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Running head: THE TRUTH BEHIND WOMEN AND WEIGHT 1

The Truth Behind Women and Weight

Michelle Hastie Thompson

HUB 680 - Integrative Project

National University, Online Program

Dr. Timothy Ruppert, Professor

July 23, 2017

THE TRUTH BEHIND WOMEN AND WEIGHT

Table of Contents

Page

Abstract............................................................................................................................................3

Introduction.....................................................................................................................................4

Research Proposition.......................................................................................................................4

Literature Review............................................................................................................................5

Is Dieting Successful ..........................................................................................................6

Alternate Approaches to Dieting.........................................................................................8

Effects of Dieting ................................................................................................................9

Comparing Dieters and Non-dieters..................................................................................10

Synthesis ...........................................................................................................................11

Method...........................................................................................................................................12

Overview of Design...........................................................................................................12

Participants and Sampling Plan.........................................................................................13

Procedure...........................................................................................................................13

Measures............................................................................................................................13

Results...........................................................................................................................................14

Reliability, Validity, and Bias Check................................................................................14

Test of Hypothesis 1..........................................................................................................14

Tests of Hypothesis 2........................................................................................................15

Exploratory Analysis.........................................................................................................17

Discussion......................................................................................................................................21

Interpretation of Major Findings.......................................................................................24

THE TRUTH BEHIND WOMEN AND WEIGHT

Limitations of the Study....................................................................................................26

Future Directions for Research..........................................................................................26

Implications of the Study...................................................................................................28

General Summary and Conclusions..............................................................................................29

References ....................................................................................................................................30

Appendix A ...................................................................................................................................35

Appendix B ...................................................................................................................................38

Appendix C....................................................................................................................................49

THE TRUTH BEHIND WOMEN AND WEIGHT 3

Abstract

Weight loss is a complex and integrative topic that deserves a great deal of attention and

extensive critical thinking. While most research focuses on strategies to manipulate weight, most

commonly dieting, I propose a new theory for understanding women and weight focusing on

thoughts, beliefs and emotions, especially surrounding food, exercise and their body. Past studies

show the effectiveness of various strategies on the dieting population, but few have dedicated a

significant amount of time studying the effects of weight and dieting on women. Using a

qualitative strategy, I collected interviews to find patterns for those that struggle with weight and

those who do not. Patterns were coded through the process of grounded theory in order to build

from the foundation up with a different focus than most studies. Throughout this investigation of

women with and without excess weight, a deeper understanding can be developed to discuss the

truth behind women and weight.

Keywords: alternative weight loss strategies, weight loss, women and weight, mindset

and weight, weight mindset, dieting, non-dieting


The Truth Behind Women and Weight

Weight loss is a widely discussed topic with physical, environmental and behavioral

challenges (Rogerson, Soltani, & Copeland, 2016). Currently, many studies performed utilize a

quantitative approach excluding the true complexity of the topic (Rogerson, Soltani, &

Copeland, 2016). I have found the research to be externally focused and rarely anticipates the

specific needs of women. It would be beneficial to hear the thoughts, beliefs and emotions of the

women who struggle and women who do not in order to compare and contrast. With this

understanding, important themes and patterns could be uncovered to expose the complexity of

the topic and uncover the truth behind women and weight. This could allow for richer and more

effective weight loss strategies that encompass the true struggles women experience around their

bodies and weight. When searching for solutions to obesity, advice is centered on providing

healthier food to children, eliminating sugar, posting caloric data on menus, regulating marketers

and making healthy food more accessible to the majority of people (American Health Line,

2013). With a new and truer understanding of women and weight, traditional dieting methods

could be challenged and the current rate of weight gain after weight loss could be lowered.

Research Proposition

The purpose of this study was to understand (a) why and how women experience excess

and ideal weight, (b) how having excess weight impacts women, and (c) strategies and processes

women utilize to resolve their struggles with the impact and consequences of excess weight

versus those who have their ideal weight.

Hypothesis 1: Women with excess weight have different thoughts, beliefs and emotions

towards food, exercise and their bodies than those that have never struggled with excess weight.


Hypothesis 2: The most common strategy used to resolve their struggles with the impact

and consequences of excess weight, dieting, is ineffective and leads to negative outcomes.

For Hypothesis 1, the independent variables were the thoughts, beliefs and emotions

towards food, exercise and their bodies, while the dependent variable was the women. For

Hypothesis 2, the independent variable was dieting, while the dependent variable was the

women.

Grounded theory was utilized to test these hypotheses by interviewing women who have

excess weight and those that do not in order to understand the mindset of those that struggle with

weight and those who do not. Careful attention was given to the thought processes, beliefs and

emotions of the women of each group specifically towards food, exercise and body/weight. The

women that struggle with weight were also be asked to discuss the overall effects of dieting and

success rate of such diets.

Literature Review

There are countless studies that have tested traditional dieting approaches to influence

and remove weight and even some studies that highlight alternative strategies to remove weight.

What becomes challenging, however, is when weight loss is studied they are often looking only

at external results. It is less likely to find out what the participants’ mindset was before, during

and after the study, especially using women only. For example, if a dieting method was

successful and weight loss lowered, how confident is the participant in maintaining these results?

Furthermore, many studies test a dieting method against a placebo group to show how the diet

influenced one set of participants. However, it is more challenging to find research that shows

the difference between a group of people with and without excess weight. For this reason, I did

not limit my review to only studies done on women in order to get a wide array of studies on the


topic at hand. My intent is to show that studies in the field of weight lack the depth needed to

truly understand this group of people.

