey has been sharingthe gritty details of her relationship with food and weight since the 1980s, after she lost 67pounds with the help of a liquid diet and daily 6.5 mile runs, only to gain it (and more) right back.

At first she tried to make weight losslook, if not easy, then perfectlyattainable, pulling a wagon loaded with 67 pounds of gloppy fat behind her onThe Oprah Winfrey Showin 1988 on an episode called "Diet Dreams Come True," a visual that still resonates to this day, while showing off her trimmer figure in tightly beltedjeans and a sleek black turtleneck.

But it soon became painfully clear to Winfrey (and subsequently to everyone following along) that maintaining a weight that she found acceptable would end up beinga lifelong fixation. She toldPeople in 1991, "I thought I was cured.And that's just not true. You have to find a way to live in the world with food." In 1996 she co-authored with Bob GreeneA Journal of Daily Renewal: The Companion to Make the Connection, about staying in touch with your body's needs. Winfrey looked as thin as ever on the cover.

In a 2002 essay forO Magazine called "What I Know for Sure About Making Peace With My Body," she wrote that she went to her first "diet doctor" in 1977, when she was 23, and "thus began the cycle of discontent."

"Around 1995, after years of yo-yoing, I finally realized that being grateful to my body, whatever shape it was in, was key to giving more love to myself," she wrote. "Although I'd made the connection intellectually, living it was a different story."

In 2009, a current photo of Oprah shared a cover ofO with a photo of a slimmer 2005 Oprah, with the quote, "'How did I let this happen again?'"

There's a reason whyweight loss is a multi-billion-dollar industryone that Winfrey herself recently bought into after already having done more for the national diet conversation than almost any celebrity over the past 30 years.

Hyperion

Just over two years ago, she bought a 10 percent stake in Weight Watchersfor $43 million.Strategic business move, sure, but also perhaps an emotional one. According toThe New York Times Magazine, the companyhad extended many invitations to Winfrey over the years to get involvedwiththe company, but it wasn't until she had gained 17 pounds whilenursing asprained anklethat she decided the timing was right in July 2015.

Weight Watchers' stock enjoyed a massiveOprah bump and soon "I love bread" was everyone's favorite new mantra. By September 2016, however, approximately $1 billion that had been gained on paper during those heady early days of Winfrey's involvement had reportedly disappeared and CEO Jim Chambers stepped down.

But if anyone has learned anything over the past several decades, it's to never count Oprah Winfrey out. WhenOWN launched in 2011 it was immediately plaguedby stories that it was struggling, plagued by ratings, programming and, summarily, financial issues. Andit was plagued by all of that, butby 2013 Team Winfrey had turned it around, thanks to, among other things, a win-winproduction deal with Tyler Perryand strong ratings for Winfrey's interview seriesOprah's Next Chapter.

Similarly, Winfrey's visible presence has since attracted more people to Weight Watchers. Per the NY Times, membership was up to 2.8 million peoplewithin a year of Oprah buying in, and stood at 3.6 million bythe end of the first quarter of 2017, Weight Watchers'fourth straight quarter of reported revenue growth. Mindy Grossman, formerly CEO of HSN, signed on as the company's new chief executive in April.

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Yet all thistalk about weight on Winfrey's part, though nothing new, has generated a new group of critics who don't think that being skinnier should be on anyone's list of prioritieswhen it comes to self-worth, and Winfrey's continued public efforts to look a certain way is sending adistressing and archaic message.

We won't say those criticsare fighting a losing battle, but it's stillan uphill one. Even in this day and age when messages of body positivity, body diversity, acceptance and inclusion are more prominent than ever, there's a century of misguided precedent when it comes to what people (mainly women)should look like if they intend to look their "best."

So fornow, Winfrey remains afamous voice voicing universal concerns. It's not as though she only talks about skinny jeans and size 2s. Shewants to be healthy and feel good, physically and mentallyand it's not very sporting of people to suggest that her feelings about her own body areinvalid. It's not right toshamethose who would like to lose weight, as though they can't still be strong or empowered or are otherwise betraying womanhood by wanting to look a certain way, any more than it's OKto shame someone's weight in general.

Besides, maintaining a certain weightis important toher. She's not saying it should be important to everybody.

As an influencer, Winfrey is perfectly aware that it's not de rigeur to admit you care about what size you are.

"This whole P.C. about accepting yourself as you areyou should, 100 percent," Winfrey agreed in an interview with The New York Times Magazine. Butin response to questions about the prospect ofaccepting one'sbody as it is (whatever that means, really), she explained, "For your heart to pump, pump, pump, pump, it needs the least amount of weight possible to do that. So all of the people who are saying, 'Oh, I need to accept myself as I am'I can't accept myself if I'm over 200 pounds, because it's too much work on my heart. It causes high blood pressure for me. It puts me at risk for diabetes, because I have diabetes in my family."

In January, Winfrey proudly revealed thatshe had lost 42 pounds on Weight Watchers since beginning the program in 2015.

