What would happen if we pursued health over weight?

SnicciFit

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

MelisMusing

Yes! Absolutely!

MyChocolateDiet

That depends.

For anyone who is experiencing health issues related to their weight, they'd become fitter and thinner in the process of pursuing those goals.

For anyone who is overweight, obese, or etc. but still has normal markers for all those things you listed they would have no reason to work on their weight and remain the same.

BarbieAS

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

The answers to all of those questions are "yes" for me, including and especially the medical tests. (The only minor "no" is that, no, I'm not "happy" with my appearance, but in the grand scheme of my happiness I consider that only a very, very small piece.)

My BMI is 34.4 and my body fat percentage is approximately 43%. Should I not lose weight?

SnicciFit

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

The answers to all of those questions are "yes" for me, including and especially the medical tests. (The only minor "no" is that, no, I'm not "happy" with my appearance, but in the grand scheme of my happiness I consider that only a very, very small piece.)

My BMI is 34.4 and my body fat percentage is approximately 43%. Should I not lose weight?

I think by focusing on your health, you WILL lose weight.

SnicciFit

That depends.

For anyone who is experiencing health issues related to their weight, they'd become fitter and thinner in the process of pursuing those goals.

For anyone who is overweight, obese, or etc. but still has normal markers for all those things you listed they would have no reason to work on their weight and remain the same.

This is true! I know someone who was like that. It caught up with him and eventually his biomarkers were not so good. It scared him into getting healthier (and subsequently losing weight). One of my biggest motivations for losing weight was to avoid diabetes. My blood sugar was fine, but I knew that if I didn't get healthy & lose weight, that wouldn't always be the case.

BarbieAS

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

The answers to all of those questions are "yes" for me, including and especially the medical tests. (The only minor "no" is that, no, I'm not "happy" with my appearance, but in the grand scheme of my happiness I consider that only a very, very small piece.)

My BMI is 34.4 and my body fat percentage is approximately 43%. Should I not lose weight?

I think by focusing on your health, you WILL lose weight.

Well, but, I already meet all of the criteria you described, and I've been fat most of my life. It seems I could theoretically continue on exactly as I have been and continue to maintain the same level of "health," without losing weight. No additional focus required.

What would you consider to be the most important aspects of "focusing on health"? What steps should one take in order to do that? I'm not trying to be antagonistic, truly, I'm genuinely curious about your perspective on this.

sculli123

shining_light

I diet for weight, but I exercise for health. I was always a normal weight, but got obsessed with weight for no real reason. This time around losing weight, I've smartened up and am focussing on health first(which encompasses weight but is not defined by weight). I don't weigh myself very often anymore, because as long as I'm eating well and can see positive changes in the mirror and in my fitness levels, the number on the scale doesn't matter(I've always been within a "healthy" weight range, so it's a bit different for me). I do see keeping weight in check as a very important component of health, which is why lately I've been reading so much about about HAES (health at every size) and realizing why it grinds my gears so much.

cwolfman13

When people pursue an overall healthy lifestyle...to include, proper nutrition, portion control, and regular exercise good things tend to happen in my experience.

That said, many people, even if they're trying to pursue a healthy lifestyle don't hit on all of the above...portion control tends to be a huge issue even for individuals who are otherwise eating a pretty nutritious diet and getting regular exercise. I know quite a few people in this category...they have simply yet to grasp that moderation and portion control are just as important as their nutrition and fitness.

sculli123

When people pursue an overall healthy lifestyle...to include, proper nutrition, portion control, and regular exercise good things tend to happen in my experience.

That said, many people, even if they're trying to pursue a healthy lifestyle don't hit on all of the above...portion control tends to be a huge issue even for individuals who are otherwise eating a pretty nutritious diet and getting regular exercise. I know quite a few people in this category...they have simply yet to grasp that moderation and portion control are just as important as their nutrition and fitness.

Good post!

Akimajuktuq

Excess fat storage IS a health issue completely. Excess weight and health are not separate issues! A healthy body will NOT store excessive extra fat. It won't. A healthy body will eventually rid itself of excessive fat. Unfortunately, correcting health issues related to hormones and metabolism may be impossible if people are completely following conventional weight loss advice and, even if they are well informed and doing everything right, it can still take a very, very long time for all the excess fat to finally be shed. One will be very healthy even before all the fat is gone, but impatience may lead to strategies that once again impede the body's natural process of establishing a lower set-point weight.

