Weight Problems

Obesity persists, women hate their bodies, and no one’s exercising or eating right. WTH?

Women are facing multiple health crises, reveals an Associated Press-iVillage poll which examined women’s attitudes about their bodies, eating and exercising. The national statistic stating that about 60 percent of Americans are overweight or obese is reflected among the 1,000 women polled in the survey, but also troubling is the lack of focus on emotional health, as well as proper diet and exercise.

Half of the women polled stated that they are unhappy with their weight, including 26 percent of those women whose body mass index falls in the “normal” range. Nearly one-third of women (29 percent) said that they felt “somewhat negative” feelings regarding their physical condition. Almost the same number of women (30 percent) stated “somewhat negative” feelings about their physical appearance. Thirty-seven percent of women said that they had “somewhat negative” feelings about their physique or figure, and another 11 percent said they feel “strongly negative” feelings about their bodies. Nearly a quarter of women state that they are currently on a weight-loss diet (24 percent) and the majority (65 percent) says they are dieting to improve their appearance.

Despite women’s negative regard for their physical conditions and appearance, their eating and exercise habits do not reflect plans to improve their health or figures. Only 8 percent of women said that they consume the recommended five daily servings of fruits and vegetables, while a quarter (25 percent) said they do so every day. The majority (38 percent) state that they only eat five servings of produce two to three times a week.

Exercise plays an even smaller role in women’s lives, as the mean average of minutes spent exercising per week was only 139, or about 20 minutes a day. The median average was 80 minutes a week, or 11 minutes a day.

“There are two conflicting problems: many women hate their bodies—even if their bodies are not overweight—and women who are very overweight don’t seem to effectively tackle their weight problem,” says Diana Zuckerman, Ph.D., president of the Washington D.C.-based National Research Center for Women & Families.

Stress management expert Debbie Mandel, M.A., says that when women struggle emotionally, it is difficult to be motivated to take care of themselves, even if they are unhappy with their bodies. “Female dissatisfaction is really coming from a lack of empowerment, a feeling that they don’t ‘measure up’—pun intended!” she says. “I can count on one hand the number of women I know who are content with their bodies and with who they are. Most women want to be someone else.”

The focus on the negative, especially for the overweight, is counterproductive, Mandel maintains. “Women don’t have a sense of their uniqueness. They identify with a particular weakness, a big nose or a big butt,” Mandel, author of Addicted to Stress contends. “They are not focusing on their strengths. When you don’t do that and you are dominated by weakness, how do you remedy the situation when you are dominated by a negative? Nobody responds to a negative coach.”

In addition to the emotional issues, women are not doing the basics to be healthy physically, the poll shows. “Whatever their weight, most women don’t eat enough fresh fruits and vegetables and many don’t get as much exercise as they need,” Zuckerman adds. “I actually thought 80 minutes a week was surprisingly high.”

Why are women eating so few fruits and vegetables?

“Obviously, reliance on fast food and eating lunch at work is part of the problem. Whether working women take their lunch to work or buy lunch, it is unlikely to include a serving of fruits or vegetables everyday,” Zuckerman says. “If they don't get lunch at a fast food restaurant, they probably pick up a sandwich or something like that, where the only veggie is likely to be a pickle or lettuce and tomato on the sandwich, which might possibly be a half serving of veggie. Not that many eat a salad for lunch—that would probably be the equivalent of at least 2 servings of veggies.”

“So, optimistically assuming a glass of juice for breakfast as one serving, and an average of half a serving for lunch, that would mean they need three and a half servings of fruits or vegetables for dinner or later everyday,” she adds. “It really isn't surprising that most women don't reach that goal.”

Zuckerman says that financial issues are another reason women shy away from buying fruits and vegetables.

“During this economic downturn, the price of fresh fruits and veggies has gone up.  Apples and pears for $2 per pound, green beans $2 to $2.50 per pound, currently corn on the cob is 50 cents per corn at my local grocery store [and so on],” she explains. “Organic is even more expensive.  Cost is also a deterrent, because people don't want to pay so much for food that was so much cheaper just a year or two ago, and which isn't necessarily a favorite that they can't live without, such as chocolate.”

