Featured Advertisers
Wed, Nov. 04  -   -  Mobile  -  RSS
  

Make a post about this story on FredTalk. Get a printer-friendly version of this page. E-mail this story to a friend.


Visit Janet Marshall's blog: In Moderation

-
PHOTOS BY ISTOCK PHOTOGRAPHY /ILLUSTRATION BY EDEL TRIPP

Visit the Photo Place

Want to eat well? Let your personality be your guide

Your personality type--people pleaser, procrastinator--has a lot to do with how you take care of your health

Date published: 11/30/2008

HOW YOU DEAL with stress affects your weight and your health. As a dietitian, I've met smart people whose plans for eating and exercising get derailed in stressful situations. And unless you live in a bubble, stress happens. A lot.

So I was excited to hear last month about a weight-management method that teaches people how to cope with stress. Dr. Robert Kushner and registered dietitian Dawn Jackson Blatner drew an audience of thousands at the recent American Dietetic Association in Chicago with their ideas about weight and personality.

I was especially fascinated with what Kushner called the seven coping patterns that affect how people take care of their health. He gave them catchy names:

PERSISTENT PROCRASTINATOR

PEOPLE PLEASER

OVERREACHING ACHIEVER

EMOTIONAL EATER

SELF-SCRUTINIZER

FAST PACER

DOUBTFUL DIETER

Kushner and his wife, Nancy, a nurse, co-authored the book, "Dr. Kushner's Personality Type Diet," that describes these seven coping styles, along with seven eating and exercising styles.

Your styles can improve with different strategies.

In this column, I'll go over the first three coping styles, which Blatner said are the most common. Next week, I'll discuss the last four styles.

PERSISTENT PROCRASTINATOR

According to Kushner, people with this personality pattern put off losing weight. For example, I knew an accomplished woman who wanted to lose weight but had a new excuse each week about why she didn't follow her plan: Relatives visited, she traveled or she was busy. Everyday life was a constant barrier.

I struggle with procrastination myself, and I am not alone. One in every five adults is a chronic procrastinator, according to a survey published in the North American Journal of Psychology.

If you delay things needlessly, Kushner suggests four strategies for getting unstuck:

First: List the pros and cons of taking action.

Pros of eating well might include feeling better, having healthier skin, losing weight, and reducing risks of heart disease and cancer. Cons might include taking more time to plan meals and worrying about whether family members are willing to try new, healthier foods.

Once you've listed the pros and cons of taking action, brainstorm ways to make your action plan more pleasant--such as finding healthy treats. Also, imagine ways to overcome the "cons," such as checking out a book with time-saving, ready-made healthy menus.


1  2  3  Next Page  

Jennifer Motl is a registered dietitian. Formerly of Fredericksburg, she now lives in Wisconsin.



Follow us on
twitter
fredericksburg.com Facebook page


Date published: 11/30/2008


Most recent reader comments:

1 comment has been posted. (Sorted in reverse order, with most recent post at the top.)

Display comments on this page. | Sort:

PLEASE READ: These reader comments are not moderated. Each user is solely responsible for any message (s)he posts here. The Free Lance-Star does not endorse the views expressed within these comments. All users who post to this Web site must agree to the terms of the FredTalk User Agreement. We rely on our readers to police themselves, and report any content that violates our User Agreement. In accordance with our User Agreement, we reserve the right to remove any post at any time for any reason, and will restrict access of registered users who repeatedly violate our terms. Any reader can report inappropriate content by clicking the "Report this post to admins" link at the bottom of each comment. You need not be registered to report a post.

The Flexitarian Diet (posted by ThirstyApe , Dec. 6, 2008 11:38 pm)   
Dawn Jackson Blatner has also written her own book called The Flexitarian Diet. It promotes a "mostly vegetarian" diet and offers tons of great science-based nutrition advice and more than 100 recipes.

What do you think?
Enter your FredTalk username and password to post a comment on this story. If you are registered on FredTalk or another part of this site, use that login here. Otherwise, you can just REGISTER here... .

Username: Password:

Post title:


Please keep it brief: (512-character limit)
Please make sure CAPS LOCK is off. Posts in ALL CAPS will be deleted.)


By checking this box, you agree to the terms of the FredTalk User agreement.