The Vanity Pounds

There are many many books, magazines, blogs, support groups, organizations, and even television shows for people who want to lose weight. I find many of them inspirational. From time to time, I watch the Biggest Loser, and I find myself almost giddy with happiness for all the participants who essentially get a second chance at a happier, healthier life. It is so fantastic to see the physical and emotional transformation that can occur under the influence of a determined human being, with some support. Many of these contestants come to the show successful in many aspects of their life, but have not figured out how to live life as the thin person they want to be. I am sure they leave feeling much better physically, but I am always most struck by the huge emotional lift there seems to be for both the contestant and their supportive families.

I have given a lot of thought to why fitness is important. There is always what the experts say, who tout the benefits of exercise and proper diet, though as we've seen over and over, the definition of proper diet continues to evolve.  The experts remind us to be healthier, be stronger, to live longer. Lower your blood pressure, reduce your “bad” cholesterol levels while increasing the “good”, lower your chance of getting diabetes, cancer, heart disease, auto immune diseases, or dementia. Sleep better. Have stronger bones, lower your bad cholesterol, raise your good cholesterol, increase your muscle mass, have thicker hair, better skin, stronger fingernails.  The experts write about about the latest miracle diet, from “no fat” to “low fat” to “good fat”. And the latest miracle food. From an apple a day to pomegranate juice, experts have been telling us about foods that will improve our health and help us to lose weight. Miracle foods you “must” incorporate into your diet have included milk, olive oil, salmon (fish oil), cranberries, orange juice, yogurt (now it is Greek yogurt), red wine, dark chocolate, walnuts, ace berries and fiber (the aisles of the grocery store are filled with packages advertising the presence of fiber in cereal, pasta, even yogurt).  Coffee is bad for you---wait it's really good for you! The experts claim that you can reduce your chances of illness, and live a healthier, maybe even a longer life if you eat what they recommend.  If you wait a few years, you will frequently find that the results have faded from the public eye, due to having been contradicted with later research, or really just are not as important as they seemed at the time.

Better health is of course important, but can be hard to measure in the short term. And it is harder to be motivated by long term goals than short term goals that are easier to measure. It is easier to be motivated by: 1) a decreasing number on the scale 2) a smaller waist size 3) going down a size in clothing or 4) a compliment by a friend.

So I contend that what motivates most people is vanity. How we look really matters to us, and changes in how we look motivate us to do more of what we are doing. Years ago, if someone had asked me whether I was vain, I would have denied it.  The little thought I had given to the meaning of vanity had it more closely akin to a character flaw than a virtue. Weren't people who were “vain” also self indulgent, vapid, and selfish? Looks don't matter right? Wasn't it better not to worry about my looks and instead worry about how to solve world peace? I was just wrong. Like it or not, looks matter. Furthermore caring about your looks is a sign of self respect. How you look can affect how you feel. It affects how you interact with others and how you do your job.

When I decided to try my hand at a lower carbohydrate diet, I bought the SouthBeach diet book and joined forum discussions where I connected online with a few people who also were trying to lose weight. Though I have long since abandoned the forum, I miss the camaraderie, and I really want to talk to folks about mental tips and strategy for sticking to adjusting your weight loss or maintenance goals. Questions I would love to discuss include:

1. Who has gone on and off diets, and what inspired you to go back on?
   
2. What are you doing differently now than you did when you started?
   
3. What are your splurges?
   
4. How much water/diet coke/tea, etc. do you drink in a day?
   
5. Do you prefer Atkins-like, Weight Watchers-like, low fat, Zone, Mediterranean, Vegetarian? A hybrid? None of the above?
   
6. How do you balance cooking for your family and cooking for yourself?
   
7. How often do you weigh yourself? What kind of a scale do you like?
   
8. I want to talk about exercise. What do you do? How much does it help and in what ways?
   
9. I want to hear about the ups and downs. What triggers the downs? What triggers the ups? In particular, how we can avoid them?
   

I have ideas about some of these topics and would love to hear from other like minded individuals. Humans are complex, and hopelessly optimistic. I would love to hear from those optimists!