Up to week six, Madison Memorial Hospital lost 487 pounds in the Biggest Loser Contest. We missed recognizing last weeks winner. The winner of week 6 was Susie! We asked Susie what she did to keep losing weight this far into in the competition.

Congratulations Susie!!!

Susie believes that this competition has really brought everyone closer here at Madison Memorial. She has worked here at Madison Memorial for the last 16 years. The friendships that we have has really brought us together to help each other work together to better ourselves. She mentioned that her weight loss has been like the stock market exchanges when it is a bear (downward trending) economy. However, in this case, the downward trend makes her feel like her life is looking really good. Some weeks she would lose and some weeks she would gain. But as long as the overall weight loss trend was continuing in a downward motion she has been happy with her progress. She always made sure not to get discouraged when there was a little bump. When speaking about her diet she told us that she was replacing the bad with the good. Instead of hamburgers or something unhealthy, she would replace it with some kind of vegetable. And instead of eating meat with a lot of fats she would replace those proteins with some kind of bean. The legumes have allowed her to cut out some of the unhealthy fats that we eat. As a final word, she said, “I love Madison Memorial and I work in the very best department here!!!”  

 “Is Obesity an Epidemic?” – Dr. Bates

Is obesity an epidemic that is hovering over our society? There are multiple causes. Whether it be a psychological, genetic, or a thyroid problem. Obesity is something that is very real and prevalent. Diseases related to obesity include the following: diabetes, heart problems, osteoarthritis, inflammatory, sleep-apnea. There is even research that links cancer. Surgical risks increase and, even some types of cancer can be brought on by obesity. In extreme cases, obesity can cause death or a decreased lifespan.

There needs to be balance in all things. We need to watch our calorie intake and energy expenditure. If we eat more calories than we exercise we can guarantee a steady weight gain. By having a great balance we can ensure weight loss. This can only happen if we participate and have an active lifestyle.

By having a sedentary lifestyle our energy expenditure will decrease. It will decrease even more with less sleep, and because of that, it will increase our appetite which will contribute to our weight gain. But just like we learned from Carol, our dietitian we have to eat our fruits and veggies in order to have a healthier life.