I’ve been struggling for quite a while with how I feel about my body. I’ve gained weight over the last year and now that I’m out of my twenties, it doesn’t come off like it used to. Before you make any sort of comment about how I don’t have any weight to lose, let me stop you. How you feel about how I look doesn’t concern me. Just because you may feel as though you have more weight to lose and that you would love to have a body like mine doesn’t make me feel any better. I don’t have any sort of disorder that affects my judgement on this matter and skews how I view myself so there’s no need for your concern. Please don’t minimize my opinion because of your own feelings. You do you, I’ll do me and let’s get on with it. Everyone has body issues; everyone has something they don’t like about themselves. Remember that.
I’ve been interested in health and fitness for quite some time now, even more so in the past five years. I got a degree in Nutrition Science because I wanted to help others but also because I wanted to learn how to eat to help myself be the healthiest that I can be. The funny thing is that knowing what you should eat and do doesn’t always motivate you to do it, nor is it easy. I go through phases of eating right and then falling back off the wagon. The last time I fell off was right around Thanksgiving last year and I have not been able to hop back on. I started reading a book that I hope is going to change my life. I don’t want to talk too much about it just yet because I haven’t finished it and I haven’t implemented all the changes that it suggests but I’m working on it and I hope to tell you about it soon. I’m a science loving girl and it goes into detail about how different foods, namely sugar and flour, affect the brain and create addiction. It’s fascinating. In the meantime, while I’m reading and preparing for change I’ve been trying to stick to the Ketogenic diet. You may have heard of it being called just the Keto diet. I know what people think when they see the word diet: restriction, frustration, maybe even failure. The premise of this diet is to eat low carbs and high fat. If you don’t know how the body works you may think that eating fat would be counterproductive to weight loss but that’s not true. There are three macronutrients—carbohydrates, fats, and protein. Carbs are our body’s main source of energy. They work quickly but don’t last long, which is why you may get a spike in energy when you eat a carb heavy meal but then feel a crash. Your body uses what it needs to fuel the activity that you’re doing shortly after eating and whatever it doesn’t need for energy, because, say, you’re sitting on the couch and not expending any energy, it converts to fat and is stored for usage later. However, it’s not needed later when we ingest more carbs, which the body uses first. How ketosis works is this, you eat such a small amount of carbs that the body then has to start relying on fat for fuel. Now, you’re still eating fat so it will use whatever is present first, however, eating fat makes you feel more satisfied and less hungry, meaning you’ll eventually start eating less to feel full and the body will start breaking down stored fat for energy at that point. For heart health, “good” fats are the target; unsaturated, not saturated or trans. Another benefit to eating less carbs is that carbs make you store water, giving you that bloated feeling that I, at least, feel every day. When the body moves into ketosis (burning fat for energy instead of carbs), you no longer have those water reserves and feel slimmer pretty shortly afterward.
I’m not suggesting that the Keto diet is right for you, I’m only telling you what I have been trying. The most important part of this whole narrative is that I am trying again. I feel like I’m ready to stop starting over. I have to make real lifestyle changes to have lasting effects. This isn’t at all solely about weight loss for me though. I would like to lose some weight; the ideal body weight for a woman of my height (5’ 5”) is 125 lbs, +/- 10%, which equals 112-137, to be considered in the “normal” category. I don’t care about labels and being “normal,” I just know that that weight range is where I will feel the most healthy. The numbers for ideal body aren’t right for every person or body type. Certain medical conditions can affect your body composition and ability to lose weight. They’re just numbers. I honestly don’t care what the number on my scale says, I only care how I feel about my body and I only mentioned it as a frame of reference. For me, kicking carbs is about breaking my sugar addiction. When I’m ready to talk about what I’m reading I hope that you’ll be as intrigued as I am at how food addiction is a real thing and at the effects that sugar has on the brain.
**If you have any sort of medical condition talking to your doctor before starting a new diet or exercise program is always the right thing to do.
