What the Biggest Loser Report Misses about Weight Loss

June 22, 2016 by Scott "Q" Marcus

Since I’m thought of as “That Weight Loss Guy” (or so I’ve been referred to when people realize I’m the person who writes this column), it would seem appropriate that I follow the TV series most appurtenant to dieting: The Biggest Loser.

It might seem that way; but that’s not the case.

I’ve seen one half of one episode and that was enough for me.

First of all, it focuses too much on how fast one can lose weight rather than how long one can sustain a healthy lifestyle; the antithesis of my philosophy. Secondly, one of the trainers was browbeating a contestant to get her to make the necessary changes. I believe firmly that if guilt and shame were motivational, no one would be overweight. It doesn’t work. It never will. And, it’s just ugly to watch. Finally, me watching a show on weight loss is unnecessary. I live it 24/7. I can see my own program right in the mirror.

Having placed all that on the table, I’ve been approached several times by folks curious of my opinion about the study in the journal Obesity (and then reported by media) showcasing what has happened to contestants on that show. In case you haven’t heard, let me briefly recap.

The media’s main takeaways were that weight loss leads to permanent metabolic damage; and also that no one can maintain it long term.

These conclusions are based in large part on the fact that that the contestants’ resting metabolic rate (RMR) – which is how many calories your body needs per day to function – dropped while losing weight and never came back up when they put the weight back on. As for weight loss being futile, that hypothesis came to be because the average contestant lost about 125 pounds, and has so far regained about 90.

At first blush, it does seem alarming. But before you sell your treadmill and throw yourself into a box of donuts, consider these:

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Asking the Right Questions for a Healthier Life

November 17, 2015 by Scott "Q" Marcus Leave a Comment

I love thought puzzles.

One might describe them as the verbal version of an M.C. Escher painting; they seem to make sense at first blush but something is not quite right.

Play with this one:

Statement #1: Statement #2 is true.

Statement #2: Statement #1 is false.

Try and figure it out. It messes with your brain, doesn’t it?

Not quite the same, but again requiring some thought, let me put forth a theory.

Do you agree that when asked a question, you have no choice but to answer it?

See what I did there. I queried and you answered, proving the theory no matter what you said. Quite likely, you didn’t answer out loud, but at the minimum your inner voice responded and demonstrated I was correct, right? (Gotcha again!) If you replied, “Yes” to the initial question, you obviously agree with the premise. Conversely, even if your response was, “No, that’s a stupid, lame idea,” it still substantiated the hypothesis because you answered the question. The only way that the notion could be proven wrong was if you blanked out after reading the question – which is obviously not the case or you wouldn’t be still reading. See, no matter how we dissect it, it rings true.

That’s because we are “hard wired” to answer questions; there is no “free will” in this venue.

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Is “Combo Pilling” for Weight Loss a Good Idea?

March 9, 2011 by Scott "Q" Marcus

While watching the news this morning, I was alerted to the practice of “combo-pilling,” taking supposedly unrelated medications together to produce more powerful results toward a desired outcome. Combo-pilling diet drugs went mainstream in the 1980s, with the pairing of phentermine and fenfluramine (later known as “fen-phen”). This pairing, as well as a commercial related version, was heralded as the first effective weight loss drug treatment. Later, when it was discovered that the commercial drug was associated with potentially fatal pulmonary hypertension and heart-valve problems, it was withdrawn from the market and the manufacturer was sued to the tune of more than ten billion dollars.

Combo-pilling remains, in part because single diet drugs have not yielded the results many seek. After sibutramine (Meridia) was removed from market late last year, the only FDA-approved drug for treating obesity for more than a few weeks is orlistat. However, if dieters eat fat-heavy meals, the results are some less-than-pleasant side effects (oily stains on one’s underwear, being one).

So combo-pilling continues.

Of late, the blend of Topomax, an anticonvulsant approved for the treatment of epilepsy and migraines; and phentermine, the above referenced appetite suppressant, are making their way into the collective dieters’ consciousness. It appears that Topomax effectively “shuts off” the desire to eat. When combined with phentermine, the results can be downright staggering. I monitored some on-line discussion groups and found it not uncommon for participants to claim weight losses of four or five pounds a week for extended periods. (A healthy sustainable weight loss is considered to be one to two pounds per week.)

[Read more…]

What the Biggest Loser Report Misses about Weight Loss

Since I’m thought of as “That Weight Loss Guy” (or so I’ve been referred to when people realize I’m the person who writes this column), it would seem appropriate that I follow the TV series most appurtenant to dieting: The Biggest Loser.

I’ve seen one half of one episode and that was enough for me.

The media’s main takeaways were that weight loss leads to permanent metabolic damage; and also that no one can maintain it long term.

At first blush, it does seem alarming. But before you sell your treadmill and throw yourself into a box of donuts, consider these:

Asking the Right Questions for a Healthier Life

I love thought puzzles.

That’s because we are “hard wired” to answer questions; there is no “free will” in this venue.

Is “Combo Pilling” for Weight Loss a Good Idea?

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