What might you learn from a successful loser?

The topic of weight management has been my passion since my personal struggle with weight gain in my late teens. When I was 17, after gaining 30-pounds over three or four months, I went to Physicians’ Weight Loss Centers for help getting that weight off.

Looking back, family stress due to my mother being ill, plus freedom (my drivers’ license, and my parents’ gift of a used Datsun 1200 for wheels) led me to making way too many regular stops at Seven-Eleven type places for a “snack!” These snacks were mostly brownies and different bags of various salty-crunchy things.

When I finally came up from the long binge—feeling like crap, and way past fitting in most of my clothes—I was ready to turn things around. Somehow I ended up at a Physicians’ Weight Loss Center “clinic” which may have been about the only choice in a small town (1977)!

Click to read more ...

Does HOW You Lose Weight Really Matter?

How much does HOW you lose weight really matter? Your approach can make a big difference in the amount of lean body mass (muscle and bone mineral density) you lose. Your goal should always be to maintain as much lean body mass as you can (to optimize your metabolic rate and ensure functional strength). Remember, the older you are the more difficult it becomes to build back lost muscle or bone density!

So HOW do you maintain more lean body mass while you lose weight?

Click to read more ...

HCG Diet faces FDA Action

The "HCG Diet" fad has been going strong for over a year and I last wrote about it back in February. Now the FDA is going after the over-the-counter homeopathic HCG products on two grounds: 1) False and misleading claims, and 2) the products are being marketed as "drugs" while NOT having been approved by the FDA. While I'm glad to see FDA take action on the homeopathic HCG products, I wish they could do more.

Click to read more ...

The HCG Diet: 6 things you should know before you...

Dr. Oz's show February 23rd [2011] was on the HCG diet. The HCG diet combines daily shots of a hormone (produced by pregnant women) called human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) with extreme calorie restriction. Overall I was very disappointed with Dr. Oz, and the whole segment. I think it left consumers with the impression that the HCG diet, while controversial, is still okay under a doctors "supervision." Here's what you didn't hear on Dr. Oz yesterday:

Click to read more ...