I gave up playing football when I was 33 years-old. Thinking back that was too early by a long way, but I was newly wed, had a child on the way and was not really liking it as much as previously.

At that time I was a somewhat lithe 172 lbs, but on my way to middle-age I managed to plump-up to around 287 lbs; a rise of more than 100 lbs in a tad over a decade.

What caused the weight gain? My eating habits for one thing, I adored chocolate and junk food and was somewhat unrestrained in my appetite. Add to that the fact that my career choice caused me to have a very static lifestyle – that’s right, sitting on my backside – and another element was that I am in excess of six feet high and decidely muscular, so I never really appeared all that heavy. At least not to my mind.

That said, by my mid-forties I was certainly not very mobile; struggling to extricate myself from chairs without an effort and happy to watch my slender and limber spouse lean forward and pick things up for me here and there. I well understood that I was clinically obese and that it was a difficulty that I needed to try to put right.

At that time I had an acquaintance who was something of a guru for a well known weight loss company and he prompted me to try their online system to count food intake. It wasn’t long before I too was a convert, I lost 30 pounds very quickly and couldn’t see why people found weight loss difficult.

That is, I didn’t before the diet plan got short-circuited by a touch of gastroenteritis. I lost 5lbs in about three days because I couldn’t consume food and when I got healthy again I decided that I could be allowed a fews days feasting to make up for the rapid reduction in weight. That was the death knell for that diet plan.

Thereafter it was at least a couple of years before I could gather the enthusiasm to try once more. After I did the end result was almost identical; good weight loss, followed by a a crash. The same thing happened two more times, before I realized that I needed to look at my tactics.

That is why I starting reading books by reknowned nutritionists (Patrick Holford being a favourite); people who actually read the research papers that come out of top universities and otherwise immerse themselves in the biological details of the human body and mind.

I learned an awful lot about the junk that I was consuming and how our bodies use them. I finally grasped a fuller knowledge of the many sugars and which carbohydrates release sugars the quickest and how that correlates to blood sugar increases and the resultant blood sugar dips.

By altering my food intake fairly substantially I quickly began to learn to control my blood sugar better, which reduced the cravings that I frequently had for sweet foods. The occasions when I would suffer glycemic overload became less frequent, the foods that I chose gained a more sustainable nutritional content and with some exercise added my weight has dropped away.

And the moral of this tale is as follows. The food industry is adding sugar to virtually everything that arrives in a packet these days and if it’s carbonized and comes in a can they are including quite a bit more.

Our governments are without funds and not interested, apparently, to set the food industry to rights. Were they to do so they would probably be obliged to take on big pharmaceutical companies and the agricultural mob as well. So it will not happen.

If weight is a problem for you, what you really should to do is shoulder the responsibility, like I did. Put some time aside to read-up. Write notes and persevere. I know it’s a drag and probably not your heart’s desire, but believe me, it’s interesting and you will be very glad of it in the long term.

