Weight Loss

Via Christi Health,  part of Via Christi Hospitals, sponsors a fantastic lunch of Wichita women each month where at least 200 of us keet to hear about solutions for healthy lifestyles.

One incentive is that the lunch is always free, delicious, and of course, healthy.

Today’s line up featured the Program for Weight Management: how to lose it and keep it off.

I played Free Cell on my phone all the way through the speech.

However, I gained much from it because it was practical, informative, and encouraging.

I met Husband at my offices afterwards where I set a Veggie Wrap sandwich in front of him and placed a Diet Coke next to it.

In response to his what’s this, I answered: “I heard the most practical discussion on weight loss today. Dr. Moore is the Medical Director and physician for the Program, and he is a perfect speaker for this type of thing.”

As Husband suspiciously eyed the Diet Coke, he asked: “I suppose he’s against regular Coke, huh?”

“Oh, yes, sugary drinks of any type can be a no-no, including sugary fruit drinks. But he didn’t say never to drink them; he merely said that even one 300 calorie-per-day soda quickly piles pounds on us.”

“Humpf”, Husband replied before he opened the wrap. “And what is this?”

“It’s my Veggie Wrap that I brought to share with you. I’ve had one before; it’s really delicious.”

“Yeah, it’s not bad,” he said with his mouth full.

“I’m really stoked about the presentation. First, Dr. said he believes people when they say they try to lose weight and fail. He said much of our food environment and culture causes us to be overweight due to the sizes of proportions and the content of our foods.

“He said we should move ‘through the air’ at least 30 minutes per day to burn calories, eliminate sugary drinks, and have one meal replacement per day.”

“What does he mean by meal replacement?”

“I’m thinking he meant a weight-loss shake or something along that line which is low in fat and rich in protein and calcium.”

“Tell you what,” Husband said, “Next time we go to breakfast, I’ll just order hot chocolate with my meal.”

“Yeah, funny and cute,” I retorted. “Via Christi offers this weight management program for people and you and me who have tried many ways to lose weight. It sounds far less complicated that the old Weight Watchers program we tried 40 years ago. It seems doable and culturally responsible.”

He flinched at my last comment.

“They described their program as more than a diet. They offer evidence-based plans that are medically safe, supervision, educational classes, and support from a weight-loss coach. They say their nutritious low-calorie foods taste good, but all programs make that claim.

“But here the thing that related most to me. He said that people must have more than five or six hours of sleep per night. If we don’t get it, we can gain up to 12 pounds per year because we lack sleep. That means you are right, I have to get more sleep.”

Husband looked a bit pained, “ Does that mean I can only get eight hours sleep each night?”

“No, I think it means you should sleep the nine or so hours you crave.”

I got his attention with that. He read the pamphlet I showed him. I noticed he didn’t ask about moving through air which I guess is self-explanatory, but it is neat Dr. Moore said we just need to do several little extra things daily to move our bodies. No expensive gym memberships needed.

I didn’t go into the part where the fat in the cavity surrounding our organs is the deadliest part of being overweight. I can save that for the next discussion. Besides, I rather guess that he already knows those knows those types of things. He knows much more about many things.