green427

Since I've gained a lot of weight in the last 7 years, my doctor is blunt enough to tell me that my blood sugars, fatigue, and cholesterol levels are slightly above normal because I am overweight & inactive. He has been pushing me to make plans to exercise and eat better. Every time I leave his office, I try to change my lifestyle, but it only lasts so long before I go back to old habits. Part of the problem is that my wife is not willing to participate in eating healthier.

Talking with several people, it appears that doctors are more willing to be blunt with men, but they tread carefully or avoid the topic of losing weight with women.

My wife is overweight, and really needs to lose a lot of weight, but her doctors all never say anything. I think that this mentality of "but the doctor did not say anything" contributes to her not taking her weight issue seriously.

So, I am curious, all of you fellow riders classified as "overweight"...Did your doctor tell you that you need to lose weight?

professorbob

Yep.

goldfinch

Female here. No. Last fall I was weighed at the doctor's office and was my highest weight of my life. I lamented that fact to the doctor. All she said was that the amount I had put on over the last few years was the typical amount people put on as they age.

I was well within the obese category. I was being sent for a sleep study for apnea. Yelling or lecturing me about losing weight is not helpful, but at least she could have mentioned weight loss strategies I might want to consider.

Oddly, in the back of my mind this was motivating. Having your doctor of 25 years resigned to your fatness and chronic health problems made me start to think that I was better than that, that I could conquer the lure of food.

She has no idea I've lost weight. It will be interesting to visit her this fall. Though I have thought about calling early to go in for a drug check.

My husband is obese as well. His doc doesn't say much about anything to him.

Neil_B

I stopped going to a doctor for six years. Solved that problem. :-(

diverkiwi

LOL that got me laughing.

My wife and I have been blessed with encouraging doctors the past few years, very encoraging as to how much weight might be good to lose. Both of us have been recently diagnosed w/ Type II diabetes. I've already seen noticable changes in my sugars especially on the days I ride. 15 more lbs and I'll be past the target weight. I'd love to see where my sugars are at after that.

GeoBigJon

LOL that's great. My doc lets me know I could stand to loose some weight.

Telly

My doctor is also a close friend; he's outright, blunt and doesn't paint a pretty picture with my weight problems (and all the implications). Yet when I took a female friend a few years back which was overweight, I noticed how he tread very carefully on the subject. At some later date when I asked him why he wasn't as outright with my friend, he explained that in his experience, men took being blunt more seriously while women had a tendency to panic and close-up to him.

CalPastor

Doc didn't say anything. But they had me listed on my chart as "pre-diabetic" even though all my blood work has tested fine and within the normal ranges. I asked him about that and he said because of my weight and that my blood tests were in the higher end of the normal range they list me as "pre-diabetic". I don't like the sound of that! So now I'm down 30 lbs in the past 8 weeks and want to drop another 15 before seeing the doc again in 4 weeks.

zandoval 

At one of my continuing medical education reviews of family practice we were discussing Metabolic Syndrome X (high Cho, Hypertension, Diabetes, Obesity) - All in all the statistics found that there was a 60% improvement in all system measurements with just a 30# decrease in weight by exercise (so cutting off a leg won't work) - In other words - You start working out and everything can get better - You just don't want to make anything worse as you work out...

goldfinch

Zandoval, I have read some research on the effect of weight loss and read much more about such research in the press. One thing I notice is that weight loss is often reported in pounds rather than percentages. And not in amount of fat loss. Or even BMI. ALso, the reported data isn't always explicit as to beginning weight. So, for example, a 50 lb weight loss may show substantial positive effects on sleep apnea. Or a 30 pound loss improve metabolic syndrome. A 10- to 20-pound weight loss often improves blood pressure, blood cholesterol, and triglyceride levels. But how much did the subjects weigh in the first place? How much variability? What percentage of the loss was fat? This is of personal interest to me because I am a short woman for whom a 30 pound weight loss was 18% of my weight and reduced my BMI from obese to overweight. However, if I started at 330 pounds and was a foot taller I still would be not only obese but morbidly obese with a 30 pound weight weight loss and the loss would be less than 10% of my weight.

Just a rant on the difficulties of generalizing from research when there isn't enough data reported. . .

Falcon64

Sadly, many physicians see their clients as a steady income stream and as such have no real desire to either listen to them or to get them healthy.

To answer OP's question - yes, in fact the doctor I fired was very blunt about this and like someone else that posted, once she started talking about "pre-diabetic" it was like a punch in the face! While I do credit her with opening my eyes, I stopped seeing her for other reasons (she is one of those that doesn't listen to her patients and failed miserably on other points as well). New doc is great and is just as blunt, but actually pays attention to the "big picture" and works with me to solve problems.

Ali_Pine

It's about the Boat not the Butt.

If we were all in good health with good B/P, Sugar, Cholesterol, knees with out pain, and good BMI, Doctors couldn't make their boat payments. They need us just like we are. Mediocre health with 'conditions' that make us visit them every few months. If our 'conditions' kill us slowly, doctors can continue to make their boat payments.

So it all comes down to supporting the boating industry. Think how many people would be out of work if boats don't sell.

BHOFM

You have to want to do it! Then you have to go out and do it.

You have to cut down on your food intake. Cut out the sodas
and sweet snacks.

What ever exercise you choose, you have to do it every day.
EVERY DAY! You have to make it your "must do" thing.

