Carole Carson

AARP's FAT-TO-FIT WEIGHT LOSS CHALLENGE

AARP’S FAT-TO-FIT WEIGHT LOSS PROGRAM
CHALLENGES AMERICANS TO LOSE 10,000 Pounds

“Fat-To-Fit” Program to Track Weight Loss and Lifestyle Changes over Three-Month Challenge

Today (June 21, 2010), we launched AARP’s second annual “Fat-to-Fit Summer Weight Loss Challenge,” an online program challenging people to make positive, permanent lifestyle changes to improve their health. The Fat 2 Fit challenge will be hosted on AARP’s website (www.aarp.org/fat2fit). I will lead the Fat 2 Fit online community members through the summer-long program.

Studies show people are more likely to stick to exercise plans when they have support, and the Fat 2 Fit program will focus on personal interaction with both me and other participants through the Fat 2 Fit online community, which already boasts more than 4,600 members. Here participants will be able to access free diet and fitness tips, informational articles, videos, recipes and more.

Unlike diets and other weight-loss programs, the Fat-to-Fit Challenge is intended to help people make permanent, positive lifestyle changes–not just drop 10 pounds and then return to their old habits. Our hope is to help people break the diet-relapse cycle for good.

Beginning today, visitors to www.AARP.org will be invited to join the Fat-to-Fit Summer Weight Loss Challenge. Participants record their weight and activity and strive to lose pounds. Every time a user updates his or her weight, the Fat 2 Fit site shows how much weight he or she has lost since joining and how many pounds the Fat 2 Fit community has lost collectively. Participation in the Fat 2 Fit online community is key to the contest. Participants are urged to post frequent updates and to exchange ideas, encouragement, recipes and moral support.

The challenge will run through September 6, 2010. Throughout the challenge, I will select weekly prize winners, and when the challenge ends, I will select the top five overall winners. Winners will be selected on three criteria: serving as a role model for the entire community, facing and overcoming challenges, and demonstrating the principles of the Fat 2 Fit program. The first-place winner will receive a one-year Gold’s Gym membership, with six months of personal training, and also receive a trip to Orlando, Florida, where the winner will participate in a health session with me at AARP’s Orlando@50+ National Event and Expo, September 30-October 2, 2010. Official rules and details are available at www.aarp.org/fat2fit.

What’s the Link between Surplus Weight and Medical Problems?

In my role as coach for the AARP Fat 2 Fit Community Weight-Loss Challenge, I ask experts to share their insight on issues involving fitness. One such expert is Dr. Michael F. Roizen, who is regularly featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, NBC’s Today, 20/20, Good Morning America and CBS News Sunday Morning.

I asked Dr. Roizen, “What’s the link between surplus weight and medical problems?” His answer follows:

 

A large waist leads to high blood pressure, arthritis, altered body image and low self-respect. Extra belly fat also causes more inflammation than sand in your swimsuit, and that inflammation causes insulin resistance diabetes (with an average 17-year lag), heart disease and impotence (average 25-year lag) and cancer (average 35-year lag). If those health concerns weren't enough, a sizeable girth also causes problems zipping up your pants.

Dr. Roizen confirms the statistic that 80 percent of our medical problems are a function of lifestyle. The deadly quartet (heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer) is increasingly linked to unhealthy eating and exercise habits that result in obesity and a lack of fitness overall. The statistic is worrisome, but it simultaneously reassures us that we can reduce our risk by adopting a healthier lifestyle.

Michael Roizen, MD

Michael F. Roizen, MD, has written four New York Times bestsellers, including You: The Owner’s Manual, which he coauthored with Dr. Mehmet Oz. Other popular books coauthored with Dr. Oz include You: Staying Young and You: On a Diet. Michael’s writing has also appeared in numerous scientific papers, textbooks and medical books. Besides holding patents on several of his inventions and being a prolific lecturer, Michael has produced four PBS fundraising television specials. He chairs the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute. With his extensive experience in educating individuals on the care of their bodies to achieve optimum health, Michael guides and inspires individuals of all ages.

Fitness: A Success or a Work in Process?

I promote fitness through writing, speaking and coaching the AARP Fat 2 Fit online community, yet my efforts to become fit are far from perfect. And if perfection were the standard against which my efforts were judged, while I might not classify my endeavor as a failed project, I could not claim total success either.

In fairness to me, given that I spent 40 years gaining weight and only the last few years promoting fitness and weight loss, I’m doing reasonably well. I also take comfort knowing that my example has contributed to others becoming more fit and possibly extending their lives.

Still, the nagging questions keep surfacing: How should I judge my efforts? What are my criteria?

