O/T: HEALTH Have you helped someone lose weight? How?

[WillHurtDontCare]

I saw a younger family member earlier who put on a significant amount of weight seen we'd last seen each other.

I plan to intervene, but I want this family to get better. I don't want to just run my mouth.

Could anyone who has helped someone lose weight chime in?

 

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[Kevin88660]

I saw a younger family member earlier who put on a significant amount of weight seen we'd last seen each other.

I plan to intervene, but I want this family to get better. I don't want to just run my mouth.

Could anyone who has helped someone lose weight chime in?

Maybe send him some links on exercise regiment you find it interesting, through text. Test his response.

 

[RazorCut]

Are you sure your intervention will be welcome? If you point someone to better eating habits or exercise regimes that is hardly going to make much difference.

In my experience to lose weight the subject really needs to want to change. Are you able to encourage them by example? Can you take them to the gym or track or pool every week? The only way they will lose weight is by wanting to through being inspired (or sadly sometimes ridiculed) by others or by having their habits slowly changed by design.

I encouraged my brother to lose weight for well over a year. Eventually I got him to try intermittent fasting as I kept saying how easy it was. Once he seen the results from such little effort he got hooked (though he has gone back to his usually ways again now). Old habits are hard to break.

 

[Roz]

Are you sure your intervention will be welcome? If you point someone to better eating habits or exercise regimes that is hardly going to make much difference.

In my experience to lose weight the subject really needs to want to change. Are you able to encourage them by example? Can you take them to the gym or track or pool every week? The only way they will lose weight is by wanting to through being inspired (or sadly sometimes ridiculed) by others or by having their habits slowly changed by design.

I encouraged my brother to lose weight for well over a year. Eventually I got him to try intermittent fasting as I kept saying how easy it was. Once he seen the results from such little effort he got hooked (though he has gone back to his usually ways again now). Old habits are hard to break.

This!

Unless the person wants it, no one or no program can push them to take the first step.

If they want it, no one or no program can stop them.

A friend of my sister was over weight in her high school days. Every day, her parents would tell her to do something about it. At least, to go for a walk.

She didn't even budge.

Then she went college, got insecure around girls who were fitter than her and started working on her health.

Sometimes, an intervention might cause resentment in the relationship. Be cautious.

 

[Mutant]

Depending on their temperament - with most people I would go on a "fishing expedition". Talk around the subject, see if you can ascertain their thoughts on the subject, without straight up asking. Give them opportunities to volunteer information. Asking straight up is only for people who'd take it well/at least ok - like most of the forum members I know. Like you say, you don't just wanna run your mouth.

You're fishing to find out:
Are they bothered by their weight gain at all? They may not care (or claim to).
Do they want to do something about it? A surprising number of people can be bothered by something, & yet not actually want to solve the problem.

If they're not actually motivated themselves, the best you can do is to make sure they know they can come to you & feel comfortable asking for help if they ever do want to change.

A way to dance around the subject even further away would be to make the discussion about fun things that you like to do. Ask all about their interests & get them engaged first, then when it's your turn, tell them about how fun/satisfying the gym is. If they don't believe you that it's fun/or it's only fun for you cos you're fit/or they've been & didn't like it - then challenge them that to join you "how do you know it's not fun if you've never been?"/"ah, but I you've never been to the gym with me"/etc. Offer to try an activity that they like & then they have to come to the gym with you. They may see through this entirely, but if they secretly do want to do something but can barely even bring themselves to admit it, they may still take you up on this because they can lie to themselves about why they want to go.

Eating habits may be more important to their weight loss than the gym, but really getting into achievement at the gym can provide good motivation for fixing eating. It seems to come that way round for lots of people.

And of course if they are ready to freely admit they've gained weight, are not happy with it, & want to do something about it - your main task then is to encourage, advise, but make sure you don't overwhelm. If they later develop an enthusiasm for geeking out on this stuff with you, then great, but right now it mainly needs to seem achievable.

 

[ZCP]

Do they know how to eat healthy?
Do they know how to manage food / sleep / training / exercise?

If they don't, AND you do, then help them.
If they have all they need except motivation, ask if they'd like to join you. Help them find a goal.
If they have all that, they don't want to, and they are killing themselves; scare them. Find a way to get them to see what they are doing to the people around them.

Short of all that, shut up and live your live and check in on them often.

 

[Ing]

imo the only way to really loose weight ist raise the power consumption.
Get him to a hobby on the sports area and the weight problem will disappear.

I have a very good friend, who tried everything to loose weight. Really everything. But it doesn’t really help.
In times we make sport a bit every day that improves the constutution immediately.

But as soon as wheather gets worse , weather gets worse and outdoor activities go back, the problem rises again.

 

[S.Y.]

Weight is not the best metrics for health in my opinion.

I have helped friends build better life habits that made them lose weight. And it comes down to eating healthy most of the time and moving more.

For eating, I don't complicate things. Stay away from process foods, have a lot of variety (used it do keto, but now am more mediterranean) and stay the hell away from processed sugar. And find what foods works for your body.

Movement too. Find what you like to do and do it. And build movement into your day. Even just walking.

I never had to convince someone to have better healthy habits. All I do is walk the path and when asked I explain what I do.

 

[Andy Black]

I’d guess putting on weight is a symptom of something else. Maybe find out how they’re doing and feeling at the moment. What’s the root cause? Can you help fix the root cause rather than the symptom?