How to Succeed on Dr. Phil's Ultimate Weight Loss Challenge

In 2003, television talk show host Dr. Phil McGraw published "The Ultimate Weight Solution: The Seven Keys to Weight Loss Freedom." Dr. Phil promoted his book by holding an Ultimate Weight Loss Challenge on his show for the 2003-2004 season. Viewers watched participants, mostly obese, adapt Dr. Phil's diet principles and then observed their weight-loss journey. "The Ultimate Weight Solution" became a No. 1 New York Times best-seller. Dr. Phil's approach is valuable because it firmly encourages readers to come to terms with their unhealthy patterns around food and get real about weight loss.

Things You'll Need

• "The Ultimate Weight Solution" book

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Instructions

Following Dr. Phil's Plan

• 1

  Dr. Phil encourages people to have realistic expectations when beginning a weight-loss plan.

  Determine what you should realistically weigh by consulting Table 1, Dr. Phil's Body Weight Standards, on page 28. Figure out whether you are small, medium or large-boned, and then locate the range in pounds that corresponds to your height and gender, and pick the number that fits your body size best.

• 2

  Set your goal. Make a plan to lose X amount of pounds to reach a goal weight. Dr. Phil suggests saying something like "I intend to lose 50 pounds to reach my goal weight of 125 pounds." Break down your goal into manageable steps, such as how often you will exercise or how you will manage the stress in your life. Record the steps in the designated space on page 38.

• 3

  Fill out the Readiness Profile and determine your score. The Readiness Profile determines your resistance to the diet and whether you are ready to start following the seven keys to permanent weight loss.

• 4

  Follow each key as it guides you toward changing old thinking patterns and behaviors. Step one guides you to combat your negative self-talk and to replace self-defeating thoughts with positive self-talk, such as "losing weight is within my control." Begin the process of healing your painful feelings around your weight as you do the emotional audit on page 83.

• 5

  Figure out when you overeat most (for many people, it's at family gatherings) and what sugary, fatty, salty foods you binge on. Eliminate those foods from your environment. Learn new ways to cope with unpleasant feelings that you have used food to numb. Take up relaxation activities and fun hobbies for stress relief.

Diet and Exercise

• 6

  Doughnuts and pastries are not encouraged on Dr. Phil's diet plan.

  Fill out the nutritional assessment on page 158. Read the results and incorporate Dr. Phil's suggestions into your diet. For optimum weight control, prepare and eat "high-response cost" foods like soup, fresh fruits and vegetables, beans and legumes, meat, poultry, fish, whole grains and healthy cereals. Avoid starchy foods that are high in sugar and fat, like french fries, doughnuts and sweetened fruit drinks.

• 7

  Eat three servings of protein, two servings of low-fat dairy products and two to three servings of healthy carbs per day. Eat one serving of fat (olive, canola, flaxseed oil) per day. Drink 8 to 10 glasses of water per day.

• 8

  Choose an exercise activity that appeals to you (such as tennis or walking or yoga) and make sure you program exercise into your life, starting with three sessions per week and working up to six sessions per week. Follow Table 8, the Sample Exercise Program for Beginners, on page 224.

• 9

  Surround yourself with people (family, friends, coworkers) who are supportive of what you are doing. Avoid saboteurs.