Way To Go, Carnie!

I really want to acknowledge former Wilson Phillips star, Carnie Wilson, for her bravery. This weekend I watched the fourth season of VH-1s hit reality TV Show Celebrity Fit Club. Carnie chose to sign herself up to be part of the All-Star cast after giving birth to her daughter, Lola, last year.

For most of her life, she admits that she was morbidly obese. It has been almost seven years since Carnie had gastric bypass surgery.

Bariatric or gastrointestinal (gastric bypass) surgery alters the digestive process. This type of operation can be divided into two different types: restrictive and combined restrictive/malabsorptive.

Restrictive operations limit food intake by creating a narrow passage from the upper part of the stomach into the larger lower part, reducing the amount of food the stomach can hold and slowing the passage of food through the stomach.

The malabsorptive process excludes most of the small intestine from the digestive tract so fewer calories and nutrients are absorbed.

After Carnies daughter was born, she worked hard to get back to her goal weight of 145 pounds. Unfortunately, within this time, she gained back 40 pounds.

She is hoping a televised diet and fitness regime will motivate her towards success.

According to the Star Pulse News Blog, Carnie shared, "It took me nine months to lose 15 pounds. That was really frustrating ... you just want to give up. It was one step forward and two steps back."

Personally, I must respect Carnies choice to talk openly about the struggles people go through after weight loss surgery. So many people feel that having this surgery is the easy way out. However, because Carnie is once again losing weight in the publics eye, fans are able to witness the new struggles that she will have to bear in order to lose her postpartum weight.

As a person who has gone through this type of surgery, I work with many of my life coaching clients on coping with their continuing challenges with food. Together, we explore the reasons behind their food addictions, negative body image and low self-esteem. Undoubtedly, the fight continues long after we are post-surgery.

This show will be a catalyst to show the public that we, as gastric bypass patients, have the same weight loss challenges as the average person. Yes, we might have undergone a life-saving procedure but in the end it was, and still is, our choice as to how we approach diet and exercise going forward.

Yes, we can gain weight and struggle just like anyone else. Carnies testimony confirms this.

Copyright 2006 Jeff Cadwell Positive Coaching

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What is Weight Loss?

In the context of physical health, weight loss is the process of losing body weight, usually by losing fat. To achieve healthy weight loss, most experts recommend a combination of healthy eating patterns and regular physical exercise. Some people try to lose weight by using drugs such as fenfluoramine, nicotine or cocaine (see Anti-obesity drugs), herbs such as ephedra, or surgery such as liposuction