PUBLIC FLOGGINGS FOR BEING FAT!

It appears that we have travelled back in time to the medieval era when everyone loved a good public fogging. Back to a time when humiliation and shame wetted the appetite and watching other people suffer was a regular and entertaining occurrence. The difference is that the public floggings in this day and age are of people whose only crime is that they are fat!

Watching the ever-increasing number of television programmes that deal with weight loss and obesity, highlights to me the cruelty of man towards fellow man. Promoting the fear of food forms the basis of many of these programmes as they dish out copious amounts of 'Not Good Enough' messages.

The participants of these programmes are reprimanded, denigrated and shamed in public for their lack of will power in the food they eat! When has shame and humiliation ever created permanent change in people? Even the programmes that deal with parenting highlight forcefully that children respond and learn best from praise and love. Adults are no different in this respect.

After almost half a century of a dieting culture we have still not woken up to the fact that as a solution to weight gain and obesity dieting, for most people, actually serves to increase weight. It is the dieting mindset with its constant messages of 'Not Good Enough' that hooks so many people into its obsession.

The way it works is like this...

Fear of not fitting in and being accepted leads people into dieting. The body's 'Set Point' (the weight it was genetically determined to be) is thrown into confusion when faced with dieting. It responds by aiding the body to retain more fat than ever before, in order to survive another 'famine'. The body cannot distinguish between a real famine or a self induced one, hence the 10% plus weight gain over the original weight when dieting is stopped.

The labelling of some foods as bad creates a 'Scarcity' mindset. This inevitably leads to cravings and overeating. These are both natural reactions when anything is made scarce and restricted. The vicious circle of dieting and failure to lose weight permanently, leads to the increase of 'Not Good Enough' beliefs. All this adds up to a return to the habits of comfort eating in order to deaden the pain and stress of the 'Not Good Enough' beliefs!

The alternative is a new mindset that focuses on self-love; building a person's self esteem, enhancing their ability to accept and love themselves. By taking the focus away from food and onto living life and loving themselves, people quickly learn how to eat a healthy balanced diet.

Support and motivation is the key. After all, we know the consequences of an overdose of 'Not Good Enough' messages (from self or others) - the inevitable comfort eating! This is just a quick fix of comfort, transient in its relief of our negative emotions. The one thing it is NOT is self-loving.

It is time to wake up to the fact that many people with weight and food issues have massive stores of 'Not Good Enough' beliefs. These, when reinforced by the dieting game, may bring about short-term weight loss but inevitably lead to yet more weight gain. And what happens when the dieting falls apart? The reinforcement of their belief that they are still 'Not Good Enough' and the craving for the comfort of food raises its ugly head again.

Isn't it time to replace all the shame and guilt? A new self-loving mindset is needed if we are to stem the tide of obesity. It's time to take the focus off food and onto loving and caring actions. Taking a leaf out of the parenting books and practicing positive messages that reinforce the fact that every one of us is born uniquely wonderful. Achieving permanent weight loss is then underpinned by a solid positive foundation of 'Good Enough' beliefs.