Table 2.

Central ideas and collective subject discourse: first focus group.

CENTRAL IDEA	COLLECTIVE SUBJECT DISCOURSE
1) During the first nutritional meetings, it was stated that our intervention would not involve a prescriptive diet. What did you think/feel when you received that information?
1A: I was relieved; the proposal came in handy.	I was relieved; And it came in handy because the proposal was to care; the body is beyond that lean ideal. The first thing I thought was, “I cannot deprive myself of being with people, of not eating when I’m at a party.” And I didn’t want anybody demanding what I must eat, at the risk of not liking it.
1B: At first, it came as a shock; initially, vanity made me want to lose weight.	At first it came as a complete shock when the nutritionist said, “I’m not here promising to make anyone slimmer.” I said, “Oh my God, what am I doing here?” We come impelled by the vanity as well.
2) How does it feel now; that is, what is it like to be in a non-prescriptive intervention after about three months of treatment?
2A: For me a diet would never have worked out.	For me, an exact diet would never have worked out, because I’m just like anybody else. For me, it is unconceivable to deprive myself of the pleasure of eating. What I wanted was to know how to eat, how to choose, how to balance what I was eating, what effect that food had on my body That’s what I needed.
2B: I realized that the weight loss I had imagined is not possible. I know I won’t lose weight quickly; it will be a process.	In this meantime, I haven’t seen a big difference in the scale number, but I’ve realized that I feel more motivated to continue. Perhaps I can lose a few kilograms, but I’ll never have the biotype of a slim person. I think it’s a positive acceptance; that slimming that I’ve pictured doesn’t exist anymore. I feel that it’s happening, but slowly. Maybe because my body is working today a little bit slowly, and that’s fine. And, also, because we live in a social context where people eat differently; that is another thing I like. I just mind not saying, “Oh, it didn’t work today so let it go.” My thought pattern now is like this: lose a little weight, mind my eating, and control the food record to watch what I’m eating. But, it’s a process. Perhaps my unconscious is telling me you will succeed in losing weight, but you need to follow this approach and it won’t happen so fast. And, a diet isn’t necessary, because down the road, if we keep pace with it, we will achieve a lower weight too, right?
2C: I have changed with the intervention; now I don’t want to simply lose weight.	I’ve changed with the intervention proposal. I’ve been changing my habits and I’ve realized that this is a matter of health, not only of losing weight. One day I told to the nutritionist, “I’m not losing weight.” She told me, “Are you gaining weight?” I answered, “No,” and she told me, “So, that’s fine.” She gave me food for thought. I haven’t lost two kilograms in three months; if it had happened in the past, I would be losing my mind. Not now. My pants are fitting, I feel better about walking and now I can do better. I no longer worry about losing weight; I dismissed it from my mind. I feel confident that it will work and was excited to do so.
2D: I still want a diet; I need to be controlled.	In four months, losing just two kilograms came as a shock to me. I know it was the average, but it was such a huge effort. I took a backward step; I wanted a diet with [a list of] what I can’t eat, with the quantity, [and] with a list of what I can eat, because I think I would have results. I’d rather it to be a more regulated diet; I need to be controlled. I still want to lose weight. I know the physical conditioning is important, I know they are giving us philosophical workshops to show us that we have got to accept our bodies, but I don’t buy it. I keep thinking that I must lose 30 kilograms. I just don’t know how.
3) How has your experience with the food record been? You are constantly encouraged to reflect on how, when, and with whom you eat, and what you are feeling, thinking, and so on. How has this experience been for you? Have you realized changes since the onset of the intervention?
3A: The food record was an important tool; I started to realize things that I had not before.	The food record was an important tool. I started to realize things that I hadn’t before; that I ate instead of resolving things, or that I was sad and ate, or happy and ate. That’s all it was about. I ate all day long and didn’t realize I spent the whole day nibbling. Now, I don’t nibble anymore. And, I can also think, for example, when I’m about to have lunch, “Well, what’ve I eaten?” At the beginning, it helped me to observe what I ate; I wrote down, and I said, “Wow, I’m doing it all wrong, that’s why I’m hungry already.”
