Hello fellow humans looking to lose weight. I’m with you. I’ve been a skinny person all my life and now, in middle age, I find myself porking out at an unbelievable pace. I’ve tried to limit my calories. I’ve tried to limit my fat. I have exercised to the point that I am truly one of those folks who are both fit and fat. Still, the gut monster remains. Back fat hangs around.
I have come to the conclusion that mine is a metabolic problem, although I don’t have thyroid problems. What I have is insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome. All of the programs and all of the recipes and recommendations in this blog are loosely based around the principle that in order to gain control over your weight, you have to get control of your metabolic process.
I have successfully shed pounds that all my previous attempts have dismally failed to get rid of. For myself, I find that the high-fat, high protein diets work best for me. Maybe when I reach my goal weight, I will add in some more health carbohydrate foods, but for right now I am sticking to the low-carb life as it seems to be doing the trick.
Do I miss bread, pasta, cookies, crackers, etc.? Bet your life I do. And I will share this with you: I don’t believe that your ‘carb cravings’ disappear. Not after a week, not after a month. There’s a reason we love lasagna with a side of garlic bread. It is damn good eating. So, once in a while I give myself some of the goodies I used to have all the time. I plan carefully and I ‘spend’ those cheats on really worthwhile foods like premium ice-cream or a nice sandwich on sourdough bread. And I happen to love McDonald’s french fries. So, every six months or so I do allow myself one regular cheeseburger (the little ones) and a small order of fries.
I wish I could tell you that I have embraced this way of eating and never, ever have the urge to down a real coke or snarf up a couple of Krispy Kremes. But that would be a lie. I am also an ex-smoker. But I’m the kind of ex-smoker who loves to smell a cigarette and enjoyed every one of those coffin nails. If I was diagnosed with an inoperable fatal brain tumor tomorrow, the first thing I would do is go for a carton of Marlboro Lights.
Maybe you are made differently. And, for your sake, I do hope you are. I am told by diet gurus to ‘embrace my way of eating as a lifelong healthy option’. Okay, I embrace it because I can tie my shoes again. But don’t try to convince me that life is somehow sweeter without cake in it. It isn’t, at least for me. I am working to lose weight because I don’t like the way I look. Period. All the exercise I have put in over the last couple years and losing the cigarettes has resulted in someone who feels pretty good. But I don’t feel good when I look in the mirror and see a fat belly that folds over itself or flaps of back fat over my bra.
What can I say? Life is full of trade offs, isn’t it? The diets and products I endorse on this blog all revolve around a philosophy that says that traditional diets don’t work. And they don’t, at least not for this pudgy girl. There are a lot of similarities about the diets, so find the one that you can live with the easiest.
Good luck and here’s to losing fat and losing the belly!
