Painful
dieting, I think the name says it all. It’s how I feel when I think of dieting.
Many of us either need to maintain, lose or gain weight. Either way when you
start limiting or counting everything you eat or drink it kills the enjoyment
that you once had from food. At least it does for me. It’s why I don’t believe in
dieting. I will be the first to admit I need to lose weight. All three of my
pregnancies I have gained 85 pds. After my second pregnancy I had lost most of
it and then I was stuck for a long time at that weight. Then with my third pregnancy
I wound up gaining another 85. I wasn’t shocked since it’s happened before. I’ve
eaten a well-balanced meal, walked, basically kept active and of course towards
the end I had been so sick I stayed in bed for most of it. I’m not one of the
fortunate ones who give birth and a few months later look as if they were never
pregnant.
Just
for now I’m going to discuss weight loss.
I’ve
been the tiny size 3 and I’ve also been a size 24 which so far has been my
largest. No matter how you gained the weight, either from emotional eating, pregnancy,
injury or the other millions of reasons out there. The most important thing is
to feel good about yourself. It’s hard to lose weight when you either hate or can’t
stand to look at yourself.
No
I’m not telling you to stand in front of a mirror every morning telling
yourself how wonderful you are, even though it has clinically worked for some.
Personally I think about who I am, what I’ve accomplished and the wonderful
little person that is now in my life because of it. I don’t allow myself to get
negative about it. Unfortunately it’s taken me years to finally care about how
I feel and not what others think or say about me and my weight.
I
grew up thinking and being told that after pregnancy I would lose the baby
weight right away. What they didn’t tell me is that I might not lose any of it.
Even though I might lose the 6pds my baby weighed and a little bit of the
fluid, sadly I still weighed the exact same weight the last time I weighed in
before giving birth. A year later and I had only lost 10 pds total.
In
the past when I was in my 20’s I tried several diets, which is why I have come
to hate them so much. I’ve tried Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, Atkins Diet,
Lean Cuisine, Nutrisystem, grapefruit diet, Hollywood diet, Zone diet, vegetarian
and many others. Even though these may work for some it doesn’t work for
everyone. Personally for myself I stayed the same weight except on the Atkins
diet where I gained weight. Personally I loved being vegetarian. I hated
cooking meat and I love veggies and fruit. Especially frozen fruit!
It
was getting to the point I was no longer enjoying food anymore. I had never
used food as an emotional response. I just loved the taste of it. I always used
proportion correctly; I never wanted to over eat even though I will admit when
I have cheese pizza I do have 5 slices.
Finally
when I was told by a couple of people I would look so much more attractive if I
lost weight, a sad point, I was even told this when I was 17 and a size 3. I
was told men would like me more. If they only liked me because I looked like a
skinny toothpick or gave them some sick thrill, I didn’t want them. Why did
everyone have to fixate on my weight so much, even so called friends? I wanted
to get to know the people and not how much weight they were. Unfortunately we
live in a society that has gotten out of hand. If you’re not between this small
gauge of weight then they consider you obese even you’re your only 5pds over.
Yes I’ve actually been told by a doctor when I was 140 that I was obese. I happened
to be a size 8.
Apparently
the government feels the need to tell me what my children can and cannot eat in
school, some even banning packed lunches. Others try to ban how many fast food
places that can be in a given area or not allow them to build in other areas at
all.
Banning
large soft drinks is such a joke, if you want to drink a large soft drink
instead of a small size, then most likely they will just eat inside, more often
than not, get a snack on the way out after eating and refill their “small” cup
several times. If portion or choices are a problem then people need to learn
how to do these themselves instead of having someone else police them. Otherwise
they will simply lack the ability to do this at all. If a person has the will
power to save money, plan and achieve goals, choose to buy a house or live in
an apartment, to have children or go to college. Then they are certainly
intelligent enough to decide what is healthy for them, what will or won’t and
how much will go in their mouth. Being overweight doesn’t always come from over
eating. Sadly ones who have weight issues caused by medications, injuries and a
slow metabolism are counted in the outrageous obese numbers lumping them all
together. Not all people who are overweight are unhealthy. If they are capable
of getting around unassisted, and live just as naturally as anyone else, then
they should be left alone.
These
restrictions are not just affecting those who are overweight but those who manage and maintain their weight just fine.
So
if you’re looking for the “perfect diet” there isn’t one. Find what works for
you. Personally I find as long as I stay active, either going places, walking
or playing with my kids and eat a balanced meal, and yes I do take vitamins. Personally
I take a vitamin B complex every day and for me I’ve found I have extra energy.
Vitamin B helps the body break down proteins and also helps the nervous system.
I used to be a severe insomniac but since taking B vitamins I’ve slept much
better. The problem isn’t gone but it has improved. If it was gone I wouldn’t
be here typing right now at 2:41am in the morning.
I’ve
started losing weight finally after 14 months and eventually I’ll find my plateau
and I’ll have to work a little harder to get that extra weight off but I won’t
tear myself up over it. Experiment and find what works for you. Keep track on
paper or on the computer, however things work for you and give it a few weeks
to kick in. But above all, don’t let others criticisms of your body get to you.
Don’t be your worst enemy, be your best friend. Be determined to be positive,
the longer you are the more your body and mind will thank you!
I tend to ramble on, if you've read this far, thank you!!
