If you are trying to shed pounds, you must change your behavior. Additionally, you must change your activity level, whether you exercise or not, and how often or how long you exercise. Being other-centered fosters healing. When you focus your efforts on helping others you promote your own health, healing and wholeness. Being other-centered or 'giving back' establishes a connection between humans.
Humans seek connection.
Things that foster connection, love and intimacy also foster health, healing and wholeness. When we lose ourselves in helping others, we find ourselves in health and well being. The resulting peace, sense of wholeness and self-esteem will contribute to the spiritual strength necessary to make the changes and implement the behavior for weight loss. The engine that drives and keeps going our positive movement toward progress is self-discipline. To subdue is to manage, to keep under control.