A couple miles on a bike on Sunday afternoon is not doing it!
EVERY DAY!

Make up a menu for the week ahead of time and stick to it.

You can lie to your self all you want, but it ain't gon'a help!

Put your foot down with the wife. You may have to sleep in
the dog house for a while, but that is life!

There ain't no magic bullets, you just got to make up your
mine and do what needs to be done.

Thirteen months ago I weighed 288lbs. today I weigh 206.
I rode over 13,000 miles in those thirteen months. I was
over 1500 for June.

I still eat the same things, but for sweets and soda, I just
eat about half of what I was eating. Big breakfast, light
lunch, nice dinner at least four hours before bedtime.
NO SNACKS. NO CANDY, NO SODAS!

The only trick is will power.

Peter_C

I like my boat - but seriously, my Doc is pretty upfront with me about my issues, but he also doesn't chase me away. He does comment about my weight at each visit, mostly comparing it to the last visit's weight, but, I have other issues that weight loss itself won't fix, so that is never the primary topic.

Neil_B

I don't recommend skipping doctor visits. I did it because I didn't give a damn about myself. That's changed.

Brontide

At BMI 32 my doctor suggested weight loss in passing before attempting to put me on anti-depressants. This was after a long line of problems with this practice. I stopped seeing them and lost 1/3 of my weight before finding another doc.

Mithrandir

I did the same exact thing for (coincidentally) 6 years. Then one day the apartment directly below mine caught fire and the fire department and paramedics had to come. State law says that paramedics must check everyone out before they can leave, so they took my blood pressure and it was a jaw-dropping 250.

They demanded that I go to the hospital. I kept refusing until they told me that they think I am going to die if I don't. That opened my eyes. I went to the hospital and stayed there for a few hours until they released me (my BP had fallen to normal levels by then).

But for the next week I felt weird so I finally decided to go to the doctor for the first time in 6 years. It was obvious I was fat. When the hospital asked me how much I weighed I could only say "more than 400", because I had also not weighed myself in 6 years either. So I didn't really need the doctor to tell me to lose weight; I had already decided to do that after the hospital incident. But he did tell me I had high blood pressure again and had to start meds.

In January my BP was low enough that I could halve my dosage. In May my BP was low enough that I stopped the medication completely. On Tuesday I go back to the doctor to have my first BP check since stopping the meds, at which point I will either be cleared of the hypertension diagnosis after 50 weeks, or I will need to go back on the meds.

Seeing as how I just completed my first metric century today with no heart rate issues whatsoever, I am confident that I've kicked the hypertension.


Now about the rest of this weight...

Sigh.

Neil_B

Don't sigh. Celebrate!

goldfinch

My doctor isn't trying for a boat payment. She works part time, lives a lower middle class lifestyle, and gives away the rest of her money. I always admired her values. She just dropped the ball on weight loss, probably because most doctors are at a loss on how to motivate people. They are medical doctors, not psychologists. In a more perfect world she would have a list of possible referrals and things people could try if they feel ready to lose weight. Maybe a list with weight watchers on it. A few weight loss websites. Local gyms. Dietitians. Etc. I am going to suggest that to her when I see her this fall. The information could be given to anyone who is overweight as a matter of course.

zandoval 

So true - They are just numbers and not people - The illustration was a gross finding and did not even include size weight age or even sex but still derived a basic rough number - In my practice I would never do this - I make a good point of checking my patients activities before making or approving any suggestions for exercise programs or weight loss - Say I have a fat guy... Is he an inside fat guy or an outside one... This one simple observation can make a world of difference...

Fat, normal or thin - The outside people are immensely much healthier...

goldfinch

Hey zondoval, off topic but are you all recovered from your gallbladder surgery? Back on the bike?

zandoval 

Yes - I am riding again - Just started two weeks ago after 4 weeks out and am back at my regular route - Other than a little sharpness in my diaphragm with heavy breathing all is well - THANKS

zjrog

My current doc (well, PA but very very good!) has been quite patient with me about my weight and despite my slightly elevated BP, all my other blood work is is in the lower normal ranges. Surprising the heck out of me of course. Since the blood work was done as part of pre-surgical tests (Total Knee replacement) she was adamant that a return to an active lifestyle should help. We'll see.

My wife on the other, docs wouldn't help her much over the years with FibroMyalgia issues because she "needed to lose some weight first". Well, she did and that didn't change anything in fact in her case she has been on a downhill health slide that I am CONVINCED could have been averted MANY years ago (20+).

BigUgly

When I saw the word "OBESE" on my chart I decided then and there to start losing weight. I was 255 at the time. I want to live long enough to get to know my grand kid's kids. The doc did mention I was carrying a lot of weight and slightly hinted at trying to lose weight. Also, a couple of year ago I applied for life insurance and was told I have to pay more because of my weight. I am down 30 lbs since then and hopefully when I get down to the "acceptable" range I will reapply for life insurance and not have to pay so much. Plus I feel a lot better and mobile now. Joints don't hurt as much and I seem to recover from work outs alot quicker. I know guys my age(43) who have a hard time getting up out of chairs.

ill.clyde

Same scenario here.

Was having some dizzyness issues, etc ... went to the doctor for a complete blood work up, everything checked out normal (turned out it was stress related) but I heard the words "pre-diabetic" too ...

I have three kids ... not only do I want to live a long life to see them grow into adults, I want to be a good example for them.