Is Dieting Successful

It would be imperative to discuss whether or not dieting is in fact successful being that if

it had a high success rate, there would be less urgency to explore other more effective options.

Schroder (2011) did a study comparing the use of a computer dieting tool versus group

interaction. Both groups had access to the computer dieting tool while only one group had access

to group meetings as well (Schroder, 2011). On average, the group that used the computer gained

all their weight back once the study was completed (Schroder, 2011). The other group, however,

not only maintained their weight loss but continued to lose weight even after the study was

completed. Although some may argue that this proves that dieting works, I would propose that

the group discussions created the depth the participants needed to reach high levels of success.

Rogerson, Soltani, and Copeland (2016) found that dieting leads to increase of appetite,

food obsessions, increased cravings and lower energy. These factors not only make staying on a

diet more challenging, they negatively impact the emotions of the dieter when they gain the

weight back as over 80% of them do (Rogerson, Soltani, & Copeland, 2016). If a better

understanding was present for the mindset of the participants, perhaps a better suited solution

could be presented that is more successful long-term.

A popular weight loss intervention television show that highlights extreme exercise and

dieting for obese individuals has even been studied to see if results do in fact last. Fothergill et al.

(2016) studied contestants from the television show The Biggest Loser and found that most

contestants gained the weight back in the six years following the show. This is a public showcase


of extreme dieting which begs the question, if you can’t find your ideal body in that

environment, where can you?

One of the most important studies completed to support whether or not dieting is

successful or not, utilized twins in order to eliminate the influence of genes on results

(Pietilainen et al., 2012). In this twin study it was supported that the twins who were put on the

diet gained more weight than their sibling who did not diet (Pietilainen et al., 2012). The

explanation for why dieting causes weight gain was that restricted eating causes increase of

appetite and preoccupation with food. The study states that it truly needs further research to

completely rule out genetics as a major factor in weight loss/weight gain which is my intent for

my research.

Most dieters participate in a process of weight cycling as stated by Hsu (2012) when she

claims that dieters will lose their body weight 9 times in their lifetime. Stated differently, the

average person is a chronic dieter, which has been proven to be a major proponent of weight gain

(Saarni, Rissanen, Sarna, Koskenvuo, & Kaprio, 2006). This study done in weight-cycling

athletes showed that the athletes struggled with obesity more often than those who do not

participate in weight cycling (Saarni et al., 2006).

Yet another study supporting that dieting is in fact responsible for weight gain was done

by Stice, Cameron, Killen, Hayward, and Taylor (1999) using adolescents. The explanation

given for this finding was that perhaps these adolescents weren’t dieting so well after all (Stice et

al., 1999). This is a common argument given when dieting is shown to be ineffective. Instead of

blaming the method, the person is blamed. They also pointed out that dieting causes binge eating

and clearly this behavior is counter intuitive for long term weight loss results (Stice et al., 1999).


These findings were also confirmed in another more recent study of adolescents (Field et al.,

2003) making the argument for dieting being ineffective even stronger.

Dieting is not only ineffective, it is marketed to individuals with very little ethical

consideration (Lustig, 1991). In order for dieting to be successful it would require long-term

group and individual support by well trained professionals with adequate follow up, which is

lacking in weight loss programs.

Alternative Approaches to Dieting

Being that dieting is minimally effective, it would be wise to search for those that attempt

to explain weight loss in a new light, especially using a qualitative approach. There are

considerably less of these available to examine. However, Stelter (2015) was one who used a

coaching method in a single case study to investigate a woman’s relationship with food, exercise

and her body and attempt to help her lose weight. She was able to identify key attributes that

affect an individual’s weight loss success such as, understanding that losing weight is tied to an

entire lifestyle change, being ready for said change and perception of support from the person’s

environment (Stelter, 2015). While this study proved to be helpful in showing that weight loss

can happen without dieting, it doesn’t highlight the women’s mindset in comparison to someone

who does not struggle with weight. Moreover, it would be hard to support that weight loss could

be possible without the influence of external factors based on one person.

Freund and Hennecke (2012) hypothesized that focusing on the process of losing weight

rather than the outcome of weight loss would in fact create more success in her study. She was

able to support this hypothesis to be true in her 6-week study giving an alternative approach to

traditional dieting. Once again, it’s helpful to find studies that show weight loss is possible in


other ways, but it still utilizes a focus on food instead of mindset which I am interested in

researching further.

Another consideration for dieters is to skip dieting completely and go for major surgery

in order to deem them incapable of overeating. With an 800% increase, bariatric surgery is

becoming more and more popular as a quick solution for weight loss (Erdely, 2008). However,

many dieters are not understanding the seriousness of such a surgery, especially an honest look

into what their life will look like post-surgery (Erdely, 2008). Yes, they will be lighter; however,

almost half have severe complications after surgery (Erdely, 2008). This study is important to

include as it can be the choice a dieter makes once they realize dieting is not effective for them.

It would be imperative for them to understand that they could make shifts in their mindset

instead of undergoing major surgery.

Effects of Dieting

It is also important to look at the effects of dieting to show that, even if successful, it may

not be worth the side effects. Wood (2001) was able to indicate that dieting drops levels of

leptin, which in fact increases hunger. She discovered that after three months of dieting, leptin

levels dropped by 54%, and desire to eat doubled over the course of the study. It raises the

question of whether or not dieters are setting themselves up to fail the minute the diet begins.

