Don't Believe Everything You Watch on TV

Sitting at home on a Tuesday night and the "The Biggest Loser" comes on TV.  You watch it and think, "Wow, I wish I could do that.  They sure do lose a lot of weight." 

You then flip to MTV and see "Fat Camp".  As you watch you think, "It looks like they're having some fun and losing weight."

Later that night in your room as you're trying to go to sleep all of these images begin to play in your head.  Your thoughts turn to what it would be like to try and lose some weight.  You don't want to be super skinny like a super model but skinny enough to fit in with your friends.  Mostly, you just want to feel better about yourself.

Your nightly TV viewing (maybe this is where you should start making changes) would have you believe that losing weight is easy and quick.  Perhaps most dangerously, you might even be thinking that a few months of effort are all it takes.

As you toss in your bed with images of hope and a desire to make changes you begin to think, "Well, on the Biggest Loser they devote 3 months of their lives to losing weight and getting in shape.  Plus, they have trainers and professionals around 24/7 to encourage their effort.  Who wouldn't be successful in those 3 months?"

And in both "The Biggest Loser" and MTV's "Fat Camp" you start to wonder-did I learn anything from the show while I watched about how I might lose weight or live a healthy lifestyle?  Did the people in these shows learn skills for long-term success?

The answer to these questions: No, not really.

While these shows would have you believe weight loss involves short-term effort, the truth is maintaining a healthy weight involves living a healthy lifestyle.  In real life, the effort is up to you.  Sure, you might need a program to jump-start this effort, but this should be a program that integrates a healthy diet and exercise as well as teaches you skills you will have the rest of your life.

The main goal is for you to find a place that will not only help you lose weight but will help you gain that self-confidence back.  Remember it's not about being "skinny" it is about being healthy. 

"Tomorrow night," you think, "Rather than watching people lose weight, maybe I'll turn off the TV and take a walk."
That's a great place to start.

Learn more about fat camp