The program involves a series of 5 to 10 video-based counseling appointments during which we will evaluate your circumstances, your goals for weight loss and weight management, and develop a detailed plan for effective weight control. After a basic assessment, I will introduce you to the essential principles, as I understand them, for a deeper appreciation of how your thinking and behavior contribute to, or interfere with, a psychologically-informed approach to weight loss. We will explore your choices regarding the when, what, and why you eat as you do, and construct an individualized PLAN that works, one that takes into consideration emotional factors and useful information about best foods to consume and those to avoid.
The problem with most diets and weight loss programs is that they don’t work very well. This approach is designed not only to be successful, but also to incorporate all of the necessary ingredients for reaching your desirable weight, and staying there. Obviously, this will require work on your part....diligent effort, yet when effort pays off and the results are satisfying, the motivation (to continue the approach described here) for continued success is generated by the results. Good results lead to more inspiration and commitment to "what works".
The basic principles of weight loss have been known and written about for at least 50 years. Therefore, it is no surprise that the two main ideas consist in: 1) eating less, and 2) exercising more. If you did these two things, we might expect you to arrive at your desired weight with no further help. My method barely even discusses these major principles. Rather, the core principles of THIS approach are that you must—with my help—design an approach that works for you, and consider all the variables necessary to sustain the positive changes, and prevent future weight gain. While eating less and exercising more are certainly useful ideas, those that espouse them—and most books written about weight loss—drag you through an extraordinary degree of complexity and (may I be honest here?) brainwashing to keep you captive to the author’s ideas (to sell more books and create hysteria-level enthusiasm for the hope of real weight loss).
I hope only to share what I consider the central principles of successful weight loss, and see you through to the finish line.
So let’s get started. What most weight loss programs invite you to do is develop an obsession with the caloric values of all that you eat, and create meals and a schedule of eating that results in a net loss of weight based upon less (caloric) intake, often prescribed prepared meals you must pay for, and more energy expenditure. The methods advocated here emphasize setting up a structure—a daily and weekly routine—that you can tolerate and that results in a reduced caloric intake (compared to what is or was typical for you). We’ll call this "the PLAN" that will weave together a number of variables, based upon any single or combination of four different factors, which we will review once our counseling is underway.