Slow and steady!

   One thing I can say about my weight loss, is that it has been consistent, and healthy.  Remember, 1-2 pounds a week is the average amount a person should be losing.  So far, that is about what I have been averaging myself.  While it may seem like you aren't making progress quickly enough, and you find yourself hating those weeks when you only lose one pound or (oh the horror!) no weight at all, slow and steady is the best approach.  The more slowly you shed the pounds, the more likely you are to keep the weight off.
    Our bodies tend to want to cling to the weight we have.  It's hard to convince it to let go of some of that extra fluff.  So when you indulge in fad diets, and starve yourself, you're doing nothing but...well, starving yourself.  It never ceases to tick me off when I hear these radio spots about this miracle supplement, or that amazing diet program, where the participants lose a pound a day!
  I have to admit, I've even fallen for one.  I won a free month at a medical weight loss program last year.  The diet was extraordinarily strict, with the first month requiring basically no carbohydrates. This was done in order to send my body in to ketosis.  I had to keep these test strips on hand to test myself to make sure I was within this "happy range" they described for me.  Essentially the idea was to trick my body in to burning just fat for energy.  On top of that, there were weekly B-shots, and a daily schedule of stimulants, colon cleansers, calcium pills, and fish oil.  I had to keep the amount of food I ate limited to a set number of ounces, as defined by my little food scale that I got with the program.  Oh, and exercise of course!
      I would be lying if I said it didn't work.  In a little over a month, I lost about 27 pounds.  It was great!  On top of the weight loss program, I had also won a free makeover from a local news station, and was all set for my "big reveal" at a small local fashion show with my new hair do and dress (that was 3 sizes smaller than my size at starting the program).
    However, there is a flip side to all of this. While the program did work, it only did so because I was hungry most of the time, and not eating any of the foods I liked, and that includes some of my favorite fruits! I was cranky a good deal of the time, specially in the morning because of the lack of carbohydrates in my body, both good and bad.  After the month trial, I said the hell with it, and gave up.  I wish I could say that I maintained healthy eating, and didn't gain back too much weight, but that would be a lie.  At first I continued with exercise and healthier food choices, but when I rapidly gained weight back despite making those decisions, I became disheartened.
   And THAT is one of the bigger problems with these fad diets.  As soon as you stop, even if you maintain a healthy lifestyle, you WILL gain a chunk of the weight back.  Rapid weight loss feels nice at first, but when you realize you're miserable because you are not enjoying what you eat, you will be more likely to slip in to bad eating habits.  One meal at Foosackly's post-diet actually led to a gain of 2 pounds.  Just one.  That should show you how quickly ending such a diet will put weight back on.  Unfortunately, that is also what led me to just stop caring about what I ate, and led me to gain weight up to the 260 pounds.
    Fad diets, cleanses, supplements all promise the same thing, fast results.  In other words, they promise to help you cheat your way to a lower weight.  Some, like the diet I was on, require a lot of work.  Others, like that powder you sprinkle on your food, promise results with absolutely no change to your eating habits.
    And lets not forget weight loss surgeries.  To be fair, I think in some cases they can save a life.  I am not totally against weight loss surgery. However, these operations only treat a physical issue.  Obesity has a mental side to it as well.  Often, those who become obese do so because food is a comfort, or may have been taught poor eating habits in early life.  In either case, they begin to gain unhealthy amounts of weight.  This leads to depression, which leads to further weight gain, which leads to further depression...and you can see the cycle developing can't you?   So a person who undergoes weight loss surgery will lose weight almost immediately.  But, if they do not change their lifestyle, and heal the inner hurts, the surgery will be pointless, because they will eventually gain that weight back.
    Truth be told, this goes for any weight loss.  Moving to a healthy life style is not an easy task.  It is so easy to become addicted to food, and use it to self medicate. I had to first work on my emotions and poor eating habits, before healthy eating and exercise became a natural habit.  It is why I don't hesitate to tell people to see a doctor or psychologist and discuss treating emotional issues while working on the physical ones.  For me, I had to treat adult ADD, which was actually the root of my anxiety and depression.  Once that obstacle was behind me, this change became easier.  Bad habits that I had picked up over my life were less of a challenge to break.
    So here I am.  About seven months ago, I started this journey into a healthier life.  Today, the scale told me I weighed 193 pounds.  The last time I was anywhere near that was my freshman year of college. Even more of a treat, I tried on a pair of size 16 jeans, and a Large blouse (that's right, not extra large) and not only did they fit, but they looked pretty good if you ask me!  That brings my total weight loss to 67 pounds!  That is about 9.5 pounds a month, which is right where I should be.
    Slow and steady goes my pace, and I am perfectly fine with that. To compare to the "diet" I tried, look at this.  In seven months I have lost 67 pounds by simply eating healthier, and exercising regularly.  On the diet, I lost over 25 pounds in ONE month. Today, I can indulge in a treat, or a calorie packed meal at a favorite restaurant, and likely won't gain any weight.  One "bad meal" after the diet, and I gained 2 pounds.  It doesn't take a genius to realize that simply eating healthy and working out is the most effective and permanent method to losing weight.  Diets and supplements don't work!
    I once had a teacher that would let us cheat. You could copy answers, bring in cheat sheets, even text with a friend.  However, he gave us a warning.  We could not cheat on the final exam.  In other words, we had to learn the material.  The tests were not the focus, the material was what was of value.  If you gave in and spent the year cheating, you would pass all the tests, but you would not have learned anything.  I chose to study, and scored a 97 on my final.  It was a nice feeling, considering the large number of people who chose to take the easy route. The class average on the final was a miserable 72%.
   Losing weight is like that class. You can cheat your way through, with diets and programs and miracle drugs.  Or you can take the long way around.  Sure it means extra hours and more work, and the results aren't going to be as dramatic (at least early on).  But in the end, you not only achieved your desired results, you have a sense of pride in your achievement.  You know you worked hard and earned it.  I am more proud of those first 10 pounds I lost in my first month, than the 27 pounds I lost on that crash diet.  And like the teacher said, the material is more important than the tests (in this case, the scale). I've learned that I am strong. I learned how to lift weights to build muscle.  I learned that I loved running, and that training for a 5k race is great for weight loss!  Oh, and ladies, if you want to tone your butt, get out there and run. Who knew!  I also gained confidence.  A lot of it.  Ironically it was not so much the weight loss, and improved figure that led me to be more confident, but the knowledge that I am doing something to improve myself.
    I guess the tortoise had it right!  Slow and steady goes the pace, slow and steady wins the race.

Be a tortoise!

Love,
K.