Originally Posted by
Nessism
... if you have to pay someone to help you lose weight you may as well donate the money to a good cause because that's not a sustainable approach.
Did you read the first post? Your response is pretty glib.
There are lots of situations and circumstances in which paying for the help of a professional is wise and well worth the money, making corrective changes to one's health being one of them. Clearly you don't agree, and that's fine if it works for you. I'm merely pointing this out for anyone else reading the thread who might be dissuaded to seek help when they really need it because of your comment.
And I'll repeat what I said that I had two exceptionally good experiences with personal training. Money was an obstacle for me to do professional training continuously, but even doing it for 8 or 4 months, I learned a lot and was helped a lot. And I had fun with it, too. It was tremendous fun to be doing it with another person, and that person being an expert whom I could trust would help ensure I didn't injure myself while correcting weak areas or learning new skills. I would commend it to anyone, even if it's financially challenging for a while, and I will go back when I am able.
Social support has everything to do with the reason why I'm asking the question in the first place. I would not advocate or agree with your implication that paying an expert to get social support
in addition to their expertise is throwing money away, especially if it is the only option for some people who lack familial support. Making life changes that are very hard in the context of healthy, supportive relationship is a scientifically proven and important predictor of success. To whomever is reading this in the future, especially if you've ever struggled with depression in the past...... just Google "social support and fitness" or "social support and weight loss" and you'll see the validity of seeking it out.