Losing the Weight

If you didn't read my last post I will catch you up to speed.  I have lost 100 pounds in about 7 months.  I am not going to lie to you and say that it was an easy process.  Losing weight, especially a large amount of weight is very difficult.  The light at the end of the tunnel is that the really hard part doesn't last for more than about a month.

Lets talk about food.  What kinds of foods lead to weight gain?  If you read weight loss magazines or diets, or watch tv, this is a very difficult question to answer.  Everywhere you turn someone is claiming that one ingredient or kind of food is bad, and it becomes difficult to find out what the real culprit in your weight gain is.

What I have learned through hours and hours of research and personal experience is that fake foods and excessive simple carbohydrates are really at the root of the problem.  Most people realize to some extent that fast food is bad (although we still continue to eat it), but many other foods that are common American diet, and even some supposed health foods will cause weight gain and make it very difficult to lose weight.  Some of these common foods would be refined wheat bread, cereal, crackers, weight loss foods (ie frozen diet foods, etc), diet soda, low fat ice cream, and granola bars.

Some people might look at that list and say that carbs are getting the blame.  I would disagree.  Carbs are not inherently bad.  The amount of carbs in the American diet and the kinds of refined grains we eat are harmful to the body.  Spelt for example is a good alternative grain for bread.  Its delicious, healthy, and processed in a very different way in your body from other kinds of flour.  The pattern I have found is food that is processed or fake.

What is fake food.  Fake food is candy, frozen food, most things that come in a box, snack food, fast food, diet food, etc.  Fake food is the illegal drugs of cuisine with fast food being the crack cocaine.  These foods get us high and are easy and convenient.  Those are some of the primary reasons they are successful in the marketplace.  There is another more sinister reason for the success of these foods and that is marketing, but once again for another post.

The greatest lie that advertisers ever told was that what they sell makes you happy.  This is true of food and pretty much every product in the marketplace.  This was the fundamental lie that I had to unlearn before I could stop compulsively eating.

So you may ask, what do I eat?  Well, that has changed and evolved over the process as I have learned more and more.   The first rule is no sugar.  Well not "no sugar," but not very much.  And if you are going to eat sugar, eat natural forms of it.  Natural forms being things like modest portions of fruit.  Ingredients like bbq sauce and other condiments are often based in high fructose corn syrup and should be avoided. 

I also eat greens.  And by greens I mean collard, kale, etc.  They clean out your body, provide it with its necessary fuel and help restore health. 

While eliminating most sugar (especially fake sugar, like aspartame, sucralose, etc) and eating greens is a large step, I feel it is important to understand basic principles instead of rules.  When you understand the why behind what you are eating, it is much simpler to vary the diet and not get tired of your healthy dishes. 

!st principle - You must eat food that the body can process.  This 1st principle is really the only one you need if you can wrap your mind around what it means.  Your body is a well oiled machine and requires proper fuel to function properly.  When we replace real food with food substitutes are bodies dont know what to do.  The end result is obesity, disease, and death.  So what is the solution?  A natural diet. 

This mean organic produce, all natural breads (in moderation), eating foods with 1 ingredient,such as almonds, eggs, cheese, milk, vegetables, and organic good quality meats.  It means choosing foods that are not pre made for convenience, but doing your own cooking.  It means a lifestyle change and a perception change.  It means making your own salad dressings, and sauces, and buying more expensive and harder to find food items.  It means being picky at the grocery store and putting your health above your pocket book.   It means eating out becomes a special treat and not an everyday occurrence.  It means letting go of some of the foods you think you love, and realizing that you are simply addicted. 

Breaking food addiction is an act of will.  It is not easy, but the truth is once you are free from the bonds, you get your life back. 

More tomorrow, thanks for reading.  Post a comment and let me know what you think.  Keep fighting the good fight and be your own advocate for your own health.