Fat Window Cleaners - Read This!

Obesity squashes enjoyment of life, say some formerly fat local folks: Numerous scientific studies detail the health risks of being overweight, such as increased risk of diabetes, heart disease, osteoarthritis and certain types of cancer. But less academic attention was given to quality-of-life issues for the obese until September, when a large-scale study came out in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine showing that quality-of-life years lost to obesity had increased over a 15-year period.

The 1993 to 2008 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System queried about 3.5 million adults over 15 years about quality-of-life issues such as poor-health days and social and psychological issues. The study was conducted by researchers from Columbia University and City College of New York. “It doesn’t talk about how you’ll die with something sooner, but how you’re living with something,” explained one of the authors of the study, Dr. Erica Lubetkin.

Lubetkin, a physician with a master’s degree in public health who works at City College, conducted the study with Dr. Haomiao Jia, assistant professor of clinical biostatistics at Columbia University. The research shows that the percentage of obese adults from all 50 states and the District of Columbia rose from 14.1 percent to 26.7 percent, an increase of 89.9 percent, over the 15-year study. The National Institutes of Health defines an obese person as someone whose body mass index is 30 percent or more. A body mass index uses height and weight to indirectly calculate the percentage of body fat for most people. Obese people lost 51.7 days of healthy life in 1993, compared with nonobese people. In 2008, obese people lost 64 days of healthy life, according to the study.

As medical director of the California Health & Longevity Institute in Westlake Village, Dr. Terry Schaack says he sees weight interfere with quality of life in his clients in two different ways: self-consciousness about appearance and real, practical obstacles to everyday living. “They’re continually worried about their looks, about choosing what kind of clothes won’t make them look fat,” he said. “It permeates all of their lives and it’s very, very real.” “I would avoid parties and outings,” Kitchen said of her life 53 pounds ago. “I didn’t want anyone to see me. I would wonder, ‘What am I going to wear?’ or ‘I’m just going to eat.’ ”

For morbidly obese people — those with more than 40 percent body fat — there is shame, and a world that seems too tight. “These people have trouble finding any clothes that fit them,” Schaack said. “These are the people that have to buy two seats on an airline, or get extensions on seat belts. Many have to have a car seat unbolted and moved back so they can fit behind the steering wheel. Then, there’s the turnstile issue.”

Brian Williams (before & after, above), 40, of Camarillo, reached the tipping point when he had to go up a pant size to a 4X. “It was real aggravating,” said Williams, who lost 113 pounds on the Weight Watchers plan. “I couldn’t shop at Target anymore.” He couldn’t sit in his car without pressing against the steering wheel. Tying his shoes was a chore. At6 feet 3 inches and 370 pounds, his job as a window cleaner was more difficult, too. “It made it a lot tougher climbing ladders. It made me scared going on a lot of different roofs,” he said. “I didn’t want to crack the tiles.”

New year, new you: staying motivated in 2011: The prospect of making New Year’s resolutions can be quite daunting. You know from past experience how likely you are to break them. But for many people, planning exactly how they’ll put resolutions into action improves their odds for success. Try the following tips for some common resolutions to help you stay motivated all year long.

Dropping pounds … permanently:

• A low-carb, high-protein diet may be the most effective one for initial weight-loss efforts.
• But just about any diet can help you lose weight.
• It’s keeping off those pounds that poses the challenge.

A recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine concluded that weighing themselves daily helped adults maintain their weight loss.

Smoke-free forever:

• Quitting smoking cuts your risk for cancer, heart disease, stroke and infertility.
• But you’d better prepare for the most common withdrawal symptoms, such as irritability and restlessness.
• Feeling restless can linger until you find a replacement behavior.
• How about exercise?
• This quitting aid can brighten your mood and combat any resulting weight gain.

Staying in motion:

• It’s easy to keep that resolution to exercise when everything else in your life goes according to plan.
• But how can you stay active when your child is sick, when it rains or snows or when you go on vacation?
• Planning for such interruptions can help you stay focused and motivated during these times.
• For example, if the weather is bad, try a workout video, join a sports league or get a head start on some strenuous spring cleaning, such as window washing.
• While you are on vacation, stay at a hotel with a pool or fitness center.

“When starting an exercise program you should always check with your physician to make sure you are healthy enough for exercise,” said Dustin Del Rio, exercise physiologist with the MTMC Wellness Center. “Once cleared, meet with a registered dietician who can inform you about what you should and should not be eating to reach your goals, as well as an exercise physiologist to get you started on the right exercise routine for you,” Del Rio continued. “Talking with a fitness professional near you will save you from wasting time doing the wrong things, and get you started in the right direction.”