True Weight

I have been feeling uninspired and quite upset about my physical self. And naturally when you are upset about something, you always have two choices. You either (a) continue to be upset, blame someone or something and/or resort to the fact that nothing will ever change OR (b) you choose to take action and still strive make a difference (a little difference or a big difference is still a difference!)

So last Friday while at work, I had told Melissa over MSN chat that I had gained a substantial amount of weight and was feeling quite miserable about it. Also I was still feeling what had happened the night before during dance class. So Melissa shared with me how she lost 10kg in just one month. Now some of you might be thinking, "Not another diet!" but I got curious (and perhaps now feeling desperate... I wonder if my consultants actually read what I'm up to?). So she shared about the Dukan Diet. I asked her to share some reliable links with me so I could read up on it to make an informed decision and while in my reading, I find one of those sites which obviously can "guide" you through the whole process. It was the creator of the diet himself - Dr. Pierre Dukan.

I decided to take the quiz to find out what was my TRUE WEIGHT. After all, I have been brainwashed thanks to the BMI chart that my ideal weight is 65kg or better yet, the food plan which I had embarked on 2 years ago had said I am meant to weigh 60kg.

After a few clicks here and there... enter some information... my true weight is... *drum roll*...

75KG

Wow. Who ever knew that I was not that far off my so-called true weight. I have been 82.3kg, the lightest ever on this weight loss adventure and there I was obsessing about 70kg and below. And now I'm hovering around 95kg - so that makes me 20kg off the mark. If I had lost 30kg before, I'm sure I can do it again but I believe that I have to work even harder now...

So as sales pitches go, I get this (see below) in my email which I have decided to copy and paste for your reading pleasure while I still continue to investigate more about this Dukan Diet and what action would I like to take next.

What the Doctor Said...

You are 32 years old. You are a young woman and are already dealing with weight issues. [I have been dealing with weight issues all my life!] When calculating your True Weight, we add 2 pounds for every decade after the age of 18.

If we only refer to the traditional BMI, your BMI should be 35 . However, although the BMI is a good  tool, it takes only your weight and size into account. It doesn't look at your age, your gender, how easily you put on weight, how many diets you have tried, how heavy your bone structure is or your family history! So according to this broader index, your BMI should be between 22 and 24. It is precisely because most of my patients cannot relate to the BMI that I created the True Weight. [Whoever created the BMI needs to talk to this doctor...]                          
 

Do you know what your weight range is?
It is the difference between the most you have ever weighed and the least you have ever weighed throughout your life.

Yours is 38. I would venture to guess that your body has suffered  from such a wide weight range. Your ponderostat is likely distorted and your maximum weight has impacted your body's biological memory. One piece of advice, don't try and get back down to your previous weight. You won't be able to maintain it and your skin will lose its tone and glow. [I can live with this ]

As far as your family history is concerned, you are in an in-between situation, neither genetically predisposed to be overweight nor helped by your genetic background to lose weight.  You will have to work to see the results. [Yes, I had already established all my life I will need to work towards getting the results I am looking for.]                                 

Your bone structure is neither light nor heavy, it is in-between and therefore not a factor for calculating your True Weight. [Apparently I am of medium structure - when you take the quiz it will tell you how you will know.]

Do you realize that you have an advantage, a useful but delicate advantage that you are about to give it up?

For the time being you have only one tried one diet. After a second failed weight loss attempt, you will have lost this beginner's advantage as far as weight control is concerned and from the third diet onwards your body will start resisting weight loss, a real handicap that will force you to watch what you eat forever. [I already feel this...]

To maintain this advantage, avoid bad diets like the plague, especially diets which do not offer a weight loss maintenance component. At the risk of sounding immodest, I can honestly say that the method that I am offering you is currently the only method in the world with a genuine, concrete and structured program for consolidation and then weight stabilization. [Here's that sales pitch...]

                                                                    
And in my opinion this service is so vitally important that I have made it so that following it "FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE" is more or less free of charge. This service is your alert system, giving you warnings, a series of ever increasing counter attacks, information, tips for the long term;  we have thought of everything to prevent you from putting the weight back on and to take immediate action if this should ever occur. And this is meant in particular for all those people who like you have not yet got drawn into constantly following diets where the battle is lost before it's even started.