to think this GP is a total idiot!!!

[ButterflEi]

hello

so i went to see one of the GPs in my practice today as i am wanting to take control of my weight issues and was looking for advice.

the GP asked me general questions about lifestyle etc and what i eat on an average day which i answered thinking to myself that finally i was going to get somewhere (i have struggled with my weight since i was about 15, im now 27). he said he would refer me to a dietician but that could take a matter of months for that referral to materialise.

the conversation went as follows:

me: so can you help with what i should do in the meantime??
idiot GP: i would sggest restricting your diet as much as possible
me: ok...meaning what??
GP: dont eat
me: huh? you mean eat less??
GP: no dont eat
me: dont eat??
GP: yes dont eat. excercise and dont eat.
me: is that not called ANOREXIA??
GP: no it is a medically sanctioned diet plan
me: no it is called anorexia...thanks for nowt.

i then stormed out in a bit of a huff and went home. i have since called the surgery and made another appointment with a different (nice lady) doctor for later today!!

i just wondered if IABU to think that doctor is a complete incompetent arse or is my fat addling my brain??

Disagree strongly, exercise is not the key for most overweight people. they are simply not capable of doing the amount of exercise required to burn lots of calories (i.e. the 500 a day you would need for a steady 1-1.5lb weight loss a week). building muscle takes longer than magazines will have you believe.

What I do think is that when people start to exercise they naturally start to eat healthier as well and I would always recommend people do exercise simple because it makes you feel fantastic.

thanks libra
Can no-one see the irony -you're all on here arguing about the obvious way to lose weight and yet telling the OP she is stupid for being confused?

and portion size genuinely doesn't occur to some people - if it's how they've always eaten but they've got older or started exercising less without realising.

If you undereat by 250 cals a day you should lose 2lbs in a week, so I have read.

Anyone can either do that amount of exercise- half an hour of something reasonably active - and/or undereat by 250 cals.

There is so much rubbish written about how to lose weight anyone would think you needed a PhD in it- it is actually quite easy. And if you have issues that make you overeat, get those sorted.

good point SPB. I, of course, am right.

lol of course

Less time on MN and more time walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, gardening etc would help a lot.

God this thread is WAAAAAAY out of control.

Clearly the GP was rude/impolite which is not really acceptable but hardly a capital offence since he's human and did actually do some things in the consultation which might help. I would have been mildly annoyed, told the GP I felt he had been rude, possibly complained to the practice manager depending on his reaction then related the story to my friends and got on with my life.

Why is everyone fussing about anorexia and self esteem and what fat/thin people should/shouldn't do, what people should/shouldn't say to fat/thin people? Gah! It is making my head spin!

Both fat and thin people can be fit/unfit, healthy/unhealthy, have mental health problems, self esteem issues etc. That's a good reason for us all to try to be nice to other people. I'm not sure we are all perfect all the time though and sometimes we all say stupid, mean things and sometimes we say them at work.

If the OP had a problem with way the GP spoke to her it's up to her to raise the issue with the practice and see what they say. If she's not going to do that then what's the point anybody getting so wound up?

"If you undereat by 250 cals a day you should lose 2lbs in a week, so I have read"

Just to underline SPB point this is rubbish. A lb of fat is something like 3000+ calories so you would have to have a deficit of 6000+ calories to lose 2lbs, which you wouldn't in a week with just a deficit of 250cals a day.
this is rubbish.

Libra - I know everything I would ever need to know about nutrition.
I know all about healthy choices.
I cook from scrathch every day.
I also have a compulsion, a deep rooted, self destructive, psychological NEED to eat constantly, to feel full, to feel heavy.
It is not about enjoying my food too much or having no clue what a balanced diet looks like. I am beyond even tasting the food - it could be anything(though the "heavier" the better, carbs as oppposed to salad (i love salads btw) for example), its a means to an end.

sorry I should have previewed it, as bad as that information is I didn't need to say it was rubbish twice.

or are you just trying to demonstrate the fact the information out there is rubbish?

why don't you go to counselling?

"If the OP had a problem with way the GP spoke to her it's up to her to raise the issue with the practice and see what they say"

Well yes, but she STARTED A THREAD ABOUT IT.

