Strong self-motivation needed to get successful in diet

Maria Endah Hulupi The Jakarta Post Jakarta

Getting into "ideal shape" has always been an obsession for women around the world. But many women end up frustrated to find themselves far from their ideal after trying all kinds of weight loss and diet programs.

For Indah Sita Nursanti, a 28-year-old member of pop trio Rida Sita Dewi (RSD), this frustration became a part of her life. Until one day she finally realized that what she needed was a healthy and sustainable weight loss program.

"I was overweight since I was a child. I visited a nutritionist because I finally realized that being obese would expose me to genetic diseases that run in my family. My father died at a relatively young age, 42, from a heart attack. My mother suffers hypertension and diabetes, illnesses that are often found in obese people," Sita said during a recent Lose Weight Gain Life campaign hosted by PT Roche Indonesia.

Sita said she used to get sick easy, not to mention how the extra weight affected her physical appearance.

"Back then I thought losing weight was impossible. But when my weight reached 90 kilograms, I began to gain the motivation to lose some weight," she said.

This determination encouraged Sita to start her own diet program earlier this year. She controlled her own diet and exercised regularly, including jogging for 40 minutes every day and playing squash several times a week. Within six months, she had lost 11 kilograms.

"But then, I became frustrated because my weight was stagnant. Then I decided to join a weight management program, in which I was able to lose another 11 kilograms in three months. Now I feel great," she said, referring to the weight management program from PT Roche Indonesia.

Indonesia is dealing with an epidemic of obese and overweight people. Data from 1997 showed that about 35 million people were overweight and about 9.4 million obese. Worse, these trends were increasing.

A survey carried out by Insight earlier this year showed that most people were uninformed about the possible health problems related to obesity. The survey found that 50 percent of respondents were unaware of the potential problems caused by obesity and 63 percent did not know that obesity was a health problem.

A nutritionist at St. Borromeus Hospital in Bandung, Johanes Chandrawinata, explained that excess body fat, especially fat deposits in the stomach area, increased the risk of heart problems and could trigger metabolic syndrome. The latter, he said, affects the function of insulin thus increasing the risk of diabetes. It can also lead to hypertension and increased cholesterol levels.

Warning of the possible health hazards of some instant weight loss programs, Johanes said a healthy and sustainable weight loss program had four components: A balanced diet so the body is not deprived of the nutrients it needs, regular exercise to burn calories, positive behavioral changes and the proper use of medications as prescribed by dietitians.

Unlike men, he added, women are more prone to become overweight because they have higher levels of body fat and less muscle than men.

As was the case with Sita, stagnant weight is one of the most common obstacles faced by many dieters.

Johanes explained that this stagnation occurs because the body thinks it is enduring a period of starvation, prompting it to maintain balance and its current weight by slowing down its metabolic rate.

If this condition continues for a period of time, he said, it will frustrate dieters and encourage them to return to their old eating habits, prompting weight gains and a return to pre-diet weight. This is what is commonly called the yo-yo effect.

"It is actually a normal phase in a weight loss program. But when it occurs, dieters are advised to continue their healthy diet and exercise," he said.

Dietitians, Johanes added, may prescribe diet drugs like Xenical to support a program. This drug helps hamper the absorption of about 30 percent of the fat in consumed food.

But instead of relying on drugs, the key to successful weight loss is strong self-motivation.

"Of course support from relatives and friends will surely help dieters endure the most difficult parts of the program," Johanes said.

Women are said to be more aware of their body shape, especially when it comes to gaining weight.

"This is the reason they are considered ideal targets for weight loss programs, since they also have the tendency to encourage their overweight partners or friends to adopt the necessary changes," he said.

And those dieters who fail to keep to their regimes have their own tricks. Not a few of them try to cheer themselves up and find consolation in adages like "big is beautiful".

"This kind of saying can be misleading because obesity is more like a time bomb, and they don't realize what it (obesity) can expose them to," Johanes warned.