This study did include subjective feedback by asking the participants how hungry they felt every

two weeks. It’s helpful to include this feedback; however, I would have added many other

subjective questions to assess the dieters thoughts, feelings and emotions before, during and after

the study for a more accurate picture of how dieting affects them.

Being that the main goal of dieting is to reduce weight, it would seem that the absence of

this result would be reason enough to reexamine this method. Bacon et al. (2002) conducted a


study testing non-diet programs because of the fact that traditional diet programs are only

successful for short-term weight loss, and found that the risks of dieting were not to be ignored.

For one, once dieters regain their weight, they abandon healthy habits due to their lack of success

with weight loss (Bacon et al., 2002). It’s an interesting point since the reason for diets are

centered on health improvement. If in fact, dieting is not improving our health, and not

succeeding in long-term weight loss, why is this still considered a reliable method?

To further solidify the above mentioned study, a study was done to test whether or not

dieting for weight loss could in fact improve cardiovascular health in Type 2 diabetes patients

(“Cardiovascular Effects of Intensive Lifestyle Intervention”, 2013). This study looked at these

patients for a period of 10 years and found no improvements in the group that participated in

dieting or what they label as “intensive lifestyle intervention” (“Cardiovascular Effects of

Intensive Lifestyle Intervention”, 2013, p. 145). It further proves the need for alternative

approaches to weight and health improvement.

Comparing Dieters and Non-dieters

Juhaeri et al. (2001) studied dieters and non-dieters and found that the dieting group did

in fact gain weight. They explained the weight gain in dieters as probable due to their tendency

to gain weight in general. I, however, would like to challenge this explanation. I find it

interesting that when their results showed that dieters gained weight they didn’t investigate this

further, instead they attributed it to the nature of the person, which I disagree with.

Hart and Chiovari (1998) conducted a study that specifically looked at the cognitive

effects of dieting on dieters and non-dieters. Their data showed that there was a significant

increase in obsessing thoughts around food for the dieters. The suggestion for future research is

once again focused on manipulating dieting methods to allow for this observation, whereas I see


the solution as eliminating dieting altogether and focusing on the differences in mindset of the

two groups.

Another study that compared dieters to non-dieters was done by Ogden (1995), where she

specifically looked at the cognitive changes between the two groups. Two important results came

about from this study: one was that the dieting group lost very little weight on their low calorie

regimen and the other was that there were not significant mood changes in the two groups. This

is not surprising to me as the study was conducted over a 6-week period of time. I do not believe

this was long enough to emphasize the effects of dieting on a group of women. In order to see the

true effects, I believe the women would have needed to stay on the diet for considerably longer.

Hsu (2012) states that, for a 12 month period, less than 1% of participants could stick to a diet

and women specifically diet for an average of 6 months per year. Therefore, to get true data, the

study would have needed to be extended quite a bit.

Synthesis

While many studies are performed in the field of weight loss, finding studies that

specifically look at the thoughts, beliefs and emotions of women with excess versus ideal weight

are lacking. The few articles that were available resembling this intent were done over twenty

years ago showing the need for this type of research today. Multiple studies show that dieting is

ineffective, and the ones that show it to be effective in lowering weight fail to highlight how the

participants think and feel before, during and after to show if improvements are in fact positive.

Alternative approaches to dieting have been done, but not in large amounts and still fail to

highlight the differences in mindset between those with weight excess weight and those without.

And lastly, and perhaps most importantly, there are many negative effects of dieting supported

through research making this preferred approach to weight management less than ideal. By


gathering interviews from women who have struggled with weight and comparing them to

women who do not struggle with weight, important contrasts can be acknowledged. These

differences were coded using grounded theory to build a new theory on weight loss from the

ground up which has yet to be found in current research. A new theory for weight loss will be

crucial to help those women that struggle rely on a new and more effective approach to long term

weight loss.

Method

Overview of Design

This study consisted of interviews given to women identifying as either “ideal weight” or

“overweight” utilizing grounded theory. The data recorded through the interviews was

categorized focusing on the behaviors and attitudes of the women, as is typical of grounded

theory (Lindvall, Larsson, Weinehall, & Emmelin, 2010). Interviews were chosen as weight is

often viewed as very personal and can be done by email, phone or in person. Copious notes were

taken during the interview process, in addition to audio recording for phone interviews. The

interview questions were broken down into four categories (e.g., see Appendix A): Dieting, food,

exercise and body/weight. Each category of questions was designed to understand the thoughts,

beliefs, and emotions of the women in order to recognize patterns and themes.

Participants and Sampling Plan

I recruited a convenience sample of 42 female dieters and non-dieters. The women were

between the ages of 25-65, with the majority landing in the 40-50 age category. 67% were

Caucasian, 14% were African-American, 5% were Hispanic, 2% were Native American and 12%

other. Out of the 42 participants, 16 labeled themselves as “ideal weight” while 26 labeled

themselves as “overweight”.


Procedure

The sample was obtained through the use of social media, local relationships, email,

Craigslist, and findparticipants.com. The participants were asked to apply for the research which

gathered their name, email, phone, age range, ethnicity and reason for showing interest in this

research project. They were offered a spot in a drawing for a $25 Amazon gift card as a thank

you. I then replied through email, with the consent form, along with a link to the interview

questions to answer online, or an option to reply and request a phone interview. Most of the

participants completed the interview questions using a google form online. There were a few that

preferred the phone, and so, this method was utilized. These phone interviews were recorded.

