Unhealthy Weight in Women and Men (Overweight and Obesity)

Suffering from unhealthy weight is having an excess amount of fat that already causes or will cause physical, metabolic, or psychosocial effects. Over 2/3 of the US population has some amount of unhealthy weight and the number is growing every year. There are many causes of unhealthy weight, and each should be considered in designing a weight loss program.
I believe that there are two valid goals that a weight-loss specialist can address. The first is the long-term loss of weight for medical benefits. Research has shown that the most successful programs are those developed and managed by weight-loss physicians. A successful weight-loss program may include lifestyle modifications, medications, psychological counseling, nutritional guidance, and even surgery. This is a life-long process. Success is dependent on continued medical follow-up, but the benefits include increased life expectancy and improved quality of life.

Long-term weight loss is the way to address your individual lifelong health, but I believe that there is nothing wrong with having a different weight-loss goal. That of losing the weight one needs to look their best for a specific event, and I am happy to help with that. Afterall, this physical change can be compared to getting Botox and fillers, or going to a stylist for a fancy hairdo or professional makeup. The added benefit is that I would be available after the event to help convert your short-term success into a long-term plan to keep the weight off.
At Helios Telemedicine for Men, I will work closely with you to clarify your goals and create a weight loss plan specific to your needs, physical capabilities, time constraints, and personal preferences. I will then be available to you for the long-term to help you lose your unhealthy weight and keep it off.

If you are ready to schedule an appointment, please click the Request an Appointment button so we can get started on your journey to a healthier weight this week.

Unhealthy Weight FAQ

The CDC defines obesity as: Weight that is higher than what is considered healthy for a given height is described as overweight or obesity. So, I guess it would define healthy weight as the weight for a given height that is considered healthy.

The BMI is a good screening tool, but like all tools, it has its weaknesses. It uses height and weight as variables in an equation to calculate a number which is used to put people into six weight categories.  The advantage is that it is an easy number to calculate and follow, and it usually correlates well with body fat and health consequences.

The disadvantage is that it relies on only those two variables without consideration of the true body composition so that muscular individuals may be placed into a higher category than they should be and individuals with lower muscle mass may be classified as normal even though they may have metabolic issues due to an increased fat to body weight ratio.

Estimates are that about 1/3 of Americans are overweight and ⅓ are obese and the numbers are going up every year. Some estimate that by 2030 2/3 of Americans will be obese, and this excludes those who will be overweight, but not yet obese.

While all joints are affected to one degree or another, the low back, hips, knees, ankles, and feet are affected the most. As the lowest joints carry the most weight, the stress on them increases and they wear out faster, so the feet and ankles are likely the most stressed.

Joint anatomy and physiology play roles as well, so the most destruction may occur in the low back, hips, and knees. This increases the risk of a need for surgery and risks for surgical complications.

In short, yes. Unhealthy weight can lead to the following symptoms:

  1. Depression and hopelessness
  2. Lower self-esteem and body-image dissatisfaction
  3. Reduced sex drive and problems with intimacy and relationships
  4. Reduced work productivity and increased absenteeism.
  5. Biases from society, family, and work

At the very base level it is energy in vs. energy out, but there are so many things that affect this equation.  Energy intake is controlled by the hunger promoting and hunger inhibiting factors such as hormones from the body and the brain and emotional stimuli such as anxiety, depression, food addiction.

Energy output can be divided into three categories: your basal metabolic rate (what you are burning when you first get up in the morning), exercise energy output (what you burn when you do cardio or resistance exercises), and non-exercise energy output (all the energy you burn doing everything else such as walking, standing, and going about your daily activities).