This article gives pertinent information about Dukan Diet and its side-effects

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Pierre Dukan, a French doctor and nutritionist, challenged with the case of obesity started to look for alternative ways in curing the illness. After 20 years of thorough research he published in the year 2000, a book called, “Je ne sais pas maigrir” or translated as, “I don’t know how to get slimmer.” It gained the best-seller in France after a year it has been published.
It was made a hit in UK when Kate Middleton, now the duchess of Cambridge, tried the Dukan Diet before her marriage to the beloved Prince William, she reportedly claimed a loss of two dress sizes. It also allegedly claimed to help five million French. The book is also gaining fame in the US in the year 2011 when actress/singer, Jennifer Lopez, lost pounds after her pregnancy by following this diet.
Dukan Diet: What is it? How does this work?
Dukan Diet is similar to the famous Atkins diet. Atkins and Dukan are much alike in terms of non-intake of carbs initially and do not require portion control or counting calorie consumptions. In Atkins, it requires net carbohydrate intakes and unlike Dukan, it suggests a daily intake of oats, increase water consumption and 20 minutes of everyday brisk walking. Dukan Diet adopts four phases namely: Attack, Cruise, Consolidation and Stabilization.
Four Phases of the Dukan Diet
Attack: In this starter phase, the dieter is only allowed take protein rich foods that are exquisitely low in fat. Dr. Dukan provided 72-item list of foods to be eaten, it excludes pork, lamb, poultry products and cheeses. Food should always be cooked but without adding any fat to it, it best to cook in grilling or roasting. It also requires you to eat 1 ½ tbsp. oat bran & 1.5 liters of water per day. This phase should be followed around 2-7 days or more. Results from this initial phase within 5 days may result in 4-7 lbs. loss. This phase promotes quick loss of weight since it is strictly based on a protein-only diet.
Cruise: Cruise, the second to the fourth phase of the Dukan diet scheme. During this phase dieters who were only allowed to eat protein-only foods can now alternate a 28-items of non-starchy vegetables. They may take attack phase diet for today and take non-starchy veggie diet for tomorrow, and so this phase must go on by alternating these two types of diet each day. This phase may last long enough as much as you want by reaching your desired weight and assuring 2 pounds per week loss.
Consolidation: As one achieves the desired weight, one has to go the next phase called Consolidation, this is the maintenance phase of this diet scheme where you have to prevent putting back excess pounds. The plan in this phase is less strict compared to the first two phases. During this phase you are permitted to eat protein-only and veggie diet along with a piece of low-sugar fruit, 2 slices of whole grain bread and a portion of hard cheese. In this phase you are allowed to have 1-2 serving of starchy foods and one celebration meal per week. The phase of consolidation does not expect to loss off pounds but rather it is steadily the maintenance process.
Stabilization: Stabilization is the final phase and a life-long phase of the diet scheme. In here maintenance of the life-changing diet may be a challenging and tempting. During this portion of the scheme, one is already permitted to allow any food intake that a person wants and by also sticking to the diet rule in the consolidation phase. As Pierre Dukan suggest, that staying on the phase 1 rule once a week and eat whatever you like for the rest of the week lowers the chances of regaining weight.
Pros and Cons of Dukan Diet
Pros: The fast results of this diet scheme is beneficially rewarding and motivating. It allows you to have protein and veggie meal plan diets and does not require you to count off your calorie intakes.
Cons: It is highly restrictive and can exclude healthy foods. Dieters can experience side-effects such as symptoms of headaches, nausea, lethargy, irritable and loss of concentration. Dieters may acquire halitosis (bad breath), metallic tasting mouth and strong smell in their urines. For those people who have problems with their kidneys and liver are not advised to follow this diet plan. It is not also recommended for pregnant and nursing mothers.

Views and Opinions by Health Experts on the Dukan Diet
There are lots of critics in this diet plan. Due to the restrictive type scheme of this diet, some fruits, grains and nuts which are healthy and have high amounts of vitamins and minerals that are vital to the nutrition of the body are eliminated. Keri Gans of American Dietetic Association, said that the lost amount of multivitamins that should be acquired from those restricted foods are not compensated in the Dukan diet. Experts have also criticized that experiencing such side-effects may not be healthy at all.

The Biopsychosocial Model of Obesity
The biopsychosocial model presents a holistic approach to understanding obesity by considering three primary factors that contribute to weight gain: biological, psychological, and societal influences.

Biological Factors
Biological reasons for weight gain include a sedentary lifestyle, genetic predisposition, and the state of one’s energy metabolism. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), only 23% of Americans get enough exercise, contributing to the obesity epidemic. Moreover, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) acknowledges that genetics can play a significant role in an individual’s susceptibility to weight gain.

Psychological Factors
Psychological dependencies on food often manifest as emotional eating, where individuals use food to cope with negative emotions, akin to the use of alcohol or nicotine. Stress-induced eating is another psychological trigger, where overeating serves as a temporary escape from reality rather than addressing the underlying issues. The American Psychological Association (APA) reports that 38% of adults say they have overeaten or eaten unhealthy foods in the past month because of stress.

Societal Influences
Societal pressures also play a role, as food is frequently used to facilitate social interactions with family, friends, and colleagues. The normalization of overeating during social events can contribute to weight gain.

The Metabolic Misconception
There’s a common belief that metabolism is the primary culprit in weight gain, leading to a market flooded with products claiming to boost metabolic rates. However, this focus on metabolism often overlooks the psychological components of obesity. The truth is, while metabolism does affect energy balance, it’s not the sole factor in weight management.

The Psychological Path to Weight Loss
The secret to effective weight loss lies in addressing the psychological aspects. Psychotherapy can be a powerful tool in treating obesity if the root causes are psychological. By understanding and managing emotional eating and stress responses, individuals can achieve a healthier relationship with food and a more balanced lifestyle.

Conclusion
Weight loss is a complex journey that involves much more than just physical changes. By recognizing the biopsychosocial factors at play and focusing on the psychological elements, individuals can work towards sustainable weight management. It’s essential to consider all aspects of health—physical, mental, and social—to truly transform one’s lifestyle and maintain a healthy weight in the long term.