 Weight problems and obesity result from the combination of many factors, including physical, social and psychological aspects. Here we look at some factors which can be classified as environmental, although they may interact with psychological processes.
The term “obesogenic environment” refers to “an environment that promotes gaining weight and one that is not conducive to weight loss” within the home, community or workplace. In other words, the obesogenic environment refers to an environment that helps, or contributes to, obesity. Some environmental factors promoting obesity are:
Each of us lives in our own unique environment, so the obstacles and advantages for achieving and maintaining healthy habits are also unique. Let's do an exercise. Think about something/someone in your life that is "weighing" on you. In what ways does this thing/person promote weight gain and obesity? Be honest with yourself. If you can't see the problem you won't be able to fix it. By taking an honest inventory of the environments you live in, you are in a position to make changes that will pay off in better health and wellness. The beautiful thing about this type of self-development work is that it doesn't feel like work, because you are making your life both easier and more productive at the same time. Stephen Stotland, Ph.D.  Mindfulness has become a popular topic in relation to weight control. Many are suggesting that learning to eat more mindfully should lead to healthier eating, and possibly to better weight control. That has not been proven yet, although it does seem like a logical prediction. So, what is mindfulness, how do you get more of it, and how does it improve weight control?
Mindfulness refers to a state of mind in which we notice what we are thinking and feeling, without getting lost in our thoughts or trapped in our feelings. Mindfulness training is thought to gradually develop the quality of “equanimity”, which means that we get better at not amplifying our reactions, be they positive (“the ice cream is so good, I can’t stop eating it”) or negative (“I can’t take this feeling and I must make it go away this instant”). In meditation practice, we try to notice everything non-judgmentally, without acting on it. Engaging regularly in some form of mental practice, such as mindfulness meditation seems to have beneficial effects on the quality of our mindset. To get the most out of our efforts in pursuit of our goals, such as to get in better shape or to increase our overall life satisfaction, it helps to deal with the behaviour change process in a mindful manner, focusing more on the day-to-day process and less on the outcome. When it comes to weight control, the concept of mindfulness has many implications and applications:
Is mindfulness enough? When we think about the decision-making process for eating (or exercise), we realize that being mindful about our impulses to eat or not eat may not be enough to produce better choices, although it is a necessary first step. We also need a strategy such as the one I define as "moderation". The question then is how do mindfulness and moderation relate to each other? Moderation starts with the intention to eat the "right way"; i.e., the optimal amount and types of food. What is "right" or "optimal" is hard to define, so we can think of it more as a general strategy, like a meta goal. There is no specific requirement to follow a particular diet or eating plan, but more like a strategy to eat "reasonably and intelligently." I sometimes refer to moderation as "intelligent restraint." There are as many variations on what this looks like as there are individuals, because we have our own individual preferences and biological needs for food. The strategy must map on to what we need to support our health and wellness. Intelligent Restraint is different than the prototypical "diet mentality." The typical diet mentality is a type of "rigid" restraint, based on strict eating rules ("eat this, not that"), anxiety about breaking the rules, and guilt and loss of confidence if and when there's any lapse in the restraint. In contrast, intelligent restraint is being a smart and reasonable eater. It does not mean being inflexible. For example, taking a small ice cream cone instead of a medium or large one, realizing that the first 10 bites are the best, after which the satisfaction per bite decreases rapidly, and remembering that there will be other occasions to eat ice cream, and this is not the last chance. This mindset, to the extent that we follow it, leads to a significant reduction in unhealthy eating and an increase in healthy choices, while satisfying our taste preferences at the same time. Thus, the most advanced weight management mindset, and the one that we want to cultivate, is best referred to as "mindful and moderate". The operation of this mindset works on the principles of sensitivity to internal signals, along with an attitude of moderation. To summarize, you need to learn to pay attention to your body's signals and you also need to sharpen your intelligent restraint. Mindfulness is necessary, but so is good judgment. In our program, we work to help you move from rigid restraint to intelligent restraint, and ultimately to mindful and moderate eating. These principles apply to the way you eat, and how you regulate your physical activity, stress management, and general health and wellness. In other words, it's kind of an all-purpose strategy, perhaps even a way of life. Stephen Stotland, Ph.D.   Setting goals and working towards them is the most basic formula for behaviour change.
Think about a simple goal, say "take a walk, each day". In the way we have stated this goal, there is no rule for how long to walk for, when, where or with whom. It's simply, walk each day. Over time you will be able to judge if there's an improvement in your daily walking. You will not need to quantify it, or provide a percentage improvement, but you should have a clear sense of whether you've made a small, medium or large improvement in your walking since the last benchmark. If you have a strong sense of walking better/more, that will likely be accompanied by some improvement in your overall self-rating of fitness, and other changes that you can notice. Let's branch out a bit and think about a second goal, to "eat some veggies", each day. This is another seemingly simple task. Think about it some more however and you will realize how much room for improvement there is in your eating of veggies. This is not an endorsement of veganism, since eating veggies is important no matter what else is included or not included in the diet. Again, think about a gradual improvement in your veggie eating, and how much better that would make you feel in general. After focusing on these goals for a while, you might add other simple goals, such as "do something to relax". Or add other eating and physical activity goals. Gradually you will gain a new set of healthy habits. All of that probably adds up to some big changes in your health and wellness, especially over longer periods of time. Think small, and remember that a journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step. That is a cliché, but it is undoubtedly true! Stephen Stotland, Ph.D.  When we begin any new project, it makes sense to ask ourselves if we're ready? Before leaving on a road trip, we check that the car is in good working condition, that the tires have air and the tank is full, that we have clothes, money, and an interesting itinerary. This is a simple, obvious example. Sure, there are dramatic and entertaining examples of people who launched themselves into great adventures without thinking or planning and somehow succeeded, but that's probably not how we want to model ourselves.
