It’s Time You Learned To Eat
Here Are Some Ways To Get
Your Weight Under Control

by Darline Turner Lee, Physician Assistant, ACSM Exercise Specialist

Article Last Reviewed: Sept. 9, 2006

We Americans pride ourselves on our freedom of choice, independence and being on the cutting edge of everything. So why we are so passive, sometimes backwards and downright lazy about our health, eating and weight management? We want food that’s fast and easy, and we want lots of it. We rarely sit down for meals, but rather drive-through and scarf it down on the go. “I don’t want to have to think about food, I just want to eat and go,” is the American food mantra.

This mentality has created a typical diet of high calorie, saturated (animal) fat, refined (white) sugar and processed foods that quickly relieve hunger, dramatically increase blood sugar levels and result in rapid fat storage while quickly bringing us crashing down into hunger once again. We are sicker and fatter than ever yet are reluctant to make changes. Coupled with our inactivity, is it any wonder that we are facing an obesity epidemic?

According to the American Obesity Association, sixty-five percent of American adults are overweight and another one third to one half of these are clinically obese (more than thirty percent over their ideal body weight for their height). The rates are no better for children. Approximately fifteen percent of children and teens are clinically obese. Despite all the products and technology that could help us regain our health, the problem continues to get worse instead of better.

“I have no idea what to eat now,” was the pitiful plea of a new client to the Austin Bariatric Clinic. She had lost weight on a liquid weight loss program, but was clueless about what or how to eat to avoid gaining it back.

Programs that can help

Teresa Boehm, MD, and her partner Amanda Dupont, MD, are both members of the American Society of Bariatric Physicians, an organization of physicians devoted to managing obesity, and are pending board certification with the American Board of Bariatric Medicine. They opened the Austin Bariatric Clinic just over a year ago to pursue their interest in preventive medicine and weight management.

“We teach our patients how to eat, helping them learn what healthy foods are, what healthy portions are and what food choices work for them to successfully manage their weight,” says Dupont. Along with monitoring patient’s progress, the doctors also monitor vital signs and laboratory values, prescribe medications when necessary, provide emotional support and counsel patients about exercise.

Brian McClure has been a weight-loss patient since June. He has battled obesity his entire adult life, but feels he has made a definite change. “It’s a total wellness approach. The doctor’s customized a program that I can stick to, and I feel satisfied so I don’t overeat. I don’t have a lot to keep track of, and I am able to stick to the program even when I’m on business trips.” McClure has lost eighty-five pounds since June and is well on his way to his one hundred and fifty pound weight loss goal.

Sherry and Wheat Bailey have had similar results. They have been working with Dr. Boehm for three months and have lost thirty-three and twenty-six pounds respectively. Sherry has also lost nine inches in her waist and Wheat has lost five inches.

“We were both beginning to develop metabolic syndrome, with high cholesterol, high blood pressure and rising blood sugars,” says Sherry Bailey. “I gained eighty pounds when I developed plantar fasciitis and had surgery in October of 2004. I have had a difficult recovery, probably because of my weight, and have not been able to exercise. This program has been great. We do the program together, and seeing Dr. Boehm every two weeks really helps with accountability. We are very busy with our business and travel a lot, yet our program is very easy to follow and very portable.”

“The great thing is we are learning how to eat,” says Wheat Bailey. I don’t ever feel deprived and we even lost weight over the Thanksgiving holiday.”

Pamela Wood is a life member of Weight Watchers, probably the most well known and most successful weight management program in the world, and a local meeting facilitator. “I became a life member in 1985 after I successfully lost and kept off twenty-five pounds,” says Wood. She attributes her success to the maintenance programs and the support she gets from other members at meetings. Wood even managed to maintain a healthy weight during her three subsequent pregnancies.

Weight Watchers International began forty years ago and now spans thirty nations and has approximately one and a half million members. The main focus of the program is the weekly meetings where members gain support from the other members and are educated about nutritious food choices, portion sizes and incorporating exercise into their daily schedules. Meeting facilitators are members who have successfully lost weight and maintained the loss over time. Members follow one of two programs-the Core Plan or the Flex Plan.

The Core Plan allows members to focus on making healthy choices from all the food groups at each meal. Members can eat what they want as long as it is on the lists provided.

The Flex Plan teaches members about portion sizes by assigning points to a wide variety of foods in the recommended portions. Based on a member’s size, desired weight and activity level, they are given an allotted number of points to consume each day. They can then mix and match foods they like to meet their daily points.

