Weight Loss Winformation

You know from past experiences of losing weight, that no one else could do the work it took to get those pounds off. YOU were the one who drank two protein shakes every day, who got up and went to the gym at the crack of dawn, who ate nothing but cabbage soup for a week, or who restricted themselves from even a single gram of a simple carb. And the minute you stopped the behavior that led to the w...

How do you know if you’re behaving like a “healthy emotional adult?” We all probably think we behave like we’re mature adults and in many cases, we do! However, if we feel an internal sense of shame or feel we have low self-esteem, it’s likely that knowingly or unknowingly, we engage in defensive, or emotionally protective ways in our interactions with others. In the last few podcasts, we discusse...

I often talk about communication as being the easiest, most difficult thing we do. Most of us talk a lot throughout the day. Yet so many of us failed to learn how to communicate in healthy ways. Why? Because not many of our parents/caretakers knew how to communicate using healthy communication skills. Too often, we have learned to use passive communication or aggressive techniques or a passive-agg...

For the past several weeks we’ve been talking about difficult things that happen to kids that damage their sense of self-worth. If the childhood issues are significant or take place over a significant amount of time, the results affect the person’s self-esteem into their adult lives. In order to help heal from low self-esteem (regardless of where it originated), which we have been talking about in...

Please listen with an open heart and an open mind to Part 2 of the research presented by a group of weight loss doctors who conducted research over many years with thousands of people who suffer from obesity.  The research clearly indicates that Physicians and weight loss programs, which focus primarily on changing a person’s diet and are missing the fact that scores of people with obesity have hi...

Obesity is a bio-psycho-social disease. This means that a person who has obesity suffers physically, emotionally and socially. It also means obesity is a result of biological, psychological and social factors. This is a special, two-part episode of the podcast because it contains critical information provided by a group of weight loss physicians who studied the backgrounds of thousands of patients...

Dana Rosser and her husband, Dr. Butch Rosser talk about their journey through Dr. Butch’s decision to have bariatric surgery. Dana shares her lack of knowledge and her fears about the surgery. She also shares her emotions related to his obesity and his decision to have bariatric surgery. Dr. Butch discusses his reasons for choosing the procedure he opted for. He explains the benefits of both the...

I like the analogy used by author John Friel that people are born into the world like a full cup. We’re born full of self-love, love for others, positive self-worth, and a good dose of healthy self-esteem. Over time, as life happens, some of that great self-acceptance gets dumped out. How? And by whom? Well… it gets dumped out in lots of way and by lots of different people. Being teased or bullied...

We’ve talked about habits in recent podcasts, how to develop healthy habits and extinguish unhealthy habits. Being able to lose weight and maintain that weight loss requires both … developing good habits and ditching those habits that do not help you. Habits, are, in fact, one of the reasons people regain weight. I’m often told, “I regained weight because I went back to the old habits.” That’s a f...

Here’s a couple of fun facts for you. In 2013, the American Medical Association recognized obesity as a chronic disease. That’s not very long ago… especially when you consider that it was way back in 1956 when the American Medical Association recognized addiction as a chronic disease... at least addiction to alcohol. Increasingly, as more and more research is conducted on the addictive potential o...

Eating in response to feelings of frustration, loneliness, sadness, fear, or boredom – or emotional eating - is an unhealthy habit in which far too many of us engage. Maintaining weight loss isn’t easy to begin with, but if you regularly engage in mindless, emotional eating, regain will be an inevitability. When we engage in emotional eating, we are unlikely to be making a mad dash to the produce...

Getting rid of unhealthy habits requires mindful effort. Surprise! Just like developing healthy new habits, when we work on letting go of negative habits, we have to focus on doing so! This requires mindful effort. It takes work! As does most everything we work for in life. Going to work to get money requires effort. Having a healthy relationship requires conscious effort. When working on developi...