Libra - that wasn't me!
"Why is everyone fussing about anorexia and self esteem "
aaargh. The point I made was that low self esteem is linked to being overweight and so in the interests of holistic treatment the GP might have considered that before he patronised her.
Otherwise why didn't he just tell her to start smoking - I've heard that shifts the pounds.

mrsmerryweather a pound of fat is actually roughly equivalent to 3,500 calories.

It isn't easy, it is possible but it isn't easy.

Building muscle is pretty quick actually, if you are eating enough protein for proper synthesis, I can see a difference within a week when I am focussed.

And all those books on the shelves? They don't work, if they worked there wouldn't be so many of them.

What - so none of us should start a thread about things that we can raise with the people we're pissed off at? Hardly!

I do already.
But the fact is there is no cure, no one can fix this for me - I have to remain determined to overcome it. And I will

Running is the job alright, my cousins' wives have taken it up recently and look bloody brilliant as a result.

Nothing wrong with a small bag of crisps as an occasional treat.... but alot of people feel the need to sit down with an entire tube of pringles or party bag of tortillas and count it a snack.

Similarily biscuits (my weakness), nothing wrong with one or two mid morning with some tea.... it's when you eat half the packet that you have a problem.

Portion control, eating at set times and always stopping when full (or before the plate is empty if you aren't able to tell yet) combined with a bit more movement will do wonders for anyone... i fail to see what's complicated or hard about it

And yes i do understand the self esteem and willpower issues, i spend a fair while after each pregnancy miserable and unable to kick myself in gear and invariably gain weight after i've given birth but at some point you simply have to take control, and once you start it's easy as you see results.

OP is clearly willing so why is she still procrastinating and looking for others to tell her what to do?

SPB I thought it underlined nicely your point about the irony. I didn't phrase it very well, sorry.

Do people have low self-esteem because they are fat or does the low self-esteem cause them to be fat?

Yes but not enough to burn these 1000s of calories the poster was talking about, and are you sure you are creating muscle in a week rather than burning fat and hence making the muscle more defined? (I take it you are weight training)

morloth we will just have to disagree over our stats- I am only quoting what I read, and assume you are too?

Even if the figures you give are correct, anyone ahould be able to lose 1lb a week by losing 500 cals a day- over half of those could be expended by being more active.

You can disagree with Morloth but she is right and you are wrong.

ah I see sorry
I think it's a cyclic thing - if you're low it makes you eat, then you hate yourself (not everyone I know) and feel overwhelmed at the thought of losing weight, so you eat more as comfort food.
Same as why most people smoke I suppose. But surely it's easy - just stop lighting up!

As I said before it's a bit ironic given GPs get paid to refer people to exercise programmes that they can't be bothered to respond appropriately when asked a straightforward question. Bet he was politeness personfied when it came to pocketing the cash

Yup - 1lb = 3500 cals.

okay- I quoted something wrongly- not a crime and certainly not done on purpose- it just shows you cannot beleive all you read.

here is another version of the same thing:
Calorie Needs to lose weight
There are approximately 3500 calories in a pound of stored body fat. So, if you create a 3500-calorie deficit through diet, exercise or a combination of both, you will lose one pound of body weight. (On average 75% of this is fat, 25% lean tissue) If you create a 7000 calorie deficit you will lose two pounds and so on. The calorie deficit can be achieved either by calorie-restriction alone, or by a combination of fewer calories in (diet) and more calories out (exercise). This combination of diet and exercise is best for lasting weight loss. Indeed, sustained weight loss is difficult or impossible without increased regular exercise.

If you want to lose fat, a useful guideline for lowering your calorie intake is to reduce your calories by at least 500, but not more than 1000 below your maintenance level. For people with only a small amount of weight to lose, 1000 calories will be too much of a deficit. As a guide to minimum calorie intake, the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends that calorie levels never drop below 1200 calories per day for women or 1800 calories per day for men. Even these calorie levels are quite low.

An alternative way of calculating a safe minimum calorie-intake level is by reference to your body weight or current body weight. Reducing calories by 15-20% below your daily calorie maintenance needs is a useful start. You may increase this depending on your weight loss goals.

"you cannot beleive all you read."
nope, the cabbage soup diet, lighter life, patches, smelly patches, eating before 6pm...all that crap. In general, it's best to ask a professional. Unless they think you're an idiot and it's obvious.