The ONLY real way to remedy excess fat storage (ie excess weight) is to address health issues and remain committed to a new healthy, permanent lifestyle that promotes ideal health. And then, we need to learn to be incredibly PATIENT with the process.

For me, I lost the first 70 pounds pretty quickly and effortlessly, but the last 20 pounds, not so much. Trying to force the issue, speed things up, has only backfired immensely. I've had over 6 months of frustration and my body rebelling before I finally got the message. Now is the time to just focus on my health, quality of food (not quantity), exercise, and leave the excess fat to be resolved by my body without my meddling in the process. My body knows better than all the weight loss strategies that I think I know.

Acg67

Excess fat storage IS a health issue completely. Excess weight and health are not separate issues! A healthy body will NOT store excessive extra fat. It won't. A healthy body will eventually rid itself of excessive fat. Unfortunately, correcting health issues related to hormones and metabolism may be impossible if people are completely following conventional weight loss advice and, even if they are well informed and doing everything right, it can still take a very, very long time for all the excess fat to finally be shed. One will be very healthy even before all the fat is gone, but impatience may lead to strategies that once again impede the body's natural process of establishing a lower set-point weight.

The ONLY real way to remedy excess fat storage (ie excess weight) is to address health issues and remain committed to a new healthy, permanent lifestyle that promotes ideal health. And then, we need to learn to be incredibly PATIENT with the process.

For me, I lost the first 70 pounds pretty quickly and effortlessly, but the last 20 pounds, not so much. Trying to force the issue, speed things up, has only backfired immensely. I've had over 6 months of frustration and my body rebelling before I finally got the message. Now is the time to just focus on my health, quality of food (not quantity), exercise, and leave the excess fat to be resolved by my body without my meddling in the process. My body knows better than all the weight loss strategies that I think I know.

Any actual evidence for your statements or just making things up?

And so if you eat "healthy" foods, however you may define that, you can eat them in unlimited quantities and you will gain no excess fat? Mmmmhmmm

osothefinn

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

The point against this is that obesity leads to many other conditions quite often. My blood work was fine at 485 pounds, until one day it wasn't any more, which led me to lose weight. Luckily I was able to drop those numbers and avoid medication for diabetes, high cholesterol, etc, but some people won't be that lucky. I could have avoided the whole thing by trying to be a healthier weight in the first place. I'm not saying fixating on a certain number on a scale is the answer, but trying to keep excess bodyfat down is always a good idea.

SnicciFit

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

The answers to all of those questions are "yes" for me, including and especially the medical tests. (The only minor "no" is that, no, I'm not "happy" with my appearance, but in the grand scheme of my happiness I consider that only a very, very small piece.)

My BMI is 34.4 and my body fat percentage is approximately 43%. Should I not lose weight?

I think by focusing on your health, you WILL lose weight.

Well, but, I already meet all of the criteria you described, and I've been fat most of my life. It seems I could theoretically continue on exactly as I have been and continue to maintain the same level of "health," without losing weight. No additional focus required.

What would you consider to be the most important aspects of "focusing on health"? What steps should one take in order to do that? I'm not trying to be antagonistic, truly, I'm genuinely curious about your perspective on this.

You could start by evaluating things like your sleep quality (and quantity), exercise, stress...etc. Schedule "play time" into your life if you don't already. Make eating a pleasurable experience (not always rushed, put effort into creating tasty & healthy meals). One of my main focuses for 2014 is to eat more veggies. I have started using pact app to keep accountable on that. You might consider trying one new vegetable a week or one a month. Do you exercise? If so, do you drag yourself to the gym and hate every minute of it or do you do things that you enjoy and help you de-stress?

SnicciFit

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

The point against this is that obesity leads to many other conditions quite often. My blood work was fine at 485 pounds, until one day it wasn't any more, which led me to lose weight. Luckily I was able to drop those numbers and avoid medication for diabetes, high cholesterol, etc, but some people won't be that lucky. I could have avoided the whole thing by trying to be a healthier weight in the first place. I'm not saying fixating on a certain number on a scale is the answer, but trying to keep excess bodyfat down is always a good idea.

