Toren Atkinson

Well, good news. Joyce’s scale says I’m at 192, which means I only have 13 lbs to lose.

Mike says:

There is the problem. You are not changing your life style to one of living and eating in a manner conducive to long, healthy life. Before the ’60’s diet meant whole life style, not some obsessive corporately created weight loss madness. Eat wholesome foods in moderate amounts, have the occasional treats like a slice of pizza, a little ice cream, maybe a small piece of cake at a party. These are ok, if you are living a rounded, healthy life style where you eat from around the outside of the supermarket, keep physical activity part of your daily routine, maintain a regular sleep schedule and you’ll be great. Lose the “I must be skinny by” idea and say, “I want to be happy with good food, good activities and good friends.” But remember, have fun or you’ll never, ever succeed.

Any advice on how to eat wholesome foods in moderate amounts? Keeping physical activity a part of my daily routine and maintaining a regular sleep schedule are not problems. Stopping myself from eating (for example) a chocolate cookie for breakfast, a shawarma for lunch and two small pizzas for dinner is a very real problem, and one that I’ve struggled with all my life. I don’t want to be skinny, I want to be average. The human senses have been designed over millions of years to crave and enjoy sugar and fat. How do you make denying yourself those pleasures fun? I hate the fact that if pizza or pastries or chips or ice cream is put in front of me in a social situation, all I can think about is how I can eat as much as possible without drawing attention to it, and that if it’s in front of me when no one else is around, I will eat until I feel sick. And then as soon as I don’t feel sick anymore, I will eat some more. This is why I don’t buy groceries – why I don’t store food for the long term. Food in my cupboard and fridge doesn’t make it to the long term, unless it’s something I don’t care for – something healthy I’ve strategically bought with the best of intentions. Then it’s 3 in the morning, it’s the only thing to eat, and I’m forced to eat canned corn or fresh celery. Unless of course I’m willing to get dressed, get on my bike, and ride to 7-11 or Max’s for some Miss Vickies and a butter tart, which also happens.

Day four: On the menu today: Thinsations (100) + banana (200) + orange (100) + low fat cream of chicken soup (200) + Cadbury Thins (orange & chocolate) (100) + misc (say 100 at most) + sugar-free milkshake (100) + Thinsations! (100) = 1000

Being on a diet is like being vegetarian – everyone does it until they’re not.

Who says you can’t be a vegetarian for a day?

My diet ends on the 20th of December (or until I get to my target weight). You may notice that coincides with Christmas. And yes, I plan on enjoying whatever sugary, fattening items present themselves at that time.

So what is the wisdom of being on a diet, just so you can counter the effect once you’ve reached your goal?

Well my thinking is that even people who are staunch health nuts splurge from time to time. Am I wrong, Dude? I think of a person who generally eats quite well but if they’re offered some tasty desert item or whathaveyou they will have “just a small piece.” Well, that’s my regime too, but in much broader strokes. Instead of eating restrictively for a couple days and having a piece of pie as a treat, I’m going to eat restrictively for several weeks and then have more than a piece of pie. I figure it all works out in the end, right? Everything in moderation, including moderation.

After all, after I lost 40 lbs it did take a decent amount of time for me to gain fat ground back up 20. So I figure if I spend the rest of my life enjoying ten months out of the year and suffering for two, it’s equivalent to eating “reasonably” – i.e. abstinently – consistently for 12 months of the year which, I’m confident in saying, is 100% unrealistic (for me). I think it’s a lot easier to exercise 100% willpower for 12% of the year than try to exercise say 80-90% willpower for 100% of the year.

That’s the theory, which I’m putting to the test.

Day One: mandarin orange (100 calories); apple (100c); can of corn (165c); pickles (like, 10c?); sugar free candy (???); low fat cream of broccoli soup (205c); another can of corn (165c) = about 800 calories.

Day Two: “Thinsations” cinnamon graham cookie-thins (100) + sugar-free pudding (200) + Thinsations again (100) + banana (200) + carrots & celery (100) + chicken (180) + Thinsations!!! (100) = 980 calories.

Everyone knows about the boring old Medifast diet I went on 2 summers ago where I lost 40 pounds in a few months. Started at 220, went down to 179, slowly back up to between 190-200, where I’ve been sitting at for months. I’ve been trying to get back down to somewhere in the 80’s for what seems forever. I can get through big chunks of the day eating more or less healthily and in moderation, but almost every day there is one time when my cravings get the best of me and I gorge myself. I’ve tried lots of different things but nothing seems to overcome that “well one little gorge won’t hurt and this will be the last one – tomorrow will be different” recurring delusional failing.

For example: the night before last I ate two small pizzas for “dinner.” Not two pieces of pizza – TWO SMALL PIZZAS. I was doing alright until I got home from work and after a half hour of deliberating and telling myself not to give in, I just said “fuck it” and picked up the phone to call Panago.

So my new strategy is blogging about my resolve, weaknesses and ultimate objective (okay maybe not ultimate but nigh-ultimate):

By December 20 I want to get back down to 179 lbs.

I don’t actually know what my current weight is. Since I don’t have a scale I can only check when I’m in my friends’ respective bathrooms. But last time I checked I was in between 196-199. So I think at the most that’s 20 lbs.

So that means goodbye pizza, sandwiches, cookies, butter chicken, shawarmas, bubble tea, candy, and chocolate (this is going to be hard since I’m working for Kelly “Bad Girl Chocolates” to help her prepare for the Hexmas season).

Hello broccoli, celery, pickles, Coke Zero and soup.

Stay tuned for exhilarating progress reports!

Today is the day I start eating properly (again). This time for reals. Stay tuned for updates.