Ask
the Dietitian
Submitted by
Andrea Shackel – LBD PCN Registered Dietitian, Certified Diabetes Educator
I eat healthy food and I am active but I
still am not losing weight. Why?
We often
hear people say “eat less, move more” in order to lose weight but this does not
take into account many other issues that are just as important in reaching or
maintaining a healthy weight. Consider these other factors:
Healthy Eating – Healthy
eating is a complex term and does it not always equal weight loss. Healthy
eating refers to what we eat and weight loss refers to eating foods that are
providing a calorie decrease from our everyday diet. Not all “healthy foods” are weight friendly. For example: 1 tbsp oil a day is
considered“healthy oil” however could add up to over 12 pounds a year!
If weight loss is the goal, it’s important to use a
lifestyle journal. Lifestyle journaling
is the cornerstone for determining what’s going on as well as help problem
solve. It is the #1 tool for long term behaviour change and weight
management. You can journal everything
from food, calories, exercise, sleep, mood, stress on a variety of online,
phone apps and handwritten journals.
Activity –
Activity has many great health benefits such as lowering blood pressure and
cholesterol levels and reducing the risk of chronic diseases and it can play a
role in weight maintenance; however it does not play a large role in weight
loss. The majority of the population
does not meet the requirements for physical activity of 150 minutes per week –
the amount needed to achieve health benefits.
In order to make an impact on weight, a person would need to be doing
250 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous activity per week. The majority of the population does not “work
off” what they eat. One can of pop has 140 calories which equates to 1 hour of
walking to burn off. Is it really worth it?
Medical –Certain health conditions such
as sleep apnea, high blood pressure and diabetes can make it difficult to lose
or maintain weight. Many medications can also impact your weigh loss efforts. It is important to follow up with your family
physician or health care team should you have any of these concerns with managing
your health conditions.
Psychological - Mental health concerns
such as depression, anxiety, ADHD/ADD or stress can make it more challenging to
loose weight and make it more difficult to maintain lifelong changes. Often, people tend to go for “comfort food”
to help deal with the issues above.
Environment –Access to fast food,
eating on the run (or while driving), working at a desk or sitting all day,
access to 24 hour screen time and messages from the media all play a factor
into our personal weight loss or maintenance goals.
It’s
overwhelming to take all aspects into our lives into account when working on
weight loss or maintenance goals. Identifying the issues that may be impacting
efforts and working on them is very important.
Check out
our new PCN class called “
Getting
Started: Your Best Weight”. This class will address all of these factors,
how they impact weight and what to do abo
ut it.
Our website
offers resources and support for your use. Our PCN also offers classes on
dealing with emotional eating and a series of other weight, nutrition, activity
and stress management classes. Visit our website to see the calendar of
classes; all are open to the public!
To access
any of the healthcare team members, please talk to your PCN family doctor or
call 780-986-6624.
Have a
question for our healthcare team? Please send it to info@lbdpcn.com
For more
information on the PCN’s programs and services, please visit www.lbdpcn.com
Ask
the Healthcare Team offers trusted, evidence-based healthcare
information to our patients and the public. This information is provided to you
by the multidisciplinary team at the Leduc Beaumont Devon Primary Care Network.
This monthly column will answer common questions our team members hear from
patients.
