You are morbidly obese if your body mass index is greater than 40, or you're more than 100 pounds overweight. About 5.7 percent of the U.S. population has a 40 or higher BMI, but some subgroups have a much higher morbidly obese population. For example, close to 18 percent of women ages 40 to 59 are morbidly obese, and more than 8 percent of men older than age 60 are. While bariatric surgery is often a good choice for those who are morbidly obese, many people have lost significant amounts of weight by changing their eating patterns and becoming more active.
Know Your Stats
Assess your health and chart your way forward. Calculate your BMI, and take your waist measurements. BMI can be calculated online at the Centers for Disease Control's website, or you can use one of these formulas: weight in kg divided by height in meters squared, or weight in pounds divided by height in inches squared multiplied by 703. If you're a woman whose waist measurement is greater than 35, or if you're a man whose measurement is greater than 40, you're at risk of developing metabolic syndrome, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Use tools such as those by the American Diabetes Association, to check your risk factors.
Calorie Restriction
The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute says a 10 percent weight reduction dramatically reduces your risk of heart disease, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. The institute advises losing one to two pounds a week. This requires that you maintain a calorie deficit of 500 to 1,000 calories each day. If you are under a doctor's care, she might put you on a very-low calorie diet, ranging from 1,000 to 1,200 calories for women and 1,200 to 1,600 for men.
Change Your Environment
Remove unhealthy foods from your home, car and workplace. Seek guidance on cooking methods that allow you to incorporate foods in healthier recipes. Educate yourself on making good choices, such as selecting baked poultry instead of fried. To control your calories, prepare most of your own meals instead of eating out. In addition, self-monitor by writing down what you eat, how you feel when you eat and the strategies you use to deal with stress and other life situations.
Get Moving
You must move your body more to lose weight. Physical activity produces effects that lower your risk of disease, independent of dietary changes. Physical activity helps you achieve a caloric deficit and reduce body fat. Increase your activity level slowly to avoid injury. Try walking, dancing, gardening and participating on a team sport. Aim for 30 minutes or more of moderate-intensity physical activity most days of the week.
When to Seek Help
Everything you do to lose weight, including asking others for their support is self help. Support groups are self help. Professional diet plans like Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig, are self help. And asking your doctor to treat you is self help. Many doctors can refer you to a nutritionist or, if your health and weight warrant, put you in a program to prepare you for bariatric surgery. Short of that, chances are that you have a close friend or family member who also wants to lose weight. Become weight-loss buddies and help each other as you help yourselves.
References
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; The Practical Guide Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults; NHLBI Obesity Education Initiative; October 2000
- "Self-Help Approaches for Obesity and Eating Disorders"; Janet D. Latner and G. Terence Wilson; 2007
- Weight-control Information Network; Understanding Adult Obesity; November 2008
- Obesity Action Coalition: What is Morbid Obesity?
- "Journal of the American Medical Association"; Prevalence and Trends in Obesity Among US Adults, 1999-2008; Katherine M. Flegal et al.; January 20, 2010
- Weight-control Information Network; Medical Care for Obese Patients; April 2007
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