3B: The food record is a very important tool for the nutritionist.	I think the food record is a very important tool for the nutritionist, because he’ll be able to tell you what is right and what is wrong. Because I can’t simply arrive and tell him what I ate, something is always missed out. It’s a vital tool for me to change my habits.
3C: With the food record, I police myself much more.	I police myself much more when I have to fulfill the food record. However, when I don’t. You make do with what you’ve got.
3D: Now it is not much use anymore; it is tiring and boring.	It’s not very useful anymore because I can realize what I’ve eaten Initially, it was nice, then it gets tiring; it is boring now. As part of a daily routine, it is bothersome. I can’t do that daily list; I don’t have the patience. I feel that it’s like a jail.
4) How have the meetings between you and the nutritional therapist been?
4A: I feel that the nutritionist remembers our talks.	We talk about everything. She’s like a psychologist to me; I don’t remember what I said in the previous session, but she does. I mean. She’s being extraordinary in this aspect, because she remembers what you said. That’s really important.
4B: I feel that the nutritionist wants to understand me.	I think the nutritionist gives sufficient support, because she has to understand the reason why I eat wrong. She wants me to understand myself; she makes me feel comfortable following the goals. And, she also orientates me. I think our one-hour session isn’t enough, unfortunately.
4C: It is frustrating not meeting the goals I set.	We set goals in our sessions and there are times that I say in the next session, “I couldn’t accomplish the goals.” So, it’s a little frustrating not meeting the goals that I myself helped to set.
5) Have you noticed changes in your eating since the beginning of the intervention? If yes, what are these changes?
5A: I realize I have improved my food quality.	I’m learning to eat properly. For example, biscuits, French fries; those snacks—eliminated. A consciousness has awakened in me. For example, I made really tasty food: I picked potatoes and put some okra [in a pan] [and then] added olive oil, tomato, onions, and meat. I’ve adopted the natural tomato sauce and I buy the most expensive quality of olive oil. I used to use three [cans of oil] for two people and now I use one and a half. The rice, I’ve changed to 7-grain, or I make rice with broccoli, but not white rice. The whole one [brown rice] after you finish cooking it, if you toss it with olive oil, it tastes completely different. I’ve also started to make yogurt with kefir; I eat it every morning.
5B: I realize I am able to differentiate between hunger and wanting to eat.	As long as you start realizing how you eat and when you’re actually hungry, you can say, “Now I’m not feeling hungry; I think I’m having a desire to eat something.” Now, I can realize when I’m not hungry, but just desiring to eat. Willing to eat. Then, what’ll I do, I’ll wait a little bit, and I’ll try….
5C: I realize I changed my perception of hunger; I started to divide my meals and to lower the quantity I ate.	I’ve realized I never had a hunger grade of 10. So, having the habit of eating three times a day, I realized I didn’t need to eat a lot. When you make the three basic meals, regardless of the snacks, the hungry feeling and the urge to eat unhealthy foods are lower.
5D: I realize I have not changed some things, because I think it is complicated to prepare what is healthy and I feel more tempted to eat what is not healthy.	Eating unhealthy products is much more practical. I know what is right and what is wrong: what I shouldn’t eat is fat, and so forth; I’m aware of how much I’m supposed to eat of vegetables, legumes; who doesn’t, right? But, it’s not all the time that I’m available to prepare it. That brown rice is too difficult to cook. I bought it a month ago and I’ve prepared a cup up to now. And for the mid-afternoon snacks, I want to eat an appetizer, bread, a slice of pizza. I can’t say, “I won’t eat it; it will be harmful to me.” No, I’ll eat and then I’ll say, “It was harmful to me.”
5E: I realize I have difficulty with food portioning and timing.	To me it’s been really hard to portion out food; to eat every three hours doesn’t mesh with me. Earlier, I’m not hungry and in the afternoon, I’m never hungry. But, on the otherhand, if I don’t eat until dinner time, I’ll feel really hungry, and if there’s appetizing food [available before then], I’ll eat a lot. My greatest issue too is the food timing: I eat too fast. I still haven’t learned to chew slowly and to eat slowly. And with the quantity, I sin. The nutritionist told me, “The meat is this size,” but when I buy food, they bring me a bigger piece, and I won’t throw it away.