I've been reading a book by Charles Stuart Platkin, the "Diet Detective," hoping to find the right spark of motivation to embark on my next big goal - losing weight. I've been carrying around alot of extra pounds and they weigh quite heavily on me (pun intended). In my 20's, weight loss was all about how you looked. In my 40's, it's all about health concerns. Don't get me wrong, I still want to look good, but the focus shifts to concerns about swollen ankles, trouble breathing, even premature death.
I took my healthy body for granted as a kid and abused it. I didn't exercise regularly. I had very unhealthy eating habits (my Mom often says if it were not for peanut butter and jelly, I wouldn't have survived) and an incredible sweet tooth. Weight became a concern in my teens, so I switched to diet soda's and other unhealthy habits. I will even admit, I tried to purge on more than one occasion after binging on junk food, but never could get the vomiting habit going - and my weight reflected that. Moving away to college helped - I fell in love and found institutinal cafeteria food rather revolting - stuck on campus with little cash, I ate only when hungry and walked everywhere. I lost a quick 25 pounds the first few months of my freshman year.
I stayed at what I consider a rather healthy weight until my senior year - when I started packing on the pounds. I wasn't sure what caused the weight gain, but stressful life changes - like looking for work after 4 years of enjoying college dorm life, moving in with my parents (something I thought I'd never do again when I left 4 years earlier) and the demise of relationship with my first love probably all had a significant impact on me. The weight gain has gradually climbed ever since. Oh, there were a few moments here and there, when I was able to knock of 10 or 20 pounds with whatever diet fad I was on. But, my extra pounds seemed stuck to me like glue.
My weight loss attempts included the yeast free diet (in combination with the blood type diet), weight watchers, nutrisystem and even a doctor supervised modified fast that was guaranteed to give me a great start on weight loss. None of these attempts provided any lasting weight gain and over the course of time, have led me to fear trying again... I did have a few wonderful sessions with a nutritionist a few years back - although they turned out to be more like therapy sessions for me! I took away some solid tools about healthy eating and exercise that, if used properly, can be great guidelines to keep a body on track. But, what I also found out about me, I was full of reasons why I couldn't succeed.
I've watched other family members and friends achieve incredible health and fitness goals, simply by putting one foot in front of the other. None of these successes were achieved over night, but they've all managed to maintain their healthy physiques by continuing with making the right kind of choices when it comes to diet and exercise.
So, now, rather than sitting on the sidelines, cheering on others, I hope to become one of them... the achievers. Those who succeed, because they choose to take responsibility for their bodies and what they do with them.
I have set what I believe is a realistic goal for me - 20 pounds in 10 months, combined with increased exercise, increased social activities and cutting back on the sweets I still subject my on my body. Following the instructions in the book, I have designed a game plan and have my contingency plans (excuse busters and plan B's) laid out - which includes journaling about my goals and my feelings during this lifestyle change. I'll be in touch with an update soon.
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