Measures

There were two measures used in the research. The first type of measure was an

evaluation of the women’s thoughts, beliefs and attitudes, towards food, exercise and their body.

The participants were directly asked, on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from (1) Not afraid of

weight gain to (5) Terrified of weight gain, how afraid are you of gaining weight?

The second type of measure assessed the women’s success with dieting. There were

three performance measures: (a) the ability to lose pounds on the diet (b) the ability to maintain

the pounds lost, and (c) the women’s feelings towards food, exercise and body/weight before,

during and after the diet. Once the data was collected, I rated the responses, on a 5-point Likert

scale ranging from (1) Dieting is ineffective to (5) Dieting is effective.

Results

Reliability, Validity, and Bias Checks

In order to analyze the evidence that does, or does not, support my research proposition, I

used a Chi-square (Appendix C). I used four performance measures to analyze the evidence of


this study. The first measure was directly asked in the interviews. The question posed to the

sample was, “On a scale of 1-15, how much do you fear weight gain?” I then took the responses

to this question, and categorized as follows: A) 1-2, B) 3-4, and C) 5. When this data was

transferred into the Chi-square, the p-value came to 0.0529. This would indicate a borderline

high confidence level.

The next performance measure used, was to assess the effectiveness of dieting. Three

performance measures were used to assess this. Each performance measure utilized a Likert scale

of 1-5 ranging from (1) Dieting is ineffective to (5) Dieting is effective, assessed by me when

reading through the responses. The first measure utilized the interview responses to the question,

“Do you think dieting is an effective weight loss tool for long term weight loss? Why or why

not?” I categorized the responses as follows: 1-2) Needs to be long term, causes food rumination,

or needs to be combined with something else, 3-4) Just diet for life, and 5) Healthier. I chose to

categorize this way because dieting would be considered ineffective to the sample if they stated

that it needs to be long term, causes food rumination and/or needs to be combined with

something else. If the sample responded that it can be effective, if in fact, someone can manage

to make it a lifestyle change, I considered that to be 3-4. And lastly, if they stated that dieting

actually makes you healthier, I considered that a 5. When this data was transferred into the Chi-

square, it was discovered that the p-value came to 0.0011. This would indicate an extremely high

confidence level

The second measurement for dieting that I used was to discover whether or not the

sample had success in maintaining the pounds lost on a diet. I categorized the responses as

follows: 1-2) Less than 30 days or 1-6 months, 3-4) 7 months - 2 years, and 5) Over 2 years. I

chose to categorize this way because less than 6 months seems like an insignificant amount of

Timothy Ruppert, 07/06/17, RESOLVED

Timothy Ruppert, 07/06/17, RESOLVED

square


time to maintain weight loss, while over 2 years would be considered more significant. When

this data was transferred into the Chi-square, it was discovered that the p-value was 0.1451. This

was a low confidence level.

Lastly, I measured the effectiveness of dieting based on the way the sample felt before

and after a diet. It would be of importance to me, to know if the person, in fact, actually felt

better after dieting. The question was stated as, “How do you feel before a diet? During? After?”

First I coded the responses as follows: Before the diet: 1) Nervous/anxious, 2) Excited/hopeful,

and 3): Fed up/Emotional distress. During the diet: A) Motivated/determined, B) Hungry, C)

Emotional distress, D) Better/healthier/more energy, and E) Stress. After the diet: I)

Defeated/guilty, II) Terrified, and III) Better. I decide the data collected for, during the diet, was

not significant for this specific measure. From here, I then categorized these responses with the

same Likert scale as follows: 1-2) 1, 2, or 3 and I or II, 3-4) 1 or 2 to III and 5) 3 to III. I chose to

categorize this way because I and II are negative feelings, indicating that the sample did not

receive the feelings they desired from dieting. While a portion of the sample did say they felt

better after dieting, I defined effectiveness from a diet, by a person who actually felt emotional

distress before the diet, and better after the diet. When this data was transferred into the Chi-

square, it was discovered that the p-value was less than 0.001. This is a very high confidence

level.

Test of Hypothesis 1 (Women with excess weight have different thoughts, beliefs and

emotions towards food, exercise and their bodies than those that have never struggled with

excess weight.)

At the end of the interview, the participants were asked, on a 5-point Likert scale ranging

from (1) Not afraid of weight gain to (5) Terrified of weight gain, how afraid they are of gaining

Timothy Ruppert, 07/06/17,

square


weight. 30% of participants stated they were terrified of gaining weight, 47% of participants

came in in the middle, and 2% stated that they are not afraid of weight gain.

However, if we compare the participants that identified as “ideal weight” versus

“overweight” we see some interesting numbers. In the ideal weight category, less than 20% are

afraid of gaining weight, while 50% are not afraid of gaining weight at all. For the overweight

category, 38% are afraid of gaining weight, while less than 1%, in fact, just one person out of the

26, stated they are not afraid of gaining weight.

Tests of Hypothesis 2 (Dieting is ineffective and leads to negative outcomes.)

For the second hypothesis, three performance measures were used to test the effects of

dieting: (a) the ability to lose pounds on the diet (b) the ability to maintain the pounds lost, and

(c) the women’s feelings towards food, exercise and body/weight before, during and after the

diet. Each performance measure utilized a Likert scale of 1-5 ranging from (1) Dieting is

ineffective to (5) Dieting is effective, assessed by me when reading through the responses.

