That's about as honest as it gets, WIJ. Up until about 5 or 6 years ago, yours and Kid Rock's posts could have equaled mine very often. I am fairly tall and on the thin side; however, as I was nearing 50 back then, my waist had hit the 40 inch barrier. It hit 42 1/2 at its worse. It was embarrassing and uncomfortable to me. I began to change the way I ate. I think that not only was age a factor, but I had also stopped drinking any caffeinated drinks. Then, I came across the glycemic index and began using it as a guide. There are hundreds of choices in that method. Some foods' glycemic rating surprised me. For example, I usually kept pretzels around as a healthier alternative to potato and corn chips, which had been nearly a daily go-to snack, But, I found that pretzels were among the very worst rated in the glycemic group. So, I switched to pumpernickel pretzels. With mustard, they're almost as tasty. I also forced myself to eat a very large salad nearly every day without any dressing at all.
I had come up with a motto, "Not every time you eat has to be fun." It works fairly well. It prepares my mind to eat right even if it's not as tasty as a junkier choice. It also helps me not to eat junk food as often. In the last year and a half, I have gotten my waist back to a little under 40, thank God.
Although I am much more diligent, I find that I cheat. Sometimes it's from being a little bored, or from being too lazy to spend the time making sure I have good ingredients on hand and then taking the time to prepare good meals. I always feel good when I stick to a good diet, though. I find too, that I lose my cravings for the junk food when I have been eating well. I find that very interesting. This encourages me to stick to a good regimen.
Sometimes I cheat because of that childish notion that I can afford to cheat if I eat well enough most of the time. But that 40 inch threshold tells me that that idea is bad, because it creeps back too quickly. It is a line of attrition. It's a battle of personal mottos; like good versus evil, so to speak.
One other thing I just thought of: My brother's waist was worse than mine. We have similar builds. He and his family had stayed with me for a few months a couple of years ago. They ate a lot of take out and bought candy and cakes. It was hard for me. I would join in on the pizza at times; but I would repent and go back to my regimen. Somehow, it must have rubbed off. He started to eat less of the junk and working out more. (They say that weight loss is 75% diet and 25% exercise.) Since he had always liked cooking shows, he started to put it in practice. He ended up losing that gut. He has actually done better than me, which annoys me (about myself, I mean). So, eating better can rub off in a positive way on others. Maybe this thread will help others to take a serious look at nutrition especially if they're older and/or at risk of acquiring health problems directly attributable to diet. Who knows? |
