Chemistry graduate student Angela Douglas wants to start working out. Where and how? She hasn’t gotten that far yet.
April Labat, a December psychology graduate, talks about joining a gym to get into shape.
Mike Halcomb, a graduate student in math, plans to begin working out on a ski simulator starting Monday when he returns from a conference.
Halcomb, Douglas and Labat are some of the millions of people looking to lose weight and get in shape in 2003. The annual ritual of making New Year’s resolutions gives people the motivation and reason to make changes in their lives.
According to studies, the most popular changes for decades are to lose weight and quit smoking.
“I think generally people want to lead healthy lives,” said Kim Munro, wellness education coordinator. “And New Year’s is one of those times where culturally we’ve created an environment to set goals for ourselves.”
Munro said smoking is an easy resolution choice because of the health factors: cancer, heart disease, increased risk for strokes, effects on childbirth, bad breath and yellow nails, to name a few.
But people quitting smoking this year should realize most smokers quit and relapse several times before they quit for good. On average, smokers quit about four times before it sticks.
Munro advises smokers looking to quit to make a plan, set a date and have support.
Because it typically takes several tries to quit, Munro encourages smokers to keep trying, make note of what works and what doesn’t and learn from that information.
Also, smokers should prepare to quit by setting a quit date and use the time before the date to remove ashtrays, examine routines and create new rituals.
Quitting is harder when it’s part of daily rituals and social activities, and people are more likely to become smokers if it’s part of their home environment, she said.
Quitting smoking and losing weight share a connection outside their popularity as resolutions.
Many times smokers replace the hand-to-mouth action of smoking with food, causing many people to gain weight when they quit, said Julie McNeil, Wellness Center dietician.
“People come here to get on a weight loss program when they’ve never had a weight problem,” McNeil said.
Also, like quitting smoking, losing weight requires a lifestyle change.
Julie Cormier, manager of Simply Slim Lifestyle and Weight Loss Center, which specializes in helping people lose weight by restricting their diet, said the trend for losing weight this year will be moving away from high protein, low-carb diets to non-restrictive diets.
According to Didi Rozas, Goudeau’s general manager, diets do not work because people eventually get off the diet and gain the weight back. She says instead people need to change the way they think about food.
“If you go on a diet, you will surely get off that diet,” Rozas said. “Who wants to give up good food forever?”
Low-carb diets, such as the Atkens diet and Sugarbusters, reduce insulin production and cause fat and protein storage to be used as the body’s main energy source. The diets seem luxurious because people cut carbohydrates from their diet, but increase protein and fat intake, allowing people to eat unlimited amounts of meat, cheese and butter.
In the short term, people who go on these diets lose weight and lose it quickly, but as soon as they get off the diet, they gain weight back.
“I think people are getting away from the no-carb diets because your body’s not designed to stay away from them forever, so when you get back on [carbs], you tend to overeat it,” Cormier said.
People’s bodies do not need as much food as they think they do, she said.
Non-restrictive diets involve simply eating a balanced meal — a protein, carb and fat at each meal — but in smaller plate sizes or serving portions.
By eating a balanced meal, people eliminate cravings and will feel full for four to five hours, Cormier said.
Combined with exercise, Cormier said she guarantees people can lose two to three pounds a week with no forbidden foods.
McNeil agrees non-restrictive dieting is the best way to lose weight for good. According to her, people should not taboo food, including fast food.
“Just go there and choose the best you can,” she said. “The whole key is just to not always have fast food.”
While non-restrictive diets are gaining more recognition, so is the importance of exercise, McNeil said. Even package meal diets such as Weight Watchers or Slimfast are encouraging exercise more than before.
“You never used to see that before in fad diets,” McNeil said.
Diet and exercise are dependent on each other, she said. By exercising, people are able to tone up, not just lose weight. Without eating right, people will not have the energy to work out.