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Health & Wellness

2008-04-01 11:37:00

How long should one use an appetite control patch?

Question: You have told about how you lost weight using a new appetite control patch. I would like to do the same thing, but I have a question. If I use an appetite control patch to lose weight, will I have to keep using the patch to keep my weight off?

Answer: Each of us is unique, so we will not all have exactly the same experience with any product that we are using, and this is true of the patches. However, if your experience using appetite control patches is similar to mine, you should be able to maintain your new lower weight while reducing your frequency of using the patches. Part of what has made me such a fan of the new appetite control patch is that it enabled me to alter my eating habits and begin living a healthier lifestyle. We gain weight or lose weight based on a simple fact. Our body fat is a form of an energy savings account. If we consume more calories than we burn for energy, our body saves the excess calories and stores them in the form of fat. When this happens, we gain weight. However, if we burn more calories than we consume, our body dips into its energy savings and supplements our energy needs by burning fat calories. In this case, we lose weight. We all know skinny people that seem to eat whatever they want and never gain weight. For many of us, we get frustrated just being around them. By comparison, some of us seem to gain weight by just looking at food. The difference is that some people have a higher metabolism than others, for whatever reason, and they burn calories at a faster rate than the rest of us. However, regardless of our metabolism, our body weight is the result of the balance between the calories we consume and the calories we burn. Losing weight always means consuming fewer calories than we are burning so that our body is forced to burn fat to make up the difference. Every diet that has ever been developed for weight loss arrives at this same point in some way. That is why we are also encouraged to add exercise to our routine. Exercise causes us to burn more calories, and for some people, exercise even helps them reduce their craving for certain foods. Weight loss will not happen without a commitment to succeed. My experience with the new drug-free appetite control patch was that it reduced my appetite and made it easier for me to cut down on the quantities of food I was eating. It also helped reduce my cravings for sweets, all of which reduced my calorie intake. I still needed to use my will power to change old habits and to avoid the food temptations that I would find in front of me from time to time, but the patch made it easier. I began to take smaller portions and discovered that I was satisfied with eating less. I also tried to begin eating smarter. I started to eat more fruits and vegetables and less processed foods. I also cut back on high fat foods, and I reduced my sugar intake as well. I was cutting back on my higher calorie foods and I was cutting back on my total food quantity at the same time. However, through all of this, I did not deny myself foods that I really like. I just reduced the quantity. As the pounds gradually came off, I was amazed at how easy it was, and this encouraged me to continue. Also, my energy level was good, and that prompted me to do more walking. I even began to ride my bicycle some evenings when the weather was nice. I soon lost that last 15 pounds that I had been unable to lose any other way. All weight loss programs have a footnote stating that for continued success, individuals must make lifestyle changes that support maintaining their slimmer body and reduced weight. That is what using the appetite control patch did for me without my even realizing it. Now, the eating habits that I developed while using the patch have become my normal lifestyle. As a result, I am able to maintain my new weight without using the patch on a regular basis. I still weigh myself at the same time every morning, and I write my weight on the calendar. If I see that I have gained a few pounds, I begin using the patch again for a short while. Gradually my weight goes back to where it was, and I stop using the patches. For me, the appetite control patch has become the “healthy lifestyle patch” that I now only use intermittently as I see the need. I would expect your results to be similar.