“If fruit salad was a side dish option at fast food restaurants, probably many people would buy it.  It would be more appealing than paying as much for a sliced apple as a Big Mac, or as much for a salad as for a Quarter Pounder meal—and let's face it, fries taste better to most people,” Zuckerman notes.

Many people use rising prices as an “excuse” to not eat healthy, Mandel contends. “When you are motivated to do it, you will do it, and it shouldn’t cost you much,” she says. “You can buy frozen fruits and veggies and they are packed at peak freshness, and it is cheaper. Buy produce in season.”

Exercise is another factor that is important for good health, but many women are not doing it as much as they should. “Lack of exercise is partly a time issue,” Zuckerman explains. “Many women have full-time jobs plus major family responsibilities [like] kids, hubby, or parents to care for. They want to relax in front of the TV during whatever time they have left.”

Our environments works against us as well, she adds. “In our society, exercise is usually a scheduled activity, not a part of our regular day. If we walk our kids to school, we'll get exercise,  but as schools have been located further away, most kids get a ride to school. Ditto for driving to work, driving to the store [and so on].”

As a result, Zuckerman contends, exercise seems like a chore, something to add to your life, rather than integrate into your lifestyle. “Exercise has become something that people think they need equipment for, and not everyone can afford to join a health club or to buy the equipment or has a place to put it in their home,” she notes.

The sedentary environment is not just due to a lack of walkable communities, Zuckerman adds. “Obviously, even when it isn't a time issue, having hundreds of TV channels and computer games and email contributes to our sedentary lifestyle,” she says. “So many other things to do, instead of exercise!”

Mandel says that despite the complaint that they have little time, oftentimes people simply choose to opt out of exercise, and the circle of exhaustion continues. “Many of us are lazy, and anything worth achieving takes work,” she says. “Many women are depleted, they don’t have the energy, they are overworked, tired, and caught up in routines.”

Despite Mandel’s assertion that exercise helps people feel energized, many people are so tired—physically and mentally—that they cannot grasp the concept that they would have more energy and feel better, if only they exercised.

Zuckerman says that change needs to happen on a cultural level, with examples of physical activity presented as typical occurrences in daily life. “We'd need to inspire a real change of life style to address this issue,” she maintains. “How about popular sitcoms that show families going on bike rides together, couples taking walks together, or doing other kinds of regular exercise in their lives?  We would need those kinds of role models to inspire women—and men!”

Unfortunately, only once they have lost their abilities to be very active, do women tend to appreciate what their bodies had been capable of, and how enjoyable it is to exercise. “As women age they become much more concerned about health, but so often it is after their health is deteriorating that they realize how great it was to be able to be physically active,” she explains. “You take it for granted that you can go for long walks, ride a bike, participate in sports—but you're too busy with work and family responsibilities to do it—and then your kids grow up and you have the time but you no longer have the physical ability to play tennis, [or] go hiking or biking.”

The key to losing weight and feeling great while doing so, Mandel says, is to be positive. “Don’t look at the number on the scale to tell you how you should feel today. Women lose weight when they change their mindset and use athletic visualization, and say to themselves, ‘I am going to cross the finish line, I will win the game.’”

“There are women who have real problems: hormones, insulin resistance, for example, but when they commit to healthy eating habits and exercise, the pounds will come off. They will look better and success breeds success,” she maintains. “Women don’t need trainers, nutritionists, or anyone like me to motivate them! What they need is for the truth to resonate within them.”

Women, especially those in a healthy weight range, may also need to re-assess their goals. “Everything in society is about the flat belly,” Mandel says. “The truth is that women don’t have naturally flat bellies and after a child or two you are actually a little rounder. Everyone is forcing us into this mode of unrealistic flat bellies. Women don’t know what to do, so they just give up, and then they feel guilty and this causes more stress, and that just makes them gain weight. You want to speed up your metabolism? Lighten up."

“This unrealistic goal is operating against women,” she argues. “There are all these books and programs out there for women to get that unrealistic, impossibly flat belly: The Abs Diet, The Flat Belly Diet. When did this happen?”