Don't let Oprah or Kirstie Alley tell you how to lose weight

It's that time of the season - you know, the celebrity weight-loss season.

There's Oprah Winfrey, repping Weight Watchers (she's not just a customer, she owns a 10 percent stake in the company), Kirstie Alley pushing Jenny Craig, and Marie Osmond for Nutrisystem, among others.

A good friend of mine almost fell into their clutches, until I convinced her she shouldn't waste her time, money, and potentially even her health on some celeb-endorsed, Frankenfood-pushing, one-size-fits-all weight-loss scheme. Heck, she'd been down that rabbit hole at least twice before, and the only thing that remained thinner was her wallet.

Can't you see, dear friend (and readers), that you're being taken for a ride? Here are three things to remember:

1. Weight loss and maintenance require effort, but not torture.

Losing weight and keeping it off doesn't have to be torture and doesn't have to bankrupt you, but it does take consistent effort. Let's be perfectly honest here: It's hard to stick with a "healthy diet" and permanently change behaviors. And, as we get older, keeping weight off becomes more of a challenge - and that's true even when you have fame and lots of money.

You know this is true because celebrities' failures on these diet programs are highly publicized. Alley, Christina Aguilera, Janet Jackson, Jessica Simpson, and Valerie Bertinelli, to name a few, were paid big bucks to persuade you to get on their weight-loss wagons - even though they all fell off at least once, if not more!

2. Weight-loss companies want fat profits.

Weight-loss companies spend millions on celebrity endorsers because they attract customers. These companies use celebrities as pitch people to appeal to you, to make you think they're your new BFF. I reminded my friend that she does not "know" any of these celebrities, or what they did to slim down.

I think many celebrity lives are a cautionary tale about how truly challenging life can be. Celebrities are no less prone than the general population to eating disorders, depression, alcoholism, and drug addiction.

3. Have more compassion and self-acceptance.

Is there anything we can learn from celebrity weight-loss spokespeople?

Yes: Aging gracefully is not permitted in our youth-obsessed culture - especially not for celebs. Nor do "normal" body types make the celebrity status cut.

We all can agree that clever marketers use our fears of aging or of gaining a few pounds against us. But instead of aping the behaviors of celebrities, why not try to figure out your internal motivation and work toward a balanced, healthy approach to weight loss and fitness?

Maybe this is the year my friend will learn, once and for all, that celebrities are mere mortals who face the same challenges we all must face.

The real takeaway here is that neither fame nor fortune offers permanent solutions to weight-loss (or anything else we struggle with). We all need a little more compassion and acceptance of ourselves and others, too.

Kimberly Garrison is a wellness coach and owner of One on One Ultimate Fitness in Philadelphia. Her column appears Wednesdays.