Dieting is based on a false premise. This is that body weight is a result of the calories you eat and the calories you expend. If you consume more than you use you become fatter. If you consume less than you use, then you utilise your excess fat to make up the shortfall.



This is a mistaken idea.



You may know some really skinny people who eat like horses and don’t seem any more active than you are. You may know overweight people who say they don’t eat very much (we tend not to believe those people).



Here are the 7 reasons diets don’t work.



1. They are too much effort.

2. They cause ‘famine’ mode.

3. They affect emotions - and not in a good way.

4. Thoughts of food predominate.

5. Diets lose weight not fat.

6. Exercise is not included.

7. Unreasonable expectations.



1. Too much effort



21% of people give up on their diet within two months. 45% of people don’t last the year. All that calorie, or syn or point, counting just gets to be too much work and it’s so much easier just to eat what you like.



2.’Famine’ mode.

Your body is smart. It’s intelligence is primarily geared toward survival. When food is scarce it thinks ‘famine’ and lays down supplies of fat; slows down metabolism to conserve energy; and burns lean muscle for its energy needs, because, when resting, lean muscle tissues burn calories. To the body’s intelligence, a diet looks just like a famine.



3. Emotions.

The majority of so-called experts regard excess weight as a calorie problem. It isn’t. But it is an emotional problem. Eating often as an attempt to improve mood. Dieting itself can cause social isolation - hence the popularity of slimming clubs. This can lead to low moods, rebellion against the diet, or even depression.



4. Diets keep you thinking about food.

Meals have to be meticulously planned. Recipes have to be followed. Specific items need to be purchased - sometimes even specific product brands. Life is no longer about fun and enjoyment. Life is about food.



5. Diets lose weight, not fat.

Diets cause muscle loss. This makes it more and more difficult to lose weight each time you diet because bodies are reluctant to release fat - especially quickly, which is the way most people want it. The only way to release fat instead of muscle is to do it slowly.



6. Exercise.

You need some exercise. Exercise builds muscle. Muscle burns calories - even while resting. Exercise boosts metabolism. Exercise increases fitness, vitality and lifts mood.



7. Unreasonable Expectations.

Dieters programme in failure by setting a target weight that is unachievable. People have surprising expectations of the amount of weight that can sensibly be reduced. If you are 16 stone (224lbs) an initial weight loss goal of 14 stone (196lbs) would be good to aim for. A 2 stone (28lb) success is easily achievable and when maintained for a while will be the place to decide to shift a little more.



Diets don’t work.

If you want to discover how to lose weight without the rigid discipline of a diet and still being allowed to eat what you want then check out my website.

You may have heard rumblings lately, not from your own stomach, but from the media, comparing today’s financial freeze to the Great Depression.



If you are old enough to read this, you have some image in your mind of what that might mean.



I think of my own Mom being sent to the neighborhood grocery store as a little girl because she would not be denied credit, where others in her family might have been. My friend’s mom told of the Italian women cleverly gathering dandelion greens underneath their skirts, so as to not be seen.



I know that my great-grandfather, a well respected merchant, lost his store in the depression. The word depression conjures up fear. Recession doesn’t bring up joyful thoughts either.



We do not know what is going to happen and all the peanut butter in the world is not going to take away the fear of the unknown.



The fear is only as real as you make it, because really, fear is the playground for the imagination.



There is a strong connection between distress and sticking something into our mouths.



Imagine a baby screaming: in the top three things of what to do, sticking something into the mouth is on the list. I am sure you have witnessed the desperate ensuing sucks that may, or may not have to do with hunger.



Of course, as adults, we know better. Yes, we do, and when we act against our better judgment, the guilt is enormously heavy.



The connection between food and fear is not something we talk about too much.



It creeps into my office.



Last week I heard these words from a young mom healing her own relationship with food, “I notice my Mom feeding my baby in a kind of frenzy. He hasn’t finished what is in his mouth and more is coming. He can’t talk. You can see it in his eyes that he can’t keep up.”



I noticed it in myself when I was a college kid responsible for someone else’s farm. Something had gone wrong and I found myself putting a cookie in my mouth as I headed out the door to see what could be done.



I once had a client with severe test anxiety, who during a test break downed a whole pitcher of beer. In the Middle Ages, beer was valued for its nutrition.



Was he thirsty? Was I hungry? Does the little baby have much choice?



What do you do if you have to eat everything on your plate and what is being served is out dated? What if everything in your in-law’s refrigerator is outdated?





Many of us have complex relationships with food and eating that often have nothing to do with being hungry or being sated.



Of course, if you are putting food into your mouth faster than a model changes, you would like to be gently hit in the side of the head with a soft two-by-four, so you will never do it again.



But really, with a little time and dedication, you can get to the truth of the matter and take the driver out of your behavior, as easily as you open the door to the refrigerator.

Getting a gastric bypass surgery is a major decision. It requires careful research of the procedure and its potential risks in order to avoid post-surgery complications. It is therefore crucial to know the risks of gastric bypass surgery.

There are several different risk factors that play a role in gastric bypass surgery: pre-existing risk factors, general complications common to all abdominal surgeries, specific gastric bypass surgery risks, and risks related to the experience level of the surgeon.

Pre-existing Risk Factors for Gastric Bypass

• Degree of Obesity




• Heart Disease




• Obstructive Sleep Apnea




• Diabetes Mellitus




• History of Prior Pulmonary Embolism

General Risks of Abdominal Surgeries

• Infection




• Hemorrhage




• Hernia




• Bowel obstruction




• Venous thromboembolism

Specific Risks of Gastric Bypass Surgery

• Anastomotic leakage




• Anastomotic stricture




• Anastomotic ulcer




• Dumping syndrome

Choosing a Surgeon

Much of the risk of death within 30 days after the surgery is attributed to the level of experience of the surgeon. There is a learning curve for surgeons who perform gastric bypass surgery. Once surgeons have gained experience and performed more than 20 procedures, the short-term risk of death is much lower and closer to 0.5%.