This is the transcript of a video recorded by Aisling Connolly in response to the media coverage afforded to a comment Alan Carr made about wanting to try a new, supposedly ‘game changer’ weight loss pill.
The key reason for recording this video is to both alert and warn people that there is no such thing as a quick-fix weight loss pill. The lockdowns have interrupted everyone’s lives and have contributed to significant weight gain. There are individuals that will step in and promise the quick cure of all cures for that weight gain.
Be on your guard.
Be watchful.
There is no magic pill for weight loss.
You can watch the video in full below.
The sensationalist news surrounding Alan Carr, his three stone Covid weight gain and his desire to try a new weight loss drug is wrong on so many levels; it’s difficult to know where to begin.
For a start, I always enjoy listening to Alan Carr. He’s funny, warm, affectionate and is a very polished entertainer. I’ve no doubt that he’s put many thousands of hours into perfecting his onscreen persona, so he obviously understands the trade off from putting in the hard yards versus taking the easier option.
Like everything in life, you get out what you put in. This is important and I’ll return to this point in due course.
Anyway, the headline screamed, ‘Alan Carr to try weight loss wonder drug after putting on three stone during lockdown’. Of course, it grabbed my attention, and like everyone else, I clicked through for the details.
I was shocked and left with a feeling of helplessness. Every year, it’s the same old story, another wonder drug or quick fix pill to cure overweight and obesity.
Let me get this clear – there is no wonder drug or magic pill that will cure overweight and obesity on its own. That the media will publish such misleading news is deeply flawed, as it gives false hope to so many people who are in desperate need of help to lose weight.
It’s important to look at the claims of this wonder drug semaglutide, this “game changer”. In February of this year the results of a clinic trial were published, claiming significant weight loss amongst the trial patients over a 68-week period. The study claims 50% of participants were able to lose at least 15% of initial body weight and over 30% lost at least 20% body weight.
But, and it’s an alarming but, the media did not report on two critical aspects of the clinical trials.
First the medication was taken in conjunction with significant lifestyle recommended changes. It’s not as simple as popping a pill and watching the weight fall off. You have to undergo significant changes to what you eat and in tandem, introduce a training regime to your daily routine.
Secondly, and most worryingly, over 74% of those on semaglutide reported at least one gastrointestinal side effect – mostly nausea, diarrhoea, vomiting, or constipation. I don’t think anyone has told Alan Carr this.
In reading Alan’s comments, one of them stands out and this will resonate with many of you. He talks about having tried so many diets and they all have failed. My reply to Alan is that you didn’t fail, those diet programmes failed you.
Fear of failure is the number one reason people don’t lose weight. I always ask why, where is that coming from? It’s coming from past events. It’s coming from previous programmes. Nearly everyone we meet has tried everything and as I say everything as in dieting. Very, very seldom has any of these diet programmes looked at why they’re overeating. There is nothing more frustrating than not knowing why we are doing something. The reason why. So, again, I’d always say, you haven’t failed, the programmes have failed you because they haven’t been addressing the why.
Dieting alone is not going to help you keep the weight off. It’s the why you are overeating; it’s your mindset, your habits, behaviours and attitudes. Change these and you can lose weight and keep it off for life.
As I said above, you get out what you put in, hard work pays off and I know Alan knows this. If I could say one thing to Alan, it would be this:
“You have not failed, those diet programmes failed you. The way to long-lasting weight loss is to change those habits, behaviours and attitudes that are causing you to overeat in the first place. Don’t touch semaglutide. I can help you to lose three stone in an environment that provides all the support and tools you need to lose weight successfully.”
