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Saturday 20 July 2013

Obsessed

I had a particularly heartwarming message from a fellow chemo patient, who happens to have the added complication of anorexia nervosa.  Sometimes life really sucks.

One line brought me to my knees.

"who wants to spend whatever time we have here obsessed about freaking calories?!?!"

I agree.  Yelling loudly.

All of you who are on one of these ridiculous 5/2 diets or are counting calories or obsessing about carbohydrates - JUST STOP IT.

Life really is too short to waste time denying yourself food in pursuit of the "ideal" figure and, according to every magazine and advert, the corresponding "ideal" life to go with it.  Sorry to disillusion you but even if you do end up loosing weight and achieving the goal of some random number, which doesn't actually mean anything, here's the kicker.

YOUR LIFE WON'T CHANGE FOR THE BETTER

And, statistically, you will probably put on the weight you have lost AND an extra five pounds within 2 years.

I am not going to get embroiled in the argument about the few people who need to lose weight for medical reasons.  I am talking to the majority of the population, male and female, who have fallen totally for the idea that being thinner will change their life and, if they could just "lose those last 10lbs", are expecting a happy life.  It's all smoke and mirrors, people.  You are buying into a fairy tale, sold to you by those giant food companies, among others.

Just saying.

PS I am not really into vanity.  I just can't see how someone's physical appearance matters that much.  It is not part of your self-esteem unless you let it be.  It is Emperor's New Clothes stuff.

3 comments:

  1. On what basis do you describe the 5/2 diet as "ridiculous", please?

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    Replies
    1. On the same basis as I describe any "diet". There is plenty of evidence to confirm that diets don't work.

      If you have some evidence base to "defend" the 5/2 diet - and I mean real science, not some article in the Sunday Times suppliment, please share. There are many of us who would be interested.

      The NHS is not that keen http://www.nhs.uk/news/2013/01January/Pages/Does-the-5-2-intermittent-fasting-diet-work.aspx

      The results for IF and Breast Cancer are NOT an endorsement of the 5/2 diet.

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  2. It works for me. I lost over a stone and a half in about three or four months. I made no other concession to dieting - I have continued to eat and drink as I did before except for the two days I limit myself to 600 calories.

    For me, it's not a diet in the sense of something you do to lose weight and then stop once you hit a target. It's a way of eating, which I keep up. So the weight has stayed off.

    I know of people for whom it hasn't worked. But they weren't particularly overweight, whereas I was a couple of stone overweight.

    As to its other claimed health benefits, I can't say, since I had no particular problem areas (diabetes, etc). I also haven't suffered any of the side effects mentioned in the article. But I can vouch for its effectiveness as a weight control mechanism from personal experience.

    It makes sense, really. If my "normal" calorie consumption per day is 2500, and I restrict myself to 600, then that's 1900 calories "saved". Twice a week, that's 3,800 calories, or about 1.1 lbs in weight. That's consistent with the amount of weight I lost in the period I did.

    Oh, it also has one good side effect - it makes sure that I have at least two days a week when I don't drink any alcohol :-)

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