When I tried to answer these questions, I realized I had only the vaguest notion of what constitutes success. Consequently, I began analyzing the nature of success and concluded the following:

• Success can be defined only by me, not by my spouse, my parents or any other person.

• Success is a feeling, not the physical trappings, awards or recognition that others consider the benchmarks of success.

• Success at any price may not be worth it.

• Success is a dynamic process of attaining, not a fixed state. I define and redefine my fitness goals as I make day-to-day decisions.

• Success occurs in steps. Experiments and setbacks help me determine what is needed next. The results—both successful ones and failed attempts—provide useful information.

• Success can be learned. I am not failing as long as I am learning new ideas, experimenting and moving forward.

• Everyone has a few failures under his or her belt.

• Success is best achieved when goals are not so high that they are impossible to reach or so low that they fail to challenge.

• Success is, in the final analysis, being honest and present with myself.

After I explored my own ideas on success, I thought it might be worthwhile to see how others define success. The thinking of two people, Basketball Hall of Fame coach John Wooden and author Maya Angelou, resonated with me.

In his book Beyond Success, John Wooden asserts that the score at the end of the game isn’t the defining measure of success. In his view, the measure of our success is whether “we’ve given our best to become the best of which we were capable.” John’s view of success relies heavily on internal leadership—that is, self-coaching and self-talk that keeps us on track.

Maya Angelou defines success as liking yourself, liking what you do and liking how you do it.

John’s and Maya’s definitions of success make me more comfortable with my progress and achievements. I am wholly committed to becoming the best of which I am capable. And, at least most of the time, I like myself, like what I do and like how I do it.

What about you? If by chance you are discouraged by your current lack of progress, remember the observation of Mike Ditka: “Success isn't permanent, and failure isn't fatal.”

As long as we have a tomorrow, we have an opportunity for a fresh start.

What Is the Relationship between Lifestyle and Medical Problems?

As coach for the AARP Fat 2 Fit online community, I ask experts to share their insight on issues involving fitness. One such expert is Dr. Maxine Barish-Wreden, the comedical director of the Sutter Downtown Integrative Health program in Sacramento, California.

 

I asked Dr. Max (as her patients call her), “What is the relationship between lifestyle and the medical problems your patients come to you for?” Her answer follows:

 

As a practicing internist, I see many patients in my office who are dealing with medical symptoms and diseases that are the result of unhealthy lifestyle choices—poor nutritional intake, excessive caloric intake, sedentary lifestyles, tobacco abuse, chronic stress, ongoing unhappiness and social isolation.

Over time, these choices have led to a costly epidemic of many chronic medical conditions, including obesity, heart and vascular disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, dementia, arthritis and cancer. The good news is that the human body has a phenomenal capacity to heal, even after many years of poor self-care.

 

When we clean up our diets by eating less meat and more plant-based foods; when we exercise, cut calories and lose weight; and when we slow down and savor our lives more, we give ourselves the opportunity to heal, and our bodies often respond miraculously. It's never too late to begin. Healing is yours when you focus your intention, attention and action on what you want for yourself.

 

As her comments convey, Dr. Max strongly believes in the capacity of the human body, psyche and spirit to heal, given the appropriate environment. Through treatment of her patients and through her writing, Dr. Max guides and informs individuals on the positive effects of lifestyle choices—including nutrition and exercise—on health and wellness.

 

Maxine Barish-Wreden, MD

 

Dr. Maxine Barish-Wreden is the coauthor of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Secrets of Longevity and also coauthors a syndicated newspaper column with her medical partner, Dr. Kay Judge. Dr. Max holds a bachelor’s degree in nutrition from the University of Maryland and graduated from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. She has a long-term interest in complementary medicine, particularly the mind-body-spirit connection.

 

Is Obesity Contagious?

As coach for the AARP Fat 2 Fit online community, I ask experts to share their insight on issues involving fitness. One such expert is Nedra Weinrich, a nationally recognized pioneer and expert in social marketing, a field that promotes healthful changes in behavior.

 

I asked Nedra, “Is obesity contagious? If it is, how do we make fitness contagious?” Her answer follows:

Yes. Obesity is contagious. A 2007 study found that if your friends or family members are obese, you are up to 171 percent more likely to be obese yourself. The reason is not just that you share genetics or eat the same foods if you live together; this effect is found even among unrelated friends living across the country from each other.

 

So what’s going on? Our norms and expectations about concepts like appropriate body size, normal food portions and exercise habits come from what we see our friends and family members doing.

 

The good news is that the social side of this epidemic means that we have control over whether we “catch” obesity ourselves, and we can turn the situation around to spread fitness and other healthy behaviors through our social networks.

