What An Industry!

It is estimated that the weight loss industry was worth $390 billion in 2010 and will be something in the area of $671 billion  by 2015.  The saying should be, "The only guarantees in life are death, taxes and being bombarded with information on how to lose weight!"

This week in USA Today, they posted some new books hitting the shelves.  These are big books.  Big money too.  I looked over them and wonder what it could be that they write so much about. 

I have lost weight and I don't think I would need much more than a chapter or two to go over what my silver-bullet secret is in depth.  My "secret" was learned at H3. 

I like to refer to Bob Wright at Hilton Head Health when I think about how to navigate all of the sure-fire solutions and diets out there.  I call it my "Wright Wradar".  In short, it just means to use a good common sense filter when considering some of these books and strategies out there.

I scanned the article from USA Today but it just did not turn out good, however that is not stopping me from posting them for some filler on this blog ;-)

Looking them over, the synopsis of each gives me some direction on which books I find to be a complete waste of money and which books might be just a long read with some OK information in them.  The only one I would buy straight out is the book on the Volumetrics Diet.  I prefer to not call it a diet because it is what I practice everyday at home.  This is basically the concept of taking everyday meals and making the portions bigger by using other, low calorie ingredients (usually veggies) to bulk them up.  In a nutshell, don't eat like a bird when you feel like you need to cut calories.

My thoughts based on the synopsis of each book is below.  DISCLAIMER - I am truly judging these books by their cover and 2 sentence synopsis:

• S.A.S.S. Yourself Thin - 4 meals a day with whole foods, and mandatory dark chocolate.  Hmmmm....sounds like a long book to tell you to eat good veggies and treat yourself a little.
• The Dash Diet - Pick foods you enjoy, don't set unrealistic goals, blah, blah, blah.  Same book, different title.  I have actually read the concept of this (Dietary Approaches To Stop Hypertension).  It was wordy and complex.  Just long enough and complex enough for people to say 'Forget it!".  It does not need to be.  Save your time and money.
• The Starch Solution - Eat rice, starches, rice, corn, etc.  Avoid fats and oils.  This is a new one....the opposite of the Atkins essentially.  I would be curious to see what the calories on this thing suggests.  Either way, it is NOT sustainable long term much like Atkins and therefore just another gimmick diet, not a lifestyle change.
• Ultimate Volumetrics Diet - Again, I prefer this one but just call it 'How to cook with volumetrics' and leave it at that!
• The Blood Sugar Solution - A six week plan to reverse Type II Diabetes and obesity renamed as Diabesity avoiding processed food, blah, blah, blah regurgitated.  Brilliant.  Then what the heck are you supposed to eat after the 6 weeks?  This guy says one of the the biggest mistake dieters make is counting calories.  Uh, really?  This guy is a chip off of the PT Barnum block!
• Weight Loss Boss - Written by the CEO of Weight Watchers (intriguing).  This does focus on habits you can maintain for life and not just  2 month period of deprivation.  Did we need a book to tell us that?

Don't get suckered in here folks.  Follow these rules at no charge and you still have the rest of the night to read a good book.

• Know what your RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) is.  You can calculate this at the Hilton Head Health daily blog under nutrition.
• Track your meals.  Eat what you want, but be accountable for every calorie.  I think the need to eat bigger meals will win out over just eating what you want.
• Get 50 minutes of exercise 4-5 times a week doing exercises you enjoy.  Exercise means 'increased heart rate'.
• Wash, rinse, repeat.

There you have it!  The SECRET IS OUT and I am not going to make a dime of that $671 billion.  Oh well, maybe Al will give me a loan (had to do it....been a long time since he got a mention).

Sorry for the bad scans....you can probably find this article out on USA Today if you want to read it for yourself.

One Year Later...

Today is a very special day for me.  One year ago, I began the most amazing, life changing and body transforming journey.  I thought today about how I felt as I went through that first day at Hilton Head Health. 

First was the blood work.  Bob threatened to use dull, dirty needles on me because he is a Braves fan and I am a Twins fan.  He still is not quite over the 1991 World Series I guess.  I liked him from the first meeting even as he poked me and delivered some bad news to me.  My cholesterol was OK by number but the HDL was so low, he could not get a reading.  All of my cholesterol was bad, LDL.  My blood sugar revealed that I was a walking type II diabetic.  I work in this data every day and knowing the number of comorbidities that accomodate diabetes, it was a dose of reality that really hurt.  It reinforced why I was there yet was devastating news.  Hopefully the damage was not too far along and I would get better.

I remember struggling to do pretty much anything fitness related as one might expect for someone nearing 400 pounds.  The staff were all amazing though with their encouragement and faith that I would get stronger.  Even riding my bike the 1.5 mile ride from my condo to H3 was hard and bring me to pant uncontrolled. 

The days were long but the weeks were short.  Before I knew it, I was on that flight to MSP with a renewed sense of drive and some goals set.  Could this really be the solution to being overweight?  Did they tell me the secrets that I had searched for? 

It was so simple.  It was too simple.  I had tried everything!  Body for Life challenges, Redux, Atkins, South Beach, and anything else that looked like it was the silver bullet. 

I found an incredible bond with all of the employees at Hilton Head Health.  From the instructors to the fitness team.  You even gain bonds with the interns and culinary staff.  They all play a key part in that well rounded recipe for success.  While everyone was special, I found a bond with Jeff Ford that still exists today.  A day does not pass where I don't think of him or some memory of being at H3 getting rowdy with him in treading or ultra-circuit.  He became my @home coach and I consider him a great friend. 

An unexpected connection was with the other guests while I was there.  Many are still good friends and connections yet today. 

So tonight as I ran 5 miles in celebration of a great year and went out for a nice light dinner with a certain 'Pals' of mine, I took pride that I was still eating healthy and still losing weight a year later...something I have never done before on any 'diet'.  This is my life now.  I can celebrate the good times and treat myself but always go looking back to the healthy meals.  As my dinner companion tonight realized, the couple next to us were talking about how they were too full, and feeling like they could not move.  We had a GREAT meal and felt like a million bucks.  It is SO AWESOME to feel like this.

This trip would not have been as easy as it has been though if not for my friends from H3, trainers like Jeff, Karla, Adam and Amber and the tips from the culinary staff like Jen and Karla.  This change would certainly not have been possible without great support from my immediate family and my extended family.  They helped make my trip possible.  I only want to make them proud.  I also have to thank my coworkers from the guys I work with every day to the HR department and senior management that supported my leave of absence.  I feel that I am 100x the employee I was a year ago. 

I now look forward to this new year. I can only imagine how fantastic it will be. To the people that had the room next to me at the Oakland Hilton that put the note about my snoring keeping them awake all night and told me that I needed to get help. Well, I did. I found the best place on earth to get help! Anyone can do this. Just start today. Before you know it, a year will pass.

The last time we'll have to see all of this guy....March 2011



My Awesome Family After a 7K Race! 

Andy and Jim with me before the start...looking ready to RUN!

Celebrating an awesome finish to the Get Lucky 7K with awesome coworkers!