According to dictionary.com, there are 11 different definitions in our American English language for the word diet. Not one of them includes the word “starvation,” which I believe is a pretty common word associated with dieting.
1. food and drink considered in terms of its qualities, composition, and its effects on health
2. a particular selection of food, especially as designed or prescribed to improve a person's physical condition or to prevent or treat a disease
3. such a selection or a limitation on the amount a person eats for reducing weight
4. the foods eaten, as by a particular person or group
5. food or feed habitually eaten or provided
6. anything that is habitually provided or partaken of
7. to regulate the food of, especially in order to improve the physical condition
8. to feed
9. to select or limit the food one eats to improve one's physical condition or to lose weight
10. to eat or feed according to the requirements of a diet
11. suitable for consumption with a weight-reduction diet
Let’s take a look at this.
1. food and drink considered in terms of its qualities, composition, and its effects on health
I love the last part of the this definition: “its effects
on health.” I think as a society, the majority have
forgotten that there’s a massive correlation
between what we eat—our diet—and how we feel.
The American lifestyle is go, go, go and
convenience takes precedence over nutrition.
Unfortunately, very few “convenience” foods
having much nutritional value.
2. A particular selection of food, especially as designed or prescribed to improve a person's physical condition or to prevent or treat a disease
I’m not sure that I can put this in any clearer terms;
eating healthy food can IMPROVE A PERSON’S I
CONDITION OR PREVENT OR TREAT A DISEASE.
Pretty important stuff right there.
3. such a selection or a limitation on the amount a person eats for reducing weight
Ahh, here’s the definition that gets a bad rep.
Limitation. No one’s favorite word. I believe one of
the biggest reasons (and there are many) that
people fail when they try to “diet” is that they think
dieting means starvation and total restriction from
favorite foods. A plan that is set up with those
parameters will most definitely fail. Guaranteed.
When trying to lose weight it’s normal to feel
hungry for a little bit. Your body has adjusted
to eating more than you need but eventually your
stomach will shrink again and those times, such as
drinking water, drinking carbonated drinks,
chewing gum, etc. It’s important to make changes
slowly. Trying to change your whole life in one day
isn’t going to work. Yes, you want fast results but
those results won’t last once you go back to your
old lifestyle, which you will if you haven’t
committed to making a real change.
4. the foods eaten, as by a particular person or group
THIS. This is my definition of the word diet. It isn’t a
bad word. It simply means, “the foods one eats.” If
I’m talking about diet and there’s not a proper
noun in front of it (i.e. Keto, Paleo, Adkins, etc.)
assume that this is what I mean.
5. food or feed habitually eaten or provided
See #4
6. anything that is habitually provided or partaken of.
See #4
7. to regulate the food of, especially in order to improve the physical condition
To improve the physical condition. Feed your body
good food because you love it, don’t starve it
because you hate it. We only get one life with one
body, why not spend our time being healthy and
happy instead of fighting disease and feeling badly?
8. to feed
It doesn’t get much simpler than that.
9. To select or limit the food one eats to improve one's physical condition or to lose weight
See #3 and #7
10. to eat or feed according to the requirements of a diet
This is the tricky part, eating what’s required for
optimal health, rather than what we think we
“need” or want.
11. suitable for consumption with a weight-reduction diet
This includes whole grains, vegetables (and not the
ones smothered in sauce), fruits, dairy (check
nutrition facts on flavored yogurts..most are
LOADED with sugar. 4 grams of sugar=1 teaspoon),
lean meats and water. Water is an essential
nutrient, one that Americans don’t get nearly
enough of. If you don’t like plain water, put some
fruits or veggies in it to liven it up. Or drink
unsweetened sparkling water.
I look forward to seeing what the future holds. I’m excited to be taking control of my health again and I plan to share my progress and regressions along the way. If you take nothing else away from this, at least remember this: we’re all on our own journey. Don’t compare yourself to someone else. They aren’t you, you aren’t them. If you are unhappy with your body, you have to make the change, no one else can do it for you. I’m here to help you, if I can.
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