The first measure utilized the interview responses to the question, “Do you think dieting

is an effective weight loss tool for long term weight loss? Why or why not?” Again, I used the

categories: 1-2) Needs to be long term, causes food rumination, or needs to be combined with

something else, 3-4) Just diet for life, and 5) Healthier.

For the effectiveness of dieting, 76% of participants chose a response that would indicate

that dieting is ineffective in terms of the ability to lose pounds on the diet. 19% came in the

middle by stating that as long as you can diet for life, it will work. And less than 1% of

participants, said that dieting to lose weight, will in fact, make you healthier.


The second measurement for dieting that I used was to discover whether or not the

sample had success in maintaining the pounds lost on a diet. Again, I categorized the responses

as follows: 1-2) Less than 30 days or 1-6 months, 3-4) 7 months - 2 years, and 5) Over 2 years.

Out of the 42 participants, 13 people either skipped this question, or stated that they have

never been on a diet, and therefore, cannot answer the question. This left me with 29 people to

assess. 41% of these remaining participants gained the weight back after a diet in 6 months or

less. 38% were able to keep weight off for up to 2 years, while 2% were able to keep the weight

off for more than 2 years.

Lastly, I measured the effectiveness of dieting based on the way the sample felt before

and after a diet. The question was stated as, “How do you feel before a diet? During? After?”

Again, I coded the responses as follows: Before the diet: 1) Nervous/anxious, 2) Excited/hopeful,

and 3): Fed up/Emotional distress. During the diet: A) Motivated/determined, B) Hungry, C)

Emotional distress, D) Better/healthier/more energy, and E) Stress. After the diet: I)

Defeated/guilty, II) Terrified, and III) Better.

For this question, 20 people chose not to answer, with the majority opting out from

having no dieting experience. Out of the remaining 22 people, 86% of participants went from

some type of emotional distress, anxiousness, or even hope, to feeling defeated, terrified, and/or

guilty after dieting. One person went from emotional distress to better after dieting. And two

people, less than 1%, were able to say that they went from fed up, to feeling good after dieting.

Exploratory Analyses

Dieting

For the participants that considered themselves ideal weight, almost half of them stated

that dieting had no impact on their life, while almost half of the overweight stated that dieting


had affected their life negatively. When asked what side effects came as a result of dieting, only

15% of ideal weight participants and 31% of overweight participants said they had no side

effects, leaving the majority of both groups susceptible to side effects from dieting.

When asked why they succeed or don’t succeed on a diet, the majority of ideal weight

participants said that they wouldn’t succeed because diets don’t work and are too restrictive,

while the majority of overweight participants stated that dieting doesn’t work because they lose

motivation.

The participants were asked why a person may choose to diet and the top answer came in

as feel better, with look better, and lose weight coming closely behind. Right behind that came

the response of pressure and acceptance.

When asked whether or not they believed dieting worked more than half of all

participants said no. The top answer for where dieting was learned was family. And most

importantly, only 11.5% of participants stated they felt better after completing a diet, while 50%

stated they felt defeated and guilty after dieting.

Food

Almost all the participants agreed that they enjoy food. Half stated they were afraid of

their appetite. When asked why they may fear their appetite the top answer for the overweight

participants was they feel they can’t stop and must eat what is on their plate, while the majority

of ideal weight participants stated that their appetite felt natural.

To figure out what to eat, the majority of ideal weight participants use healthy, good

choices or whatever they crave or sounds good. For overweight participants, the top answer was

their cravings or what sounds good, followed by health and what their diet dictates. In contrast,

less than 7% of ideal weight participants allow a diet to dictate what to eat.


Calories were discovered through studies and research for most ideal weight participants,

and overweight participants came in evenly at family, studies/research and the media. Only 25%

of ideal weight participants have struggled with an eating disorder compared to 65% of

overweight participants. The top eating disorder was stated as stress eating.

When asked how food impacts their life, ideal weight participants stated that it impacts it

positively through pleasure and enjoyment, while overweight participants stated their top

response as emotional distress.

Exercise

Enjoyment of exercise showed itself to be high as 65% of all participants stated that they

enjoy to exercise. The ideal weight participants’ top response for frequency came in at every day

versus the overweight participants who came in at 2-6x per week. When asked whether or not

they felt their exercise was a sufficient amount, the majority of ideal weight participants said yes,

while the majority of overweight participants said no.

Overall, most participants do not believe they are athletes. The top reason to exercise for

the ideal weight participants was for fitness, health, and wellbeing with zero stating their weight

as a reason to exercise. In contrast, the top reason for overweight participants to exercise was to

manage their weight. Ideal weight participants stated time as their main excuse for not working

out, while overweight participants stated laziness as theirs.

When asked to define exercise, the majority of participants described something

strenuous that is more than your normal amount of movement. The overweight participants also

described exercise as movement.

Before exercising, ideal weight participants described themselves as mostly tired or

unmotivated. The overweight participants actually described themselves as motivated or


unmotivated. There was a tie between these two descriptions. During exercise, the majority

described the experiences as good. After exercise, ideal weight participants stated their state as

good. For overweight participants, the top answer was accomplished and satisfied, closely

followed by good, energetic, and tired.