When the change we're talking about is a change in ourself, we should take the time needed to consider the implications and the commitment that will be required. First, why do we want to change? If those reasons are so clear to us now, why hasn't it already happened; what has been keeping us in our old pattern? Second, if we make the change, what consequences will that have? How will it affect other things and other people in our life? There is a maxim (from Benjamin Franklin) that "failure to prepare, is preparing to fail," and in the case of personal, behaviour change, a good part of the preparation is getting clear on the Why, before we get into the How. An important insight from psychology in the last 40 years is that change occurs over a series of stages. Changing habits is overcoming the "law of inertia" (Newton's first law), which states "if a body is at rest or moving at a constant speed in a straight line, it will remain at rest or keep moving in a straight line at constant speed unless it is acted upon by a force". What is the "force" that gets us to change our habits? A smoker who is not thinking about quitting is in a stage called "pre-contemplation". If we were to see into their thoughts we would find that the Pros of smoking (it's relaxing, fun, cool...) are a lot greater than the Cons (unhealthy, expensive, smelly...). To get this person to begin thinking about quitting (which we call the stage of "contemplation") something has to change the balance of Pros and Cons in their thoughts. As the balance tips towards the Cons being greater than the Pros, the person is closer to a change. But that's not enough to make change happen. In addition to strong reasons to change, we need the belief that the change is not only possible, but within our capacity to make it happen now. Let's unpack that a bit, and use a relevant example to make it more real. Are you able to change your eating and exercise habits enough to lose 10 pounds? Are you able to maintain those changes to ensure that the 10 pounds stays off for the next 5 years? If you answered differently to the two questions, then you may believe that short-term behaviour changes are easier than long-term changes. Perhaps you think that over time other factors may counteract your efforts (maybe you think your metabolism will slow down in response to the weight loss)... There is a complicated matrix of thoughts and beliefs in our minds, some conscious and others less so, that determines our motivational state. That's why asking a simple question like "do you believe you can lose weight and keep it off?" is not very informative. To really understand how psychologically ready you are to accomplish this goal, or any other behaviour change goal, we need to dig deeper. In order to help explore this I created a questionnaire called the Weight Management Readiness Scale, that presents the kinds of thoughts that seem both common and central to this process. This is based on my decades of working with people at all stages of this journey. Please give it a try, but as you do so, be honest with yourself about what you actually believe, not what you think you should say to get the best "score" or what you wish you were feeling. Click here for the Weight Management Readiness Scale Best wishes for a safe and successful journey! Stephen Stotland, Ph.D.  You need to stop sometimes. Coming back to the present moment is a gift to yourself. You may be the most productive and creative person, with a head filled with new ideas, important tasks to complete, people to talk to, etc. Or you may be someone with a lot on your mind that you wish wasn’t there, worries, regrets, resentments, that you can’t seem let go of. You may spend a lot of time thinking about your next meal, what you should or shouldn’t eat, what you would like to eat, your mouth watering in anticipation. You may be excitedly thinking about your exercise routine and the great progress you’re hoping to make and next challenge you want to accomplish and can hardly wait to do more. Or you may be thinking about the dinner party you’re arranging or invited to attend, and what to wear, what to bring, and how much you want to go, or not go… Your mind is filled to overflowing with all the good and bad things you’re engaged with, and it’s difficult to put them aside, even for a brief moment. It seems the only time you rest is when you’re asleep, and even that is not so restful. What is going on? Where’s the fire? What’s the emergency? As you proceed on your weight and wellness journey, you are of course working actively to improve your ways of eating and moving your body, which takes planning and practice, so good for you for sticking to it. But you also need to learn to rest sometimes. To release the burden. Put down your baggage. Find peace in the moment. Be kind to yourself. Imagine you’re in charge of the process for someone else, perhaps a close relative or friend. You help them devise their plan of action, you monitor their progress and celebrate with them as they move closer and closer to their goals. Will you be a harsh task-master? Will you criticize them if they skip a workout, or indulge in a small piece of cake from time to time? Will you push them to do more, even when they’re exhausted? Probably not, at least we hope not! More likely, you will act like a responsible parent, who loves her child unconditionally but knows what’s best for them. You will instruct, model, encourage, push, explain, persist, give constructive feedback but also lots of hugs, and make sure he or she gets their rest. Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes… even you. Alice Lamott Talking about weight control, or talking about life, we need to find the balance between “go, go, go/onward and upwards,” and “stop and take a break.” Is there a danger that resting turns into backsliding and complacency? Not if the rest periods are effective, meaning that they provide the rest, relaxation, recuperation and letting go that brings wellness and restores the motivation to get back to the action. Stephen Stotland, Ph.D. |
