We know from what we read and see on the television that we have a growing obesity problem. This causes great discomfort and higher mortality in those who suffer due to being overweight.  

It is also noticeable that the highest rates of obesity are in the rich western industrialised countries. You are unlikely to see a programme on growing obesity in Tanzania or Malawi anytime soon.

So we’re in this situation because we have the money to be able to do it. It is not a national thing either. How many fat people were there in Britain in the late 40s when there was still rationing ? Not many I guess. No, we’re fat because we’re rich and we can afford to indulge ourselves, and we’re used to having what we want NOW. Perhaps we’re more interested in short-term gratification than our long-term best interests.

How much money is made by the diet industry in helping us cure our addiction ? Loads, not a very scientific answer admittedly, but loads. And the worse thing about these is that they all seem to offer a magic bullet to help weight loss, and worse than that they seem to be subject to fashion trends. How awful is that? We’ve seen many over the years in the UK : the GI diet, the Cambridge diet, the Atkins diet, the F-plan diet and so on. If these are good diets why do we not hear about them now? They should be working and the success stories should be in our consciousness. In fairness to the sellers of these diets I am sure they are all sound, scientifically researched products that do work. However people give up on the basis that they’re a bit too much like hard work, and off we go again, rushing off to the next person promising to turn you into a figure like Claudia Schiffer or Elle Macpherson.

Having spoken to many people and made observations over the years it seems there are no magic bullets, no easy ways to lose weight, certainly not any that don’t involve some self-discipline and taking personal responsibility. So it’s down to 3 things then ;

Reducing food intake

Working on the basis that we eat too much because we can afford to, means we have to simply reduce the amount we eat – a little. Not suggesting we go hungry, but we can start by taking a little less. 3 proper meals a day ought to cover it.

Taking more exercise

Perhaps this is key, and the most significant of the 3 ? What do you think ? In our quest for packing as much into our day as possible, we jump into our cars and drive. There are times when we could leave our cars, and walk, or park further out of town and walk the rest of the way, or walk to work if that is practical. As with all types of exercise it is about building up consistency. Not necessarily walking 50 miles once a week.  

Taking up some form of sport or regular exercise can be fantastically rewarding, and for more reasons than what it does for you physically. It can be great for your mental health, and work life balance, but there is a separate article on this.

Signing on at the gym, taking up badminton, or regular swimming – it is important to find something that you can enjoy, and other human beings you can share your pastime with.

And make the kids walk too. Kids are designed to burn off amazing amounts of energy – that’s what they’re meant for ! If you want proof, just take any child under the age of 12 to any kids playground and watch how much they run about. A lesson I learnt along time ago with a 2 year old on holiday in Scotland is that they tend to play up far less and are far easier to manage if they exert themselves during the day. Keep them cooped up all day and it becomes hard work.

Cutting out bad eating habits

A key element of weight loss is cutting out bad eating habits. Of the 3 things detailed here, this is my personal weakness – sitting in front of the TV late evening eating peanuts. Great, very satisfying but yeah – probably not a good habit.

I run training sessions for groups of people in communications skills, customer service and telephone selling. It is interesting to watch people head off to the vending machine at morning break time for Kit Kat, crisps and the like. You can then overhear conversations that typically feature comments about being starving and not having time for breakfast.

A new habit of getting up 10 minutes earlier should sort that one out. I used to know someone who battled weight problems who used to forego breakfast because he used to get up at silly o’clock in the morning in order to go to work. He then didn’t have any lunch, because ‘I’m just too busy, and don’t get the time’ and then ate large in the evening – not long before he went to bed early in order to repeat the cycle the following day.

For us to sustain a good weight and level of fitness, it requires developing good habits and exercising self-discipline and taking personal responsibility. The rewards are there to be had without spending a fortune on expensive diet programmes, but like anything we want to be good at in life it requires a bit of dedication. There is no magic bullet, but it can be done. It is within us.

Andrew Seaward is a UK based trainer who works with organisations to help them improve customer relationships over the telephone.

Mostly his work is with telesales, telemarketing and customer service personnel and he runs training courses both onsite and at open course venues.