 

If you decide to lose weight, exercise regularly and surround yourself with others who are getting fit, the people in your life are more likely to catch the fitness bug as well. These effects were found to extend to three degrees of separation—meaning that even friends of your friends’ friends can be affected by your losing weight. So break out of your unhealthy habits and set off an outbreak of fitness!

 

Nedra’s perspective suggests that we are highly social animals; consequently, we are connected to one another in ways we may not fully understand. Nedra’s comments also underscore the adage that “We are our brother’s keeper.” Armed with this insight, we are encouraged to become role models for others and to use our influence in a positive way wherever and with whomever we can.

Nedra Kline Weinreich
Nedra Kline Weinreich, the president and founder of Weinreich Communications, consults with nonprofits and government agencies to promote changes in health and social behavior. She is the author of Hands-On Social Marketing: A Step-by-Step Guide. A lecturer at UCLA, Nedra earned her master’s degree in health and social behavior from the Harvard School of Public Health and has served on several federal expert advisory panels and committees.

Is There a Link Between Surplus Pounds and Breast Cancer?

In my role as coach for the AARP Fat 2 Fit Community Weight-Loss Challenge, I ask experts to share their insights on issues involving fitness. One such expert is Dr. Marisa Weiss, the founder, president and guiding force behind Breastcancer.org, the world's most trafficked online resource for medically reviewed breast health and breast cancer information. (See her full biography below.)

 

I asked Dr. Weiss, “Is there a link between surplus pounds and breast cancer?” Her answer follows.

 

“Most likely. Significant evidence links excess weight with a higher risk of breast cancer—both for a first diagnosis and for recurrence. Because fat cells help produce estrogen, the more fat cells you have, the more estrogen you have to stimulate breast cells, including breast-cancer cells (if any are present).

 

Fat also collects pesticides and other potentially unhealthy substances.  Found in food, beverages, personal products, water and air, pesticides and unhealthy substances are consumed or inhaled over a lifetime Various chemicals present in these substances dissolve in fat. And some of these chemicals are considered carcinogenic (cancer causing).

 

Furthermore, the location of fat cells may also affect your breast-cancer risk. Studies suggest that apple-shaped women may experience a higher incidence of breast cancer than pear-shaped women. One theory indicates that excess fat in the belly area may be more likely to produce unhealthy amounts of hormones than fat located on the hips.

 

While it’s not known if changing your shape, assuming that were possible, could reduce your risk of breast cancer, evidence confirms that losing weight overall and keeping it off does help lower risk.”

 

Researchers increasingly report numerous health benefits when we lose surplus pounds and become more active and fit. And Dr. Weiss’s assertion of the link between obesity and breast cancer adds yet another good reason. We can realize health benefits and reduce the risk of life-threatening breast cancer by managing our weight.

 

Biography of Marisa C. Weiss, MD

Dr. Marisa Weiss is a breast cancer oncologist with 20 years of active practice in the Philadelphia region, Marisa is regarded as a visionary advocate for her innovative and steadfast approach to informing, empowering and treating patients with breast cancer. Author of the acclaimed books Living beyond Breast Cancer and Taking Care of Your “Girls”: A Breast Health Guide for Girls, Teens and In-Betweens, Marisa has received many awards and currently practices at Lankenau Hospital, where she serves as director of breast radiation oncology and the director of breast health outreach. Marisa guides patients on how to improve their health and fitness to reduce the risk for cancer.

What’s the Link between Surplus Weight and Medical Problems?

In my role as coach for the AARP Fat 2 Fit Community Weight-Loss Challenge, I ask experts to share their insight on issues involving fitness. One such expert is Dr. Michael F. Roizen, who is regularly featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, NBC’s Today, 20/20, Good Morning America and CBS News Sunday Morning.

I asked Dr. Roizen, “What’s the link between surplus weight and medical problems?” His answer follows:

 

A large waist leads to high blood pressure, arthritis, altered body image and low self-respect. Extra belly fat also causes more inflammation than sand in your swimsuit, and that inflammation causes insulin resistance diabetes (with an average 17-year lag), heart disease and impotence (average 25-year lag) and cancer (average 35-year lag). If those health concerns weren't enough, a sizeable girth also causes problems zipping up your pants.

Dr. Roizen confirms the statistic that 80 percent of our medical problems are a function of lifestyle. The deadly quartet (heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer) is increasingly linked to unhealthy eating and exercise habits that result in obesity and a lack of fitness overall. The statistic is worrisome, but it simultaneously reassures us that we can reduce our risk by adopting a healthier lifestyle.