When exercise is skipped, ideal weight participants described the experience before as no

big deal while overweight participants stated they felt tired, lazy, full of excuses, guilty, not

good, and also no big deal. After choosing to skip, all participants stated a feeling of guilt, and

also, no big deal.

Body/Weight

The participants were asked whether or not they liked the way their body looked. 68.5%

of ideal weight participants said yes, whereas, 11.5% of overweight participants did. 80% of

overweight participants said they do not like their looks, while 31% of ideal weight participants

discussed their body as functional, which was good enough for them. When asked what would be

different if the body was changed, most overweight participants said it would help them with

confidence. No ideal weight participant stated confidence as a result of changing the body.

The lightness or heaviness of the body came in at 77% of overweight participants listed

their bodies as feeling heavy, while 25% of ideal weight participants did. 37.5% of ideal weight

participants said their body felt ideal compared to 7.7% of overweight participants.

Trusting the body came in at almost 100% for ideal weight participants and 73% for

overweight participants. When asked why they trust or do not trust the body, ideal weight

participants most often stated that their body guides them, compared to overweight participants

who said they could trust their body because it functioned and not trust it because it had physical

limitations.


The participants were asked whether or not they put time and effort into their appearance

and 100% of ideal weight participants stated they did. A large percentage of overweight

participants claimed they did coming in at 65%, with the top reason being they don’t care to

impress others. Ideal weight participants said they put time and effort into their appearance

because it’s fun and feels good.

When asked whether or not they care if they are seen, 31% of overweight participants

said they did care because they don’t like their looks, compared to only 6.25% of ideal weight

participants. The ideal weight participants said they felt good about their body compared to the

majority of overweight participants who said they did not feel good about their body. And most

ideal weight participants said they loved their body, whereas most overweight participants

believed that if they loved their body they would have more happiness, peace and confidence.

Ideal weight participants mostly weigh themselves sporadically because the scale is there,

while overweight participants weigh themselves daily or weekly to see progress. Over half of

ideal weight participants do not fear weight gain, while less than 5% of overweight participants

can say the same.

Discussion

The top answer for why someone would diet came in at feel better. Yes, they want to

look better, be healthier, and all the other subsequent answers, but the top answer was still

centered around feeling. In contrast, when asking these women about their feelings around food,

exercise, dieting, and their bodies, their feelings were of emotional distress. Specifically, after

dieting, most women experienced emotional distress. In other words, they chose a diet to feel

better, and they ended a diet feeling worse. The weight loss industry seems to focus their

attention on external results. How much someone weighs, how they look, the way clothes fit, etc.

Timothy Ruppert, 07/22/17,

Within the results section, you must provide the results from your Chi-square analyses and reference to a figure or figures in the appendices where this information is provided. Your current reference section provides only percentages, which do not constitute analysis(es).


And while women may state these results as important, the most important goal for the majority

is based in feelings, an internal experience.

The ideal weight candidates described their appetite as something that felt natural, chose

their foods based on a positive focus, and overall described food as pleasurable and enjoyable.

This would indicate good feelings around food. The overweight candidates described their

appetite as out of control, chose their foods based on a number of things including a diet, and

overall described food as something that causes emotional distress. This would indicate bad

feelings around food. It would make more sense to create an eating experience that feels good for

the overweight population. Instead of putting overweight candidates on a diet, something that

causes negative feelings, let’s give them a relationship with food that feels good. One that helps

them feel their appetite is natural and something they can trust. And creates a positive experience

around food with pleasure and enjoyment. It would be my guess, that this would allow them to

feel better around food. And feeling better is the end goal here.

Most participants, ideal weight or overweight, exercise at least 2x per week. And

although the ideal weight participants did state they worked out daily more often than the

overweight, it’s not as if the overweight participants don't work out at all. And yet, the

resounding majority of overweight participants feel they are coming up short when it comes to

exercise. They feel they are not doing enough. And the ideal weight participants feel their

exercise is a sufficient amount. The motivation to exercise for the ideal weight participants

mostly came from health and wellbeing while for the ideal weight participants, it was about

managing their weight. The overweight participants are weighing themselves daily or weekly to

see if they lost weight from all their hard work at the gym, which they still believe isn’t enough.

And when that scale doesn’t move down, they feel bad. So now exercise is no longer associated


with positive feelings like it is for the ideal weight participants who weigh less and exercise for

their wellbeing instead of weight. And each time an overweight participant exercises they feel

accomplished, which was not a feeling often stated for the ideal weight participants. This brings

up the issue of when the overweight miss a workout. It would seem, each day they didn’t

exercise, they would feel unaccomplished. Bottom line, they are not feeling better overall, only

when they are good, and the scale moves down.

Lastly, we come to the relationship with the body. The majority of the overweight

participants do not like their body, while the majority of ideal weight candidates do. This may

not seem shocking, however, the ideal weight participants described their body as functioning for

them. They did not state their easement with their body to be about fitting into clothes or looking

a certain way. They were more concerned with how their body feels and serves them, and their

appreciation for that.

And so, all of the ideal weight participants trust their body to work for them and put time

and effort into their appearance. It may not seem obvious that these two pieces of data go

together, however, I see this as part of self-care. They trust their body to take care of them, and

so they take care of it the best way they can. They not only choose food and exercise based on

health, they choose to display themselves and their body in a way that makes them feel best. The

overweight participants stated less trust in the body, and less effort based on a lack of desire to

impress others. It bears the question, if the desire is to feel better, wouldn’t it make sense to feel

as good as possible in the current body, as opposed to waiting for the ideal body to show up to

take care of it? And is putting time and effort into your appearance truly about impressing others,

or just feeling good in the skin you have right now?


