Recently, CNN published a story about a gentleman who lost more than 300 pounds – because he was ashamed. While the headline reported that he lost the weight out of shame, if you read the story, you will find that it wasn’t shame that sparked the weight loss. Instead, it was unhappiness with his situation.
Shame is Not a Motivator for Weight Loss
There are many reasons for losing weight, but shame should never be one of them. Feelings of shame because you are overweight could be just as unhealthy as the additional weight that you are carrying. In a sense, if you desire to lose weight simply because you are ashamed, you are essentially losing weight to please other people. In this instance, it would be society in general that you are aiming to please.
Lose Weight to Please Yourself
Weight that is lost to please others never stays off. Weight that you lose to please yourself, on the other hand, has a better chance of staying off. Maybe you want to be healthier. Maybe you want to ride the roller coasters at the theme park with your kids. Perhaps you want to wear cute clothes. Maybe your weight has caused a health problem and losing weight is now a matter of life and death.
Regardless of the reason, shame should not be a factor. This is especially true if it is shame that other people are projecting to you. You do not need to apologize to anyone for who you are, or how you look, and you certainly don’t need to feel ashamed.
Find Out What Causes You to Be Overweight
Being shamed into losing weight isn’t even always a possibility. Many overweight people are not overweight because they have poor eating habits or exercise habits. Instead, they are overweight due to a health issue, such as thyroid disease. Some medications for other health issues can cause weight gain or the inability to lose weight as well, and in these instances, no amount of ‘shame’ is going to change anything.
As a society, we should be ashamed that we feel the need to ‘shame’ others into fitting into our idea of how they should look, act, or be. As a major news reporting agency, CNN should feel double the shame for an inappropriate headline. If you would like to read the story published by CNN, you can view it at http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/12/29/aha.moments.weightloss/index.html?npt=NP1
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