Like I said in above post, that's true. For some people they can be overweight for many years before their health markers get bad and "scare" them into losing weight/getting healthy. But the same can be said for people who aren't overweight. They can have scary health issues that could possibly be controlled through things like better sleep, more or less exercise, not missing out on important nutrients in their meals...etc.

BarbieAS

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

The answers to all of those questions are "yes" for me, including and especially the medical tests. (The only minor "no" is that, no, I'm not "happy" with my appearance, but in the grand scheme of my happiness I consider that only a very, very small piece.)

My BMI is 34.4 and my body fat percentage is approximately 43%. Should I not lose weight?

I think by focusing on your health, you WILL lose weight.

Well, but, I already meet all of the criteria you described, and I've been fat most of my life. It seems I could theoretically continue on exactly as I have been and continue to maintain the same level of "health," without losing weight. No additional focus required.

What would you consider to be the most important aspects of "focusing on health"? What steps should one take in order to do that? I'm not trying to be antagonistic, truly, I'm genuinely curious about your perspective on this.

You could start by evaluating things like your sleep quality (and quantity), exercise, stress...etc. Schedule "play time" into your life if you don't already. Make eating a pleasurable experience (not always rushed, put effort into creating tasty & healthy meals). One of my main focuses for 2014 is to eat more veggies. I have started using pact app to keep accountable on that. You might consider trying one new vegetable a week or one a month. Do you exercise? If so, do you drag yourself to the gym and hate every minute of it or do you do things that you enjoy and help you de-stress?

I sleep fine. I exercise frequently and enjoy it thoroughly (or, if I start to not enjoy what I'm doing, I change things up). I eat a bare minimum of 4-5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, often much, much more. My life as a full-time working mother of 2 very small children is very very busy but I don't consider myself overly stressed.

I lead a fulfilling life full of happiness and pleasurable activities and activities that I feel give me purpose. I consume a balanced diet, typically meeting my macro- and micro-nutrient goals all while including foods I love to eat. I'm very active, both through dedicated exercise as well as spending time with my friends and family. However, it just so happens that for most of my life, my calorie balance has been off, and I was eating far too much for my activity level.

My point is that just "focusing on health" is not going to make me lose weight, as I've been doing all those things and am still 60lbs overweight. And right now, based on your criteria, I shouldn't need to expend any further effort focusing on my health (over and above what I'm already expending). I would 100% agree that focusing on health as a PART of a weight loss journey for overweight individuals is essential. But the vast majority of people cannot simply "focus on health" and expect the weight to come off. And, while it's absolutely possible to be "healthy" (by your definition) while overweight, it will not last, no matter how much you focus on the factors you list. Loss of fat pounds becomes essential to maintain that health.

Sharon_C

I was all of that. If you looked at my medical records I was very healthy. Hardly ever got sick (not even the common cold), all of my blood work was normal, etc. But I was 30 pounds overweight and I wasn't happy with myself. I've lost the weight and am now strength training and have never been happier. So is being "healthy" simply about numbers? Or is it also a mindset?

I say its both.

David_AUS

Everyone needs to start somewhere for some they can make wholesale life changes otherwise need to increment their goals. Many people a this point do not know what their true values are and use weight loss as a starting point on their journey to become healthier. Maintaining a healthy weight is generally supportive of being healthy. Overall health become increasingly more important as you define what you really want from life and being healthier, it is then you start to put habits and actions in place that support your true values in life.

We are not here to "lose weight" we are here to live life. Being a healthy weight is supportive of the life I want to live and in itself is not a goal it is a means to an end.

Akimajuktuq

Excess fat storage IS a health issue completely. Excess weight and health are not separate issues! A healthy body will NOT store excessive extra fat. It won't. A healthy body will eventually rid itself of excessive fat. Unfortunately, correcting health issues related to hormones and metabolism may be impossible if people are completely following conventional weight loss advice and, even if they are well informed and doing everything right, it can still take a very, very long time for all the excess fat to finally be shed. One will be very healthy even before all the fat is gone, but impatience may lead to strategies that once again impede the body's natural process of establishing a lower set-point weight.

The ONLY real way to remedy excess fat storage (ie excess weight) is to address health issues and remain committed to a new healthy, permanent lifestyle that promotes ideal health. And then, we need to learn to be incredibly PATIENT with the process.

