Weight Management - A Rubber Band

I agree with the following illustration used by Dr. Sharma, M.D. a medical specialist who deals with obesity issues.

Weight Management is like a rubber band.

Weight Loss is pulling on the rubber band.

Weight Maintenance is KEEP pulling on the rubber band.

The individual question regarding our own Weight Management is: 

“HOW MUCH CAN WE PULL ... AND KEEP PULLING?"

This is analogy describes my own lifetime experience. That Truth is especially applicable to my past 7 years of maintenance within the “normal” BMI range, after years of yo-yo dieting up to a high of 271 lbs at 5’0” tall”, with a subsequent total weight loss of 156 lbs. To better visualize this amount, this number was 58% of my TOTAL body weight, which is a similar total amount lost by many of the winners of the “Biggest Loser” television show.

Rubber bands come in different sizes and strength. So do the bodies of people. It naturally follows that the more weight a person loses, the more the "tension of the rubber band".  This is why it usually takes far less effort for someone who loses 10 lbs to maintain that weight-loss, than someone who loses 100 lbs. 

Bodies appear to have a Set Point, which is like a rubber band in it's natural state .. unstretched.  However, it is clear that weight-gain will drive the body's natural Set Point higher. Although most people hope and pray that weight-loss will re-set that altered Set Point back to a lower number, all available evidence indicates that this is a one-way--upward-only--survival path.  Click link for more information about Set Point.

   I’ve been reading a great many things written by Dr. Sharma. At this point, I have a lot of respect for his expertise and point of view.

I like the fact that Dr. Sharma believes that people need to stop beating themselves up for a lack of motivation, and understand that there are very good reasons why they struggle with their weight. He says:

”Everyone talks about eating right and exercising, which is so simplistic. I talk about things like time management and the links between mental health, depression and overeating. And I tell everyone to never trust a diet book that has recipes.”

His advice to other physicians is:

“Telling obese people to ‘eat less and move more’ is like telling someone with depression to cheer up. It’s not that easy. And telling someone that it is demonstrates your lack of understanding.”

Below is a recent video clip of Dr. Sharma.