"Before, when I was 150 pounds, I'd imagine getting up to 200 pounds, and think, 'Oh my God,'" she saidin O Magazine."But now I think, 'I never thought that at 200 poundsI could look in the mirror and love my body, love myself, not chide and minimize myself for being 200 pounds.' At 200 pounds, I was OK. I have never, ever, ever been at that point. And then at 190 pounds, I was OK. If I don't lose another pound right now, I'm still OK.

"The fullness of life, the fullness of being, the self-acceptanceI'd never done that before. I'd always beaten myself up because I was tied to a number."

Winfreycontinued, "When the weight started to come off, I needed to get clear on my intention. I could lose weight to fit a dress size, or attend an event, or to make other people like me. But I couldn't keep it off for those reasons. I always put the weight back on. This time I changed the intention to, 'I want to be the healthiest I can bephysically, emotionally, spiritually.' So the process and purpose of losing shifted for me.It was easier, because my intention was clearer."

It may not be cool to admit you care about your weight, but it's real as hell. And honestyremains one of our favorite things.

Read the original here:
Oprah Winfrey's 40-Year Weight Loss Struggle: Inside the Billionaire Star's Ongoing Quest for Self-Acceptance - E! Online

(Reuters Health) - People who get weight-loss surgery before they gain enough weight to become whats known as morbidly obese are less likely to remain obese after the operation than heavier patients, a recent study suggests.

One year after bariatric surgery, only about one-third of patients lost enough weight to no longer qualify as obese, the study found. People who werent morbidly obese when they had surgery were over 12 times more likely to achieve this goal within a year, researchers report in JAMA Surgery.

Our research suggests that waiting until a patients body mass index (BMI) is extremely high can hamper the benefits of undergoing bariatric surgery because these patients will have a lower likelihood of achieving the type of weight loss that leads to a healthy BMI, said lead study author Dr. Oliver Varban, director of the Adult Bariatric Program at Michigan Medicine, the University of Michigans academic medical center in Ann Arbor.

What we learned in this study is that patients and referring physicians should consider bariatric surgery as a primary therapy for obesity rather than the last resort, Varban said by email.

Globally, 1.9 billion adults are overweight or obese, according to the World Health Organization. Obesity increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes, joint disorders and certain cancers.

Body mass Index (BMI) is a ratio of weight to height, and a way of estimating obesity. Having a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered a healthy weight, 25 to 29.9 is overweight, 30 or above is obese and 40 or higher is what's known as morbidly obese.

An adult who is 5 9 tall and weighs from 125 to 168 pounds, for example, would have a healthy weight and a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An obese adult at that height would weigh at least 203 pounds and have a BMI of 30 or more.

Previous research has found obese people often struggle to shed excess pounds or keep weight off when they do lose it. Lifestyle changes such as following a healthy diet and getting regular exercise can often help in the short-term but fail to produce lasting results, particularly among people who have more than 100 pounds to lose before reaching a healthy weight.

Bariatric surgery has been shown to be the most effective treatment for morbid obesity, the study authors write.

Even though people with a BMI over 30 are considered obese, they may not get bariatric surgery until their BMI reaches 40 unless they have diabetes or other obesity-related health problems.

For the current study, researchers examined data on 27320 adults who had weight-loss surgery in Michigan between June 2006 and May 2015.

On average, the patients had a BMI of 48 before their operation, and got down to 33 by the end of the first year.

Overall, just over 9,700 patients, or 36 percent, achieved a BMI under 30.

Only 8.5 percent of patients who had a BMI greater than 50 achieved a BMI of less than 30 after bariatric surgery, the study found. That compares to 31 percent of people who started out with a BMI of less than 40.

Patients who did manage to get their BMI below 30 had better odds of seeing improvements in obesity-related health problems, the study also found.

Compared to patients who remained obese a year after surgery, people who achieved a BMI of less than 30 were more likely to stop taking medications to control high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol and diabetes. They were also more likely to achieve remission of an obesity-related breathing disorder known as sleep apnea.

The study wasnt a controlled experiment designed to prove whether or how having a lower BMI before surgery influences the odds of becoming non-obese afterwards.

Still, the findings suggest some obese people might not necessarily need to wait until theyre heavier to benefit from surgery, said Dr. Bruce Wolfe, author of an accompanying editorial and a bariatric surgery researcher at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland.

These data demonstrate that this population with lower BMI appears every bit as likely to benefit from surgically induced weight loss than would be expected if they waited until they were more severely obese, Wolfe said by email.

There are more people in the U.S. with a BMI between 30 and 35 than there are with BMIs above 35, Wolfe noted.

Thus, a very large number of patients would possibly become surgical candidates, Wolfe said.

SOURCE: bit.ly/2hqZuNx and bit.ly/2wpOKS5 JAMA Surgery, online July 26, 2017.

See original here:
Weight-loss surgery may work better when patients aren't too obese - Reuters