Disorderly Conduct

A couple weeks ago it was "Eating Disorder Week", or so says The National Eating Disorders Association. Just think about it for a second or three. EATING disorders. We are a nation of 'disorder-ers' from A to Z. Why? Is it because we want to categorize things? Or label things? Or organize things into neat little boxes and packages of thought? Is it because we want an excuse for something not working?

"I have an eating disorder so I am not responsible for being overweight."

It is something like wanting that magic pill to 'fix' us. We want to take a pill and be thin. POOF! Like magic. We all know it doesn't really happen that way. Oh sure, we can take a pill for a while and lose some weight, but if we stop taking the pill, the weight comes back on. Or we suffer from side effects of a pill and get even sicker!

There are no magic pills. I often say it is not as simple as calories in, calories out but it really IS just that. I know there are flaws in how thermodynamics works in the calories in calories out theorems. The problem is that a calorie is not exactly just a calorie. If our calories in are from cakes and cookies and fried foods, our body will react differently than if those same calories are from vegetables and real foods.

I can't make you thin. Your best friend, your mother, your father, your sister, your brother, your spouse, your partner, not even your God can make you thin. YOU are the only one that can do this. Everyone else can help but only YOU can make it work.

I wish I could make folks believe what I say when I am speaking in our weight loss support group. I have a simple message for them, but they are still too often, looking for the magic answer. It is NOT magic! It is a lifestyle. It is a mindset. It is not that hard! So few believe me. I don't blame them. I did not believe those who came before ME with similar messages. I get it now. I hope you do too!

I came across this nifty idea for quick and easy lunches:

Some people make six lunches, six dinners, and even six breakfasts, a week at a time. They eat the same thing day after day. How boring you say? Why? If we take the power of food/eating away and only use food for nourishment, what matters if it is the same thing or not, every day? 

I don't know if I could do this with every meal. I already do have two breakfasts that are pretty much the same, day after day. If I am hungry for oatmeal, I eat oatmeal. If eggs sound better, I have them. Lunches are pretty close to the same too. I love a good salad with chopped chicken. I can cook up a bunch of chicken on a day that I have more time and then not have to cook for the rest of the week. With the basics of chicken and either romaine lettuce or baby spinach, I can make each lunch varied in so many ways! Perhaps I should go into that more on a future posting. I suppose you'd like photos too? I will give it some thought.

One of my faithful readers shared with me that she was having a rough time of it lately too. I didn't mind that she shared her trials and tribulations. Now if I don't mind listening to hers, should I really worry if you, dear readers, are listening to mine? So often, we bloggers write only when things are good. If we are quiet, things might be really bad. We might have gained weight or had a life changing event or just been suffering the mid-winter blues. We feel that no one wants to read about our failures. But is that really fair? Reading that our mentors are struggling and are real people after-all, might actually be helpful. Misery loves company, right? Well, I really do want to keep things on a more positive note here, but I promise I won't shut down and not post because life has become too much of a b@%^h!

I do find this time of year to be a challenge. For me personally, February has always been a rough month. I forget how many years ago I finally figured this out! I am sure part of it is due to the winter blues from lack of sun, or as it has been tagged; SAD=Seasonal Affective Disorder. (another disorder???) Just being aware of this, somehow helps me get through the month.

Anyway, what I am trying to say is that maybe I will have to watch what I eat more than those without an eating problem. Maybe I will have moments where I feel angry with the whole wide world for making bad foods taste SO DAMN GOOD! But, the alternative is just not worth it. I think about what would happen if I just stopped watching what I ate and how much I exercised. Is it really worth all this angst to be thin? Why not just be fat and happy? Why? For one thing, I was not fat and happy. I was fat and miserable. Now I am over one hundred pounds lighter. I am not terribly fat. And I am more happy than miserable. I really like not having to carry around all that excess weight. I have reached the point where the thought of going back to the fatter me is more painful than the thought of tracking my food for the rest of my life.

When I get depressed about being different from normal people, I remember that I was not normal when I was obese. People did not see me as normal then. I am seen as being normal now. I like that I can hide the fact that I have to work a little harder at it but, it is worth it...to look normal...to fit in better...and to enjoy life so much more than I knew I ever could! 

One caveat to all this is that most normal people have a burden of their own to bear. It might be as simple as a mole or a physical part they don't like about themselves such as big feet or a crooked nose. Some have eating disorders like bulimia or anorexia. We ALL have our issues. For what it is worth, I am actually able to say I am so proud that I seem to be taking care of my issue and am a better person, a happier person, a healthier person, and a stronger person than I ever gave myself credit for in the past.