For me, I lost the first 70 pounds pretty quickly and effortlessly, but the last 20 pounds, not so much. Trying to force the issue, speed things up, has only backfired immensely. I've had over 6 months of frustration and my body rebelling before I finally got the message. Now is the time to just focus on my health, quality of food (not quantity), exercise, and leave the excess fat to be resolved by my body without my meddling in the process. My body knows better than all the weight loss strategies that I think I know.

Any actual evidence for your statements or just making things up?

And so if you eat "healthy" foods, however you may define that, you can eat them in unlimited quantities and you will gain no excess fat? Mmmmhmmm

I almost never comment in the general forums anymore (mostly due to you- give yourself a big pat on the back), but the few times that I still do, you are right there to ridicule my personal experiences and every single thing I say. Online bullying? Harrassment? It's getting very old, and my other MFP friends have noticed what you do as well.

SnicciFit

http://primaldocs.com/opinion/a-healthy-body-image/

"So if weight isn't the end-all, be-all marker of health, what should we be focused on? First, do you feel well? Are you happy, sleeping well, digesting your food, and energized? Do you only get sick a few times a year and have good exercise tolerance? Do you have normal blood sugars, normal inflammatory markers, and healthy cholesterol ratios? If female and pre-menopausal, are you menstruating? Do you have people in your life that love and care about you? These factors are the measuring stick we should use for health, not a number on a scale. Shouldn't health be the ultimate goal?"

The answers to all of those questions are "yes" for me, including and especially the medical tests. (The only minor "no" is that, no, I'm not "happy" with my appearance, but in the grand scheme of my happiness I consider that only a very, very small piece.)

My BMI is 34.4 and my body fat percentage is approximately 43%. Should I not lose weight?

I think by focusing on your health, you WILL lose weight.

Well, but, I already meet all of the criteria you described, and I've been fat most of my life. It seems I could theoretically continue on exactly as I have been and continue to maintain the same level of "health," without losing weight. No additional focus required.

What would you consider to be the most important aspects of "focusing on health"? What steps should one take in order to do that? I'm not trying to be antagonistic, truly, I'm genuinely curious about your perspective on this.

You could start by evaluating things like your sleep quality (and quantity), exercise, stress...etc. Schedule "play time" into your life if you don't already. Make eating a pleasurable experience (not always rushed, put effort into creating tasty & healthy meals). One of my main focuses for 2014 is to eat more veggies. I have started using pact app to keep accountable on that. You might consider trying one new vegetable a week or one a month. Do you exercise? If so, do you drag yourself to the gym and hate every minute of it or do you do things that you enjoy and help you de-stress?

I sleep fine. I exercise frequently and enjoy it thoroughly (or, if I start to not enjoy what I'm doing, I change things up). I eat a bare minimum of 4-5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, often much, much more. My life as a full-time working mother of 2 very small children is very very busy but I don't consider myself overly stressed.

I lead a fulfilling life full of happiness and pleasurable activities and activities that I feel give me purpose. I consume a balanced diet, typically meeting my macro- and micro-nutrient goals all while including foods I love to eat. I'm very active, both through dedicated exercise as well as spending time with my friends and family. However, it just so happens that for most of my life, my calorie balance has been off, and I was eating far too much for my activity level.

My point is that just "focusing on health" is not going to make me lose weight, as I've been doing all those things and am still 60lbs overweight. And right now, based on your criteria, I shouldn't need to expend any further effort focusing on my health (over and above what I'm already expending). I would 100% agree that focusing on health as a PART of a weight loss journey for overweight individuals is essential. But the vast majority of people cannot simply "focus on health" and expect the weight to come off. And, while it's absolutely possible to be "healthy" (by your definition) while overweight, it will not last, no matter how much you focus on the factors you list. Loss of fat pounds becomes essential to maintain that health.

I don't disagree with you and I don't think the article is saying that you should ONLY focus on health and not weight loss, I think the point is that many people become so fixated on the number on the scale that nothing else matters and they will do extreme things to try to lose weight (even if they don't need to!) that are not healthy. Also, people become so fixated on the scale that they don't even notice other benefits of their new, healthier lifestyle and tell themselves that they are failing because they haven't lost weight in a week/month/whatever time, when during that plateau they may have reduced their blood sugar or blood pressure, or their complexion may have cleared up or they are experiencing better digestion or more energy. They just see the numbers.