Michael Roizen, MD

Michael F. Roizen, MD, has written four New York Times bestsellers, including You: The Owner’s Manual, which he coauthored with Dr. Mehmet Oz. Other popular books coauthored with Dr. Oz include You: Staying Young and You: On a Diet. Michael’s writing has also appeared in numerous scientific papers, textbooks and medical books. Besides holding patents on several of his inventions and being a prolific lecturer, Michael has produced four PBS fundraising television specials. He chairs the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute. With his extensive experience in educating individuals on the care of their bodies to achieve optimum health, Michael guides and inspires individuals of all ages.

What Is the Commonest Outdoor Injury and How Can It Be Prevented?

As coach for the AARP Fat 2 Fit online nommunity, I ask experts to share their insight on issues involving fitness. One such expert is Dr. Paul Auerbach, one of the world’s leading authorities on outdoor medicine.

I asked Dr. Auerbach, “What’s the commonest outdoor injury and how can it be prevented?” His answer follows:

Blisters are common outdoor injuries for people who are trying to increase their activity by walking, jogging or hiking. Follow these guidelines to prevent blisters:

1. Socks: Wear a smooth, thin, snug-fitting synthetic sock as an inner layer and a thick, woven sock as an outer layer.

2. Shoes: Make sure shoes or boots fit properly and comfortably. Fit shoes in the evening because feet tend to swell throughout the day. Allow ample time to break in new footwear. Try on your shoes with the same socks you will be wearing on the trails.

3. Treatment: The best protection for a blister is its own roof. To assist in protecting this roof, apply a small adhesive bandage or pad either at the beginning of the day on an area susceptible to blistering or as soon as a hot spot develops.

4. Protection: Blist-O-Ban bandages (by SAM Medical Products), Micropore paper tape, cloth tape, Elastikon elastic tape, moleskin, Spenco 2^nd Skin Blister Pads, Band-Aid Blister Block and duct tape can be used as barriers to prevent blister development or to protect the roof of a blister.

With a little footwear planning and care, you can avoid most blisters, and you will be able to continue merrily on your outdoor adventure.

Dr. Auerbach’s practical advice will keep us moving in comfort as we walk off those surplus pounds. With a few precautions, we can safely enjoy our “green” exercise.

Paul Auerbach, MD

Dr. Paul Auerbach, professor of surgery in the Division of Emergency Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine, is the author of Medicine for the Outdoors, Field Guide to Wilderness Medicine, Diving the Rainbow Reefs, Management Lessons from the E.R. and Bad Medicine. Paul edits the textbook Wilderness Medicine and serves as anational medical consultant on hazardous marine animals to the Divers Alert Network. Dr. Auerbach is also the chief medical officer and chair of the Medical Advisory Board for Healthline Networks, where he hosts a blog entitled Medicine for the Outdoors.

What Is a Holistic Approach to Weight Loss?

A delightful part of my job as coach for the AARP Fat 2 Fit Community Weight-Loss Challenge is interviewing experts who share their insight on issues involving fitness. One such expert is Dr. Kay Judge, a board-certified internal medicine specialist who brings her interest in traditional and holistic medicine practices to her patients. (See her full biography below.)

I asked Dr. Judge, “What is a holistic approach to weight loss?” Her answer follows:

“We all know that ‘calories in versus calories out’ is the key to weight loss. But the human body can be more complex than a mathematical equation. If one is having a problem losing weight, then a holistic approach to weight loss may be beneficial. Holistic medicine recognizes that the mind, body and spirit all play a role in creating good health. Ask yourself the following questions:

1. Am I eating to fulfill a need other than hunger?

2. Are there certain people or environments that cause me to overeat or underexercise?

3. Do I derive comfort or pleasure from eating? Does eating reduce my stress?

4. Am I eating foods that nourish my body?

5. Do I participate in activities that are good for my body?

6. What is missing from my life that food is replacing?

Answers to these questions will point you in a direction that can create a lasting solution to bringing your body in balance holistically.”

These questions can trigger self-insight and can be reviewed again and again, especially when overeating threatens to derail our fitness goals. The questions also address the underlying motivations and rewards that keep us from realizing our fitness goals. Thanks, Dr. Judge, for sharing your insight.

Biography of Kandeel “Kay” Judge, MD

Dr. Kay Judge received her medical training at Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit, Michigan. Kay is the coauthor of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Secrets of Longevity (November 2009). She currently practices internal and holistic medicine at the Sutter Downtown Integrative Medicine Program in Sacramento, California.

Kay spent five years in India, where she discovered a passion for alternative treatment including meditation, yoga and ayurvedic medicine. Kay helps her patients find the balance between mind, body, emotions and spirit so that they can attain their fullest potential. She gives health recommendations based on a combination of conventional (Western) medicine, health and lifestyle modifications and alternative treatment options.

"Keeping your body healthy is an expression of gratitude to the whole universe--the trees, the clouds, everthing."                        Thich Nhat Hanh