I don’t have the willpower to force myself to lose weight. I have proved that over and over. However, after I changed my mind and started viewing the world differently….it moved beyond willpower. Now it’s a question of: Would you like to maximize your enjoyment of life? To increase its richness and your own satisfaction, refine your tastes and work for your own betterment? Well, yes I would, thanks. Now I use my willpower to work towards that. During my failed diets, I’m afraid I was using my willpower for a negative: to deprive myself and force myself to go against my desires. Now there are multiple layers of myself in alignment and it feel good.
My food intake and calorie count
Breakfast – toasted ham (90) and cheese (110) sandwich (150); 2x Reese’s peanut butter cups (80)
- 500 calories
Lunch – 2x Italian sausage links (245); pretzels and hummus (130)
- 620 calories
Dinner – 6x pizza slices (100);
- 600 calories
Snacking – tea with half and half (80);
- 80 calories
Total for the day: 1810 calories (limit 1800 + 500 bonus from swimming, total 2300)
Careful there!
Today I am being careful not to overeat. Tomorrow is weighing day and I don’t want to muddy the results. So even though it is a swimming day, I am sticking to my normal calorie program. This week my daily calorie count averages 1850, which means for the week (x7) my total intake is 12,950 calories. According to the online calculator, I have to eat 2882 calories per day to maintain my current weight, or 20,174 for the week. The difference is about 7000 calories or two pounds I have possibly lost. Now, I did swim twice this week (minus 1200 calories total) and take a few walks, but that doesn’t do much to the total, as you can see.
No, the way to losing weight is mostly about eating less. My concern is how to do that consistently so that I am losing weight every week. By paying attention and carefully planning meals, one can absolutely eat less food and not be hungry between meals. The careful planning includes finding out what foods are rewarding. For example, the last thing I want to sacrifice for is any kind of diet food. Those are mostly built around the idea that you are hanging on to the old worldview that says you want to feel full every time you eat. I have abandoned that idea. It feel strange to me now.
What am I sacrificing, to get control of my body’s weight? I am trading time and one possible future. All this meal planning and paying attention takes a lot of time. It is time spent well, on improving, refining, and pleasing yourself, but that takes effort and a lot of time. It has to become like a hobby or a bit of an obsession. The future I am giving up is just the lowest level of satisfaction – a full stomach. What I am gaining is a more satisfying way of living. With it comes the feeling that I am taking care of myself and meeting my own needs.
What would you give up for that? I happily gave up gaining weight.
-The Doctor