Michael Ventrella, this year’s “Biggest Loser” winner from NBC's hit TV Show made history by losing over 260 pounds—half of his starting body weight! Citing hard work as the key to his success, he admitted that first he had to change his way of thinking. “As Americans we all want a quick fix,” reports Michael, so overcoming the hopelessness that came with weighing over 500 pounds was the first step. Most admirably, he remains motivated to keep losing weight with the new outlook on life that he acquired on the Biggest Loser Ranch which includes (1) seeing food, not as an occasion but as fuel, (2) incorporating exercise as a way of life—for the rest of his life, and (3) considering friends and family as the people with whom he is going to stay healthy.
If you watched even just a few weeks of effort displayed by the overweight contestants, you quickly realized that losing 50-100 pounds of weight takes a consistent combination of mental tenacity, physical endurance, healthy eating, as well as the constant encouragement of peers and coaches.
In fact, recently The Wall Street Journal reported that a new Stanford University study has similarly concluded that healthy food choices, regular exercise, and mental toughness are not the only ingredients necessary for improving ones health. Even “small amounts of social support, ranging from friends who encourage each other by email to occasional meetings with a fitness counselor, can provide large and lasting gains against one of America’s biggest health problems—physical inactivity.”
The study divided three test groups of exercisers into (1) those who received a phone call from a trained health educator every two weeks, (2) those who also received the phone calls, but theirs were automated, and (3) those who were only offered health education classes but did not receive follow-up calls. After twelve months, participants receiving in-person or computerized calls either exceeded or doubled their beginning exercise levels. Those who received no follow-up calls dipped below the government recommendations of 150 minutes of exercise per week.
WSJ: Abby King, a Stanford professor of medicine and health research and policy who conducted this study, published in 2007 in the journal Health Psychology, and other similar studies, says people trying to change unhealthy behaviors generally need something more than willpower. "Whether it's smoking or alcohol use or physical inactivity, social support helps prevent against relapse," says Dr. King. But the support doesn't have to be constant. "A light touch can have a lasting effect," she says.
This study is good news for the millions of us who struggle to change one or more areas of our lives!
If we will make the one little change that this study supports--becoming accountable to a friend or sponsor for our sobriety, joining a small group of like-minded strugglers or sojourners, paying a counselor or coach or trainer to ask us specific questions on a regular basis, joining a gym where our attendance is recorded and a chart is kept, or attending a weekly weigh-in center—we have a much greater chance of seeing big results in one or more areas of our lives!
Why not ask someone today to be on your “change” team?
Be encouraged,
Becky
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