The overweight women do not have to wait to weigh less to feel better if they adopted the

strategies the ideal weight women are modeling. They need a better food and exercise plan that is

focused on feeling good as opposed to perfection and control. They need to be taught to take care

of the body they have now as opposed to waiting until they have the perfect body. They need to

celebrate the body they have today, exactly how it functions in this moment because it’s the only

body they have. And if they began to live this way, they would feel better. And then they would

achieve their top desire before even losing one pound. The truth about women and weight is that

feeling good is not reserved for the thin.

Interpretation of Major Findings

The purpose of this study was to understand (a) why and how women experience excess

and ideal weight, (b) how having excess weight impacts women, and (c) strategies and processes

women utilize to resolve their struggles with the impact and consequences of excess weight,

versus those who have their ideal weight. The data indicated a strong message regarding these

three topics. The coded data collected showed themes amongst the participants’ responses, and

their experience with weight. Some interesting findings were that almost all of the overweight

women identified their weight loss strategy as some type of dieting method, yet, they also

admitted that their results were sporadic at best. Also, when they were asked directly whether or

not they believed dieting was an effective tool for weight loss, the resounding majority said no.

When coding the questions regarding food, exercise and body/weight, there were

consistent themes of emotional distress, creating a definite need to find a solution to this issue,

and yet, the solution the majority were choosing, dieting, showed itself to be rather ineffective.

This leaves the world of weight loss wide open for alternate solutions. If the current solution


most women are choosing, is in fact, ineffective, it would appear a new solution is in order to

help relive the distress in the lives of these women.

Another interesting finding is when comparing the responses of the women who identity

as ideal weight versus overweight. The response towards food, exercise and body/weight were

much more lighthearted and free, whereas, the overweight women had a tone of distress. This

may appear to be an obvious difference considering one group was not struggling with their

weight, while the other was. However, the way in which the ideal weight participants approach

food, exercise and their bodies may not necessarily be just because they are not overweight. In

other words, a lighter approach to these subjects does not necessarily need to be reserved for

those in their ideal body. In fact, I believe just the opposite is true. I believe that the overweight

women can actually learn about the thoughts, beliefs, and emotions of the women who are in

their ideal weight, and apply this more lighthearted approach towards their life for a better

overall relationship with their weight.

The current knowledge on women and weight is limited in its focus. Currently, many of

the studies focus on dieting strategies for weight loss, or at the very least, something externally

based, such as manipulation of food and/or exercise. Very few studies dive deeper into the

programming of those that struggle with weight and those that do not. This is the most profound

data to me, as it shows how one can utilize the mind to influence the body, such as we see in the

placebo effect (Rankin, 2012). If the body can unexplainably heal disease through the power of

belief (Rankin, 2012), it would be interesting to see if the body can release excess weight using

this same principal. This research identified what types of thoughts, beliefs and emotions may be

necessary to test this theory. It outlined the differences in the mentality of someone who is


overweight, and someone who is not, to create a potential foundation for how the mind may need

to be influenced to change the size of the body.

It also shows how dieting is affecting women who are struggling with their weight and

why another theory truly needs to be developed. Taking women who are in emotional distress

and offering them a temporary solution that often makes them feel the same or worse at the end,

does not seem like an effective way to help this population. This research can become the

foundation to test new theories towards weight loss from a complete different perspective than

before

Limitations of the Study

Although we do the best as researchers to minimize limitations, my research certainly has

its limits. For one, part of the sample was drawn from my own personal connections. I posted my

research proposition on social media, emailed all my contacts, and personally asked people to

participate. This always creates a slight bias, as these participants are part of a connection to me.

However, the majority of the participants came from a website for researchers and were,

therefore, not a connection to me. Another limitation in my research is also linked to the sample.

The sample size consists of 42 people. This is not a massive sample, although for grounded

theory it’s quite normal. It is, however, always nice to have a large sample in which to draw

theories from.

Lastly, a limitation in my research comes from the interpretation of the data. I chose to

interview participants and then code the data using numbers and letters. During the coding

process, I read the responses, and when an answer was similar, I would assign the appropriate

code. Being that the responses were not multiple choice, I was required to interpret the responses

and choose the appropriate code. While I feel that I did this accurately, there is always the


possibility that another researcher could potentially interpret a response differently than I based

on their experiences. Although this limitation should be minor, it is something to consider.

Future Directions for Research

In terms of future research, there are countless possibilities. For one, the concern with the

ineffectiveness of dieting is a large one. Therefore, future research could address this issue from

various angles. First it would be helpful to conduct a study using interviews and ask more

questions on a dieters experience with dieting. This was simply one section of four in my

research. I feel an entire study could focus itself on this topic alone.

Second experiments could be conducted comparing dieting methods, with other, less

conventional methods. I do feel, however, that it would be imperative to include additional

measures besides pounds lost. Additional measures could include: feelings before, during, and

after the weight loss process, fear of weight gain, belief in ability to maintain, overall feelings

after weighing less, and any other additional assessments the researcher sees as a measurement

of success. It would also be important to allow this study to be longitudinal. My research shows

that many people can succeed at dieting in the short-term; it is the long-term results that are of

most interest to me, and also to the people on a lifelong quest to weigh less.