Pam Postel started on the Flex program seven weeks ago and has lost thirteen pounds point two pounds. “I just had to do something. I couldn’t get into any of my clothes, I refused to buy new ones and I hated how I looked,” she says. Postel attends meetings with several friends and says, “The meetings are my anchor. They keep me going.”

“Weight Watchers has been so successful because it teaches how to live as a fit and healthy person. We stress activity as well as teach members tools to avoid stress and emotional eating. We also address challenges such as holidays at the meetings,” says Wood.

For Skip Skinner, the problem wasn’t just weight. He often felt irritable or listless and had a habit of grabbing a chocolate bar when the going got tough. He regularly eats on the move. He knew that he needed to make changes but he didn’t want a diet or a program where he had to attend meetings or buy special food. He just wanted to know which foods to eat and when. He found his solution in EAT! The Workshop.

“EAT! Is about learning to eat for metabolism, bones, muscles and hormones,” says developer Shelly Kochhar. The program, a combination of metabolic typing and manipulation of glycemic load (the impact that food has on blood sugar levels), teaches people to tailor their nutritional needs to the needs of their particular body type.

The program is based on the compilation of decades of medical research in metabolic typing and the glycemic index. To develop the EAT! system, Kochhar has modified the original metabolic questionnaire and combined it with the information about the glycemic index of foods. A former electrical engineer, Kochhar describes herself as a “master of people power plants” and uses her knowledge of energy systems to teach people how to power their own energy plants.

Participants first monitor eating habits for thirty days noting how each meal makes them feel then complete the metabolic typing questionnaire to determine if they are classified as a Carni-person (one who needs more protein), a Herbi-person (one who needs more carbohydrates) or an Omni-person (one who needs a nearly equal portion of protein and carbohydrates) to feel energized and satisfied. A person’s classification would then be used to determine what foods to eat and when.

“The program has been a huge psychological boost for me,” says Skinner. Now that I understand how my body uses food, I think about how I’m feeling and then choose what I need to eat to energize me at that moment.” In the four months Skinner has been on the program, he has shed twenty-five pounds and has ditched that listless feeling.

Have you had enough of medications that leave you listless and irritable? Are your joints so overloaded you can’t walk from the bed to the bathroom without pain? Hell, are you just plain fat? It’s time for change. It’s time to feel better. It’s time for you to learn how to eat for better health.

Darline Turner-Lee’s energy level has soared since learning how to EAT! Try catching up with her at dturner-lee@goodlifemag.com

Resources for Weight Management

American Obesity Association-A non-profit organization dedicated to changing public perceptions and policies towards obesity. Visit www.obesity.org for more information.
Austin Bariatric Clinic - An Austin-based weight management clinic whose physicians specialize in the medical management of obesity. A pay-as-you-go program.
Initial visit is one to one and a half hours with the physician and includes a complete physical examination, comprehensive blood work, behavioral counseling, and exercise education-$100-$175.
Follow up visits with the physicians are $55/month or $35/week.
Vital Sign checks (weight, blood pressure) with the office assistant are free.
Food products (protein bars and shakes) are paid for individually and are available to clients only. Clients may self refer or be referred by their primary physicians. For more information, visit www.austinbariatricclinic.com or call 512.371.9885
EAT! The Workshop-A series of audio disk and teleseminar programs that teach participants how to eat for their appropriate metabolic type and manipulate the glycemic load so that they balance blood sugar levels, moods, energy levels, and maintain weight.
Intro Package ($20): The EAT tracker (thirty-one day food diary to determine metabolic type) and 10 Tip Audio CD.
The Workshop ($149): Four hour teleseminar on CD, EAT tracker, workbook and self-test, glycemic
Index checkbook, e-newsletter, and thirty days of group support.
Let’s EAT! Together All Year Round! ($247 for the workshop materials plus 30 days of coaching and group support, plus $16.95 per month membership with recurring payment or one time payment of $397)
Additional support materials are available at additional cost.
For more information, visit www.eattheworkshop.com or call 512-791-8191.
National Weight Control Registry-The largest prospective investigation of long-term successful weight loss maintenance. Researchers are studying the habits of long-term weight losers while spotlighting successful weight losers and offering tips and support to those trying to lose weight. For more information, visit www.nwcr.ws.
Weight Watchers – The leading weight loss program with worldwide membership and meetings. The programs focus on learning how to make healthy food choices and portion sizes, encourages increasing activity and provides group support.
$35 initial fee ($23 to join and $12 for the first meeting)
Weekly meetings are $12 each. Twelve-week program is $10.50 per meeting. This month, a season pass will be available for with no joining fee and $9 per meeting if paid in full at registration. Support materials are available at additional cost. For more information or to find a meeting in your area, visit www.weightwatchers.com.