On this Christmas eve, I acknowledge that In four days it will be three years to the nose when I received the shocking results of a much overdue annual physical that ignited a fear in me to finally take action on my health over vanity.
No more quick fixes with diet supplements. No more special expensive home-delivered pre-prepared meals. No more blind reliance on gym fitness groups or trainers. No more eating one meal a day. No more excuses of maintaining a gym membership but never go because the hubs won’t go with me. No more wishful thinking while sitting on my bum eating my second Burger King double stacker for the third time in the same week.
No. This time I had to make a change not because I wanted to be a size 2 from a size 14 (at 4’10”). Rather, this time I had to make a change or I would have to face the dire consequences of the years of neglecting my body and solely depending on youth to counter my poor eating choices. I was facing Type 2 Diabetes which is one of the few preventable diseases for most people and I was petrified of the wide array of complications associated with Type 2 Diabetes. Much more petrified than any anticipated initial inconveniences to changing the way I lived.
I downloaded the food/exercise tracking mobile app MyFitnessPal and I invested a vast amount of time researching how to lose weight for the rest of my life. From the beginning I never set out to lose X lbs by X date for X event. It was always about getting my blood glucose & BMI back into the normal range which afforded me with the luxury of time – taking the pressure off.
But where to start? WHAT: I started with finding a modest goal. I took the median weight of a healthy BMI for my age and height and that was my initial goal. HOW: I borrowed the concept of long term behavioral modification from the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov. In order for this change to be permanent I had to condition myself to a new set of habits which will lead to a new set of behavior all in hopes to ultimately lead to a new set of priorities & way of thinking. RESULTS: If I had to appoint one factor to my continued success in losing weight & keeping it off, I’d undoubtedly have to attribute it to committing to making small incremental changes to both my diet and physical activity regimen. Not that I am struggle free 100% of the time by any means, but I can say that most of the time choosing nutritionally rich foods over nutritionally poorer options and regular exercise is by & large my life now.
I thought it would be a fun reflection to share my top 10 incremental changes, the level of difficulties, and if I still miss it. So here goes!
|
ITEM / HABIT |
DIFFICULTY LEVEL |
MISS IT or DISS IT |
| White Bread to Whole Wheat |
Low |
Diss It |
| High Calorie Drinks (Homemade Lemonade, Starbucks, Strawberry Milkshakes, Cherry Icee) to Water or Tea |
Low – limiting my calorie intake from what I drink has also helped the next one |
Diss It |
| Sugar Reduction |
Low – reducing the sources of sugary drinks and generally sugar intake has not only helped my calorie intake but also cleared up persistent cystic acne I’ve had for years |
Diss It |
| Free Reign Gluttony |
Moderate – LOL I know this sounds absurd but sometimes I do ‘miss’ eating mindlessly and without regard. Although on the 90/10 Rule I can indulge I still indulge mindfully 99% of the time. And the reason I adhere to staying on track more than not is because the few times I did eat mindlessly I was so lethargic, bloated, and generally feel like crap for days after that I just rather not. hahahaha |
Miss It … Sometimes |
| Total Cardio to Cardio w/Strength Training |
Moderate – once I got over the fear of re-gaining weight I was able to slowly decrease the duration of cardio & incorporate more regular strength training Also understanding that strength training doesn’t necessarily mean weight lifting has made a tremendous difference in my willingness to continue |
N/A |
| Regular Exercise |
Moderate – had to get over counting on other people to ‘motivate’ me to go to the gym because I had to accept that I needed to exercise for myself, for my health Transitioned over the course of 6 months from 15 minutes twice a week to 45 – 60 minutes 6-7 days a week |
N/A |
| Chips |
Moderate – I have no self control when it comes to any sort of corn chips, Doritos, or BBQ Fritos |
Miss It – I don’t buy it or have it in the house EVER! |
| Simple Carbs to Vegetables as ‘Fillers’ |
High – took me a long time to slowly phasing out simple carb fillers like pasta, rice, bread for a wider variety of vegetables. Figuring out that I have a FODMAP sensitivity has been a godsend in consuming healthy items which doesn’t make me physically ill |
Diss It |
| After Dinner Snack |
High – had to transition through a few snacks diminishing quantities before I was able to go without most of the time |
Miss It – when I do hanker for an after dinner snack I choose healthier options than what I instinctively go to (chips, milk chocolate) |
| Pasta/White Rice to Quinoa to no or low carbs for dinner |
High – this was my last item to transition because it was the most difficult to let go of & I had to transition over the course of a year |
Miss It – so I avoid it like the plague |
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Vicious Cycle of Eating Junk Food
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