Third I believe a study that looks into the social and cultural implications of weight

would be beneficial. Many participants mentioned that they first heard about dieting from their

social world and/or the media. There were also participants that stated their desire to weigh less

involved societal pressures. It makes me wonder if there wasn’t social pressure and dieting

education through the media, would there be less people with weight issues. And, is this even

possible?


Lastly there was a small group of people that expressed no interest in weighing less. They

described their experience with weight, food, and exercise as positive and light. Their responses

had a sense of freedom, without the usual emotional distress. They stated that they loved their

bodies and saw no direct benefit to their body changing in any way. They pointed out the

incredible machine the body is and what it has been able to do for them. Overall, the tone was of

compassion, admiration, and love towards the body, food, and movement. We could all benefit

from learning more about how these people approach their body, food, and exercise. I believe

more research is needed to understand this minority group and how the majority can learn from

them.

Implications of the Study

There have been many interesting findings in this study. One is that dieting is ineffective

to help people who have issues with weight, body image, and food. While most participants

admitted that they did diet to lose weight, and felt better temporarily, the vast majority agreed

that this was not going to solve their major concerns of weighing less, being happy with their

body, and no longer having issues with food.

Another conclusion from this study, is that most people are living with a desire to lose

weight. Even participants who labeled themselves as “ideal weight” mentioned that they would

like to lose a few pounds. This data makes me wonder how much of this is influenced by societal

pressures. My fear is, it has become so collectively normal to desire weight loss, that even the

thin people have adopted language that supports losing weight.

And this leaves the small group of people who labeled themselves as “ideal weight” and

expressed no interest in losing weight as our teachers. Their responses were vastly different than

those that consider themselves “overweight” and the other ideal weight candidates that expressed


interest in weighing less. The responses from this group of people regarding dieting were very

much naive and ignorant. They had very little knowledge of this dieting world. In regards to

food, their responses were positive and celebratory around food, as opposed to fearful and

emotional, which was true of the other participants. In terms of exercise, this group of people

spoke with love and admiration for moving their body, which was not the general consensus of

the others. Lastly, the way they spoke about their body and life was free-spirited and not at all

focused on how much they weigh.

General Summary and Conclusions

One of the goals of this study was to outline the major differences in women that struggle

with their weight, and women that do not. The general theme is that women who are living in

their ideal body do not diet, see food as positive and enjoyable, and move to feel good. They also

view their body as something that serves and takes care of them, and so they do the same for

their body. In contrast, the overweight women often diet, see food a something that causes

emotional distress and move their body to lose weight. They are often disappointed with their

body and how it performs, and therefore, take care of it differently than the ideal weight women.

When designing weight loss programs, it would be important to consider these points. If a

weight loss program was created to mimic the ideal weight participants approach to life, it would

need to include: positive feelings around food, exercise for the purpose of feeling good, viewing

the body as something that functions for them, better self-care for the body, and no dieting.

Based on this study, this would give the overweight women the highest chance of success. And

considering this study has shown dieting to be ineffective for the participants, an alternate

solution is worth investigating.


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http://vassarstats.net/



http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/qhw.v10.26925

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Appendix A

Interview Questions

Dieting Questions

1. Do you identify as a dieter? Why or why not?

2. What has been your experience with dieting?

3. Why do you choose to diet or not to diet?

4. Do you feel you need to lose weight? Why or why not?

5. How has dieting impacted your life?

6. What, if any, side effects have you experienced as a result of dieting?

7. What’s the longest you kept the weight off after a diet?

8. Why do you believe you succeed or don’t succeed on a diet?

9. Why do you think people choose to diet?

10. Do you think dieting is an effective weight loss tool for long term weight loss? Why or why

not?

11. Are you satisfied with short term results? Why or why not?

12.When did you learn about dieting? Who from? What was told to you about dieting?

13. How do you feel before a diet? During a diet? After a diet?

Food

1. How much do you enjoy food on a scale of 1-10?

2. Are you afraid of your appetite? Why or why not?

3. How do you decide what to eat or not to eat?

4. How do you decide when to eat and when to stop?

5. Do you know how many calories you eat on average each day?


6. When did you learn about calories? From who? What did you learn?

7. Have you struggled with any eating disorders? (ex binge eating, anorexia, bulimia, over

eating, stress eating, orthorexia, exercise bulimia).

1. If yes, when did you first begin struggling with eating disorders? What was going on

at that time?

8. How does food impact your life?

Exercise

1. Do you like to exercise? Why or why not?

2. How often do you exercise? Does it feel like a sufficient amount? If not, what would be?

3. Would you identity as an athlete? Why or why not?

4. Why do you exercise or not exercise?

5. How would you define exercise?

6. What stops you from exercising?

7. How do you feel before, during and after exercise?

8. How do you feel before, during and after choosing to skip exercise?

Body/Weight

1. Do you love your body? Why or why not?

2. What do you believe will be different if you changed your body?

3. Does your body feel heavy or light? Why or why not?

4. Do you trust your body? Why or why not?

5. Do you put time or effort into your appearance? Why or why not?

6. Do you care if you’re seen or do you like to hide? Why or why not?

7. Do you speak up for yourself? Why or why not?


8. How do you feel about your body/weight?

9. How often do you weigh yourself? Why?

10. What do you believe will happen if you loved your body?

11. How much do you fear weight gain on a scale of 1-5?

Michelle Thompson, 07/23/17,


Appendix B

Raw Data


Appendix C

Chi-square Analysis

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