Time discounting is an economic concept which can be illustrated in this simple question: would you rather get $1 now than get $1 next year? Most of us will choose to get $1 now because $1 next year is worth less than $1 today, assuming there is no inflation. This is time discounting. Everything in future is worth less than things now (except for wines and antiques, for sure).

The financial interpretation of time discounting can be generalized to other dimensions. For example, one year of life now is worth more than one year of life ten years after, even after you take account of aging effect. Time discounting is an important parameter in calculating quality of life measurement.
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Many weight loss books start with a chapter listing all the benefits of weight loss. I prefer a different approach. I believe that most heavy people understand that weight loss is a good thing to do, and some may have tried several weight loss programs, but needless to say, all failed.

You may be curious and anxious to know why you failed the weight loss programs. This is a fine question, but I will not answer it, as I am not interested in any fad diets or exotic exercise programs. I am a scientifically trained researcher and have spent a couple years examining body weight, exercise and nutrition in a large multicenter study. Years of training in medicine and research methodology preclude me from believing any claims that are not supported by rigorous research.
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In 1981, CDC received reports from Los Angles of five cases who had rare Kaposi carcinoma and severe immune suppression. These cases were thoroughly investigated because the disease clustered in a unique population—among those men who had sex with men. The initial interest was to examine whether the unusual sexual behavior was linked to this disease. It was suspected that a new infectious disease occurred. The virus was identified in 1986 by researchers in France and the US. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) have become common words since then.

Where did HIV come from? Any curious mind would ask but no one is able to answer. Most scholars now agree that this deadly virus was originated in Africa, presumably from the chimpanzees living in Cameron or Congo.
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During past few years, I have tried several times to increase physical activities such as walking and biking from home to office, but never be able to lose any weight. Only this time did I lose a significant amount of weight. Why do I succeed this time? This question puzzles me these days, as I am launching another self-directed behavioral change but with little success till now.

Apparently, the desire to change myself is always in my mind. It is the ultimate motivation that gets me started, pushes me through tough time, and leads me to the final success. However, this desire failed to motivate me achieving goals such as stopping procrastination or limiting internet usage. There are some fundamental differences between weight loss program and stopping procrastination.
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