Never Say Diet

I don't believe in diets. I don't believe in the guilt and denial, and I know intuitively and inherently that they don't work. Here's the inescapable truth of most diets: cut calories, lower metabolism, return to normal, rebound. It's a negative cycle, a myth, a lie promulgated by an entire industry of quick fixes, foods and pills and plans. Diets don't work. They never have. There's no secret to weight loss, and no magic fix.

Only one thing works: eat a little less, and increase your activity. It's common sense.

I love to eat. I love chocolate, cereal, fruit, ice cream, pork chops, potato chips, grilled cheese sandwiches, nuts, pie, mashed potatoes and gravy, cottage cheese, soup, beans, tomatoes, cake, peanut butter sandwiches, cheetos, cheezits, green beans, bacon, steak, hamburger, bagels, rolls, aspargus, milk, stir fry, pizza, spaghetti, cookies, and a 5,000 other things that don't come immediately to mind. I love food. I enjoy eating, and logically and realistically, I'm not the kind who could wake up one day and say, okay, rice cake and kiwi fruit for breakfast, cottage cheese and tuna for lunch, 4 oz. steak for dinner. It's just not happening.

I worked out five times this week. I tried to eat a little slower and a little less. I lost about 2 pounds. Tonight I had a big meal and probably gained it back.

They say your metabolism slows down every seven years. I'm not eating more than I used to, and I've been walking and bicycling 20 miles a week, but in the last three months I've gained 15 pounds.

Part of it, I'm sure, is stress. I started a Duck football blog that I'm writing 1500 words a day for. Work is stressful. My wife lost her job. I worry constantly about money. I need to start meditating again, regularly. It calms me. It slows me down. It keeps me in a better place.

I don't think I've really accepted the seriousness of what I'm up against. I hit 240. That's too much. It isn't vanity that is driving my concern about this (although that's a factor). It's the knowledge I will hit 250 or 260 if I don't change something.

Dr. Phil says you can't change what you don't acknowledge. Acknowledgement is one thing. Real change is another.