[mandalinn82]

...or it might inspire them to work as hard as they can to beat the odds.

That what the "you'll probably gain it back" has done to me, in maintenance...made me very aware that the odds are against me and very inspired to not allow it to stop me.

All perspective, I guess.

[Horo]

I can see how that can help some people, with the 'beat the odds' mindset... but IMHO, that's not a good thing to say to someone who is very overweight and aspiring to lose it. While it could help some people(the stronger, more battle-ready type), another mindset is "Oh, I'm in the likes to fail, so why should I even bother?"

Enough is tearing down these people already... I'm not saying that everything should be sugar-coated in articles like these, I just think that statements like "you're probably never going to lose it after x point" should have no place in them either. That's just my opinion, anyway.

~Rina

[gailr42]

I guess I think the six month thing is just another statistic. I need to feel that the odds are not against me. That is why the stories about sucessful folks help me so much. If I dwell on the odds of failure too much, I will get discouraged. I get it that one can be inspired by adversity, but that is probably not me. Like Amanda said, it is a matter of perspective.

[JayEll]

On a personal note, I just spent 6 months struggling, struggling, and being unable to drop. And now, in the last 4 weeks, I'm down 6 pounds. I really don't know why... I did the same things I've been doing... But something just clicked.

Statistics mean nothing! Every individual is different--and there is always a way! I mean, statistics said that Big Brown would win the Belmont Stakes... And a 38-to-1 shot won the race.

That's why there is more to life than averages, statistics, success rates, and so on!

Go team!

Jay

[pinkcarnation]

I'm fairly new to all of this so I read things in this article that were new to me. Thanks. But I was left confused by the following:

"If exercise is part of your weight-loss plan, what's the best type to do?
Aerobic activity is far and away the best, for one simple reason: You burn more calories."

That is contrary to what I've read. Specifically, the 1991 study by Wayne Westcott which compared fat loss of aerobic exercisers vs. weight training/aerobics exercisers. His publicized results showed three times the fat loss with the weights/aerobics combination exercisers. (Source: Firm for Life by Anna & Cynthia Benson) Did someone disprove him later? I googled Westcott and saw he still has books, interviews, and articles out there.

I find this world of weight loss confusing, which is another reason I'm so grateful I found this forum. It is great to have a place to ask questions.