Can Money Buy Weight Loss?

"If I had a chef to cook low-fat meals for me and a personal trainer who came to my home every morning, I could lose weight too!"

Those are the words of a close friend who was speaking about Oprah Winfrey's dramatic weight loss in the 1990's. At the time, Oprah Winfrey hired chef, Rosie Daley, whose delicious low-fat creations she had sampled while visiting the resort where Ms. Daley was employed. She also had the luxury of having personal trainer, Bob Greene, coming to her home to put her through the rigors of a daily morning workout. My friend was convinced that if she had the money for a chef and a trainer that she would have no trouble taking off the extra pounds. I'm not so sure it's that simple.

Sure it would be fabulous to delegate the responsibility of planning healthy meals with a good balance of nutrients, calories and fat to someone else. Chefs are familiar with combining flavors and seasonings to create meals that are big on flavor. Who doesn't get bored with the same baked chicken breast and broccoli? Prep work and cooking is time consuming. Having the financial resources of a celebrity of Ms. Winfrey's caliber would allow this luxury for a lifetime. But having well planned, tasty meals that are prepared by someone else doesn't prevent the urge to snack between meals or late at night. That is an issue that even the rich and famous must address.

As far as exercise is concerned, you can't pay someone to exercise for you, even Oprah has to sweat it out to get results. She still has to get out of her warm bed in the morning and put on her workout gear. She still has to perform the bicep curls, crunches and squats like us mere mortals. She can't get an assistant to hop on the treadmill for a three mile jog. Those are assignments that she has to tackle herself. Would you get better results if you could work out in your home with a trainer every day? That depends on you. The trainer can take the work out of planning the routine for the day, but if you want those results, you have to give it your all. You have to be willing to push yourself. You can't give up when it starts getting hard.

No one said that it was easy to lose weight or get/stay fit. It takes work. It takes dedication. It takes time and planning. In Oprah's case, it took money. While we might like to use finances as an excuse for our lack of success, keep in mind that even with all of the resources at her fingertips, the powerful Ms. Winfrey gained back a great deal of weight. Money can't buy weight loss success. It can't buy you a fit body. It can help make life easier, but ultimately, it takes effort and a willingness to do whatever it takes.