The "cafetorium" is what we call the kitchen area in which we have lunch most days. The name's befitting because our lunches are more often a source of entertainment for others than anything else. No subject is too far out of bounds nor protected from our banter. Today, however, was a bit quieter than usual, with only a handful of us eating together. Before long, the subject of the hour turned to my Total Body Makeover.
A good friend of mine informed me that he had read my blog. Great! Well, hold up. He actually followed that announcement with the news that he disagreed with it. Not so much my writing style, rather, my approach to leading a healthier life. His position...don't deprive myself of the things [foods] I love because it may lead to unhappiness and worse, when I re-incorporate those foods back into my diet, I'll run the chance of over-indulging. In short, he explained, "everything in moderation."
Don't be concerned about the condition of our friendship. He and I are really close friends and often agree to disagree on things. And, truth be told, until recently, I agreed wholeheartedly with him about simply moderating the foods I ingest in order to get a handle on my weight. But here's where I've grown and I'm confident I'll see the difference in my habits and physique as I move closer to my goal. I've moderated all my life and moderation has simply helped me to maintain an unhealthy state.
I've moderated the past five years after growing to 267lbs. Moderation allowed me to keep from getting bigger but did absolutely nothing to help me shed the pounds, move past plateaus, or understand the relationship between food and my body. Moderation will be an effective tool in maintaining the physique I desire, once I've reached it. But, without educating myself about the composition of what I'm putting into my body; knowing how many calories my body will burn on its own; how many more it will burn on workout days; which fats are good fats; which fats raise/lower your HDL/LDL (cholesterols) etc., I'd simply set myself up to remain in the same position in which I currently am.
Further, the idea behind my journey is to make a lifestyle change. To see food in a different light. To use it for the fuel that it is and not for the comfort it can provide. With that change in mind, I anticipate seeing an equal change in my body. And, with the two working together, I don't expect to face the challenges of over-indulging when other foods are "reintroduced" to my body. My view...if it's bad enough for me to stop ingesting now, why would I want to start ingesting it later?
Now, this isn't to say that I'll never have ice cream or Shiner Bock again. It's just to say that, I am willing to go without them in order to reach my goal. And, I'm confident that I won't feel deprived once I see the me I'm working so hard to become.
They'll be many challenges as I move throughout this quest. I anticipate many days that I'll want to throw in the towel because of obstacles that arise. But, with confidence and dedication, I'm sure that I'll meet with success. Today's challenge came from a friend. Not in a malicious way, but in a caring way. He explained that he wants me to be happy. Though our paths to happiness differ, what was most important about our dialogue today was that he subsequently said, "I support you." That means the world to me because no matter how determined I am, my road will be much easier with the support of friends and family members.
I'm one day closer!
I agree with you. Being healthy is not just being thin, but eating foods that fuel our bodies with nutrition. I guarantee I could put together a diet for someone that included nothing but donuts and ice cream and they would lose weight on it, but diet is about more than losing weight. Being thin alone is not an indication of health, though that is important. Often, signs of heath or not can only be seen by a doctor's tests. I do agree with your friend also that a diet has to be sustainable, but the habits you will build over the next few months will make it sustainable.
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