Knowledge is Power

I went to conference on obesity that was given by the American Society of Bariatric Physicians (ASBP) this past Saturday.  Even though I already knew a good amount of the material that was presented during the conference, there was a lot of information that was really eye opening for me.  Most people think that losing weight is just a matter of eating less and exercising more, but what many people don't realize is that there is much more to the "science of obesity" than simply those two contributions.  Weight, whether losing or gaining it, can be influenced by many different factors such as stress, amount of sleep, hormones, and certain medical conditions just to name a few. I think the general population should understand that obesity can be a complex condition that can not always be "cured" or "treated" so easily or quickly.  For many people, coping with obesity, even after losing weight, can be a life-long battle.  An argument can also technically be made that our modern way of living has made it much easier to gain weight with everything from ridiculous large portion sizes of unhealthy entrees at restaurants to technology helping to facilitate a sedentary lifestyle.  Like with many aspects of medicine and healthcare, the management of obesity is often evolving as more research is being conducted and new data is found.  I'm glad that I was able to attend this conference because I feel that by learning more about obesity, such as its contributing factors as well as management techniques, I gain a better understanding of it.  I hope to be able to utilize newfound information to formulate improved methods for managing obesity, not only for patients, but also for myself.  I also hope to be fortunate enough to attend more conferences in the near future.  In the meantime, I'm going to use some of the knowledge I gained from this one in some of my future blog entries so stay tuned (and also remember to stay positive!).

Little Diet Do-Overs

In addition to already trying to limit eating out (especially fast food!), a change in my diet that I have been working on this month has been trying to significantly cut back on red meat and pork as well as fried foods.  I am pleased that I have not eaten beef for the past three weeks and have only eaten pork once.  However, while I have definitely reduced my intake of fried foods, I personally feel that I can cut back on the amount even more significantly to once a week.  I am also trying to increase my water intake on a daily basis to a more adequate amount of at the very least 64 ounces (eight 8 ounce glasses of water).  In addition to continually improving upon these changes, next month, I am also going to work on decreasing how much rice I eat, and whenever I do eat it, I'm going to try to make it brown rice instead of white.  For me, I hope that by making small changes at a time on a monthly basis, it will be easier to stick to them in the long run and have them become more permanent positive lifestyle habits versus trying to do a major dietary overhaul all at once.  I also hope that you all are doing well in making the changes you need to help continue your weight loss progress.  Good luck and stay positive!