Navigating Social Outings and Travel. Going to sporting events, concerts, the theater can be difficult for those who suffer from the disease of obesity. As can attending dinner at a restaurant, going to the doctor’s office and attending children’s school performances. Mobility issues are always a concern when traveling for those who carry extra weight. Dana shares great tips for loved ones who ass...

Most of our daily routine is made of up habits we established throughout our lives. Some of our habits help us and others get in the way of our health and happiness. Some habits, either good or bad, we learned through observation by the people most prominent in our young lives. Other habits, or consistent behaviors in which we engage without really thinking about them, we learned along our journey...

In order to maintain weight loss, a person has to develop and engage in healthy lifestyle habits. As I thought about this, knowing that habit formation requires pairing a cue, or trigger or situation with a behavior I started thinking of “pairing” my ear buds with my phone… which can be frustrating! Sometimes I get the message that the earbuds and phone are connected, or paired - and then immediat...

I hear it almost every day, “Dr. Stapleton. It’s hard! This whole weight thing is so difficult!” I agree. Weight loss and maintaining a healthy weight are very difficult things for many people. What makes it so hard? In today’s talk, I discuss the difference between behaviors that are objectively difficult versus subjectively difficult. It’s often the case that we say things are “hard” or “difficu...

Humans… we love to find something or someone to fault – usually when things are going the way we would like them to. If I’m arguing with my husband, I want to blame him, whether or not he started the argument. It’s easier and definitely more emotionally comfortable to point the finger at him than to look at what part I play in the situation! The same can be true regarding diseases… we want to find...

Motivation seems hard to come by at times. When people regain weight, they often talk about lacking motivation and not knowing how to ignite more motivation. Well, here’s the reality (which you may translate as not such great news): motivation will never, ever descend upon you from the heavens or the universe. Motivation can, however, and this is good news, be corralled, harnessed, or created. Wha...

Sometimes the family members and good friends of persons suffering from obesity feel very alone with their thoughts and feelings. They may be afraid to share some of their innermost thoughts and feelings for fear of what others may think and because they feel conflicted themselves about what they are thinking and feeling. Dana shares how she experienced love for her husband (who suffers from the d...

What motivates you to continue doing what it takes to maintain your healthy lifestyle after losing weight? And what does the title of today’s episode, “When the Lights Go Down in the Stadium” have to do with maintaining weight loss? Listen as I present an introduction to the topic of motivation and how some people relish the attention they receive as they lose weight. While not everyone enjoys bei...

Many times, when people working to maintain their weight loss hear exactly what is required to do so (you know… eat breakfast, get enough sleep, exercise… those sorts of things), they start in with the “Yeah, but’s…”. “Yeah, but I’ve never been a breakfast eater.” “Yeah, but, I like to stay up really late at night and I still have to get up early for work.” “Yeah, but I really, really hate to exer...

You have done some pretty incredible things in your life that have required consistent effort. In fact, you do things every single day of your life that require a great deal of effort! So what’s up with the idea some people have that they “can’t” keep up the effort to maintain a healthy lifestyle or that it’s “too hard?” You put forth effort to complete high school or college and that took a lot o...

In this episode, you’ll hear a compassionate approach to acknowledging the malarky or  “shenanigans” we let ourselves get away with. You’ll also experience a gentle verbal kick in the rear to remind you that every choice we make has corresponding consequences, good or not-so-good. A healthy parent who reminds their child that homework is a priority over video games, forgetting to take your gear to...

We all want to have a winning hand in life. Use these 4 ACES to make your weight loss journey one of lifelong winning. The 4 ACES are tools to use on a daily basis to keep your head in the game! You’re in it to win it! The 4 ACES stand for winning words; words that, when used as active, healthy coping skills will help you live your healthy lifestyle in all areas of your life! Awareness, Acceptance...

Talking to your loved ones about weight concerns: DO's and DON'Ts! Listen as Dana shares her wisdom about the healthiest ways to share your thoughts and feelings with loved ones who struggle with the disease of obesity. Dana and her husband have been partners in the journey of dealing with the disease of obesity in their immediate family. You and your loved ones will relate as Dana expre...