Re: Re: Help me understand, please

[Guest guest]

BRAVO!

Re: Help me understand, please

PeteThanks for the message on my group. I thought that I might add my two cents in on this because your message seems to encompass a lot of the elements that I think are usually present in an overweight person's life. I have come to understand a few things about my own weight problems and hopefully I can help others giving my opinion about the things in your message.As I see it, the main contributing factor to being overweight is nutrition; most people think that being overweight is a settling place for the body and I think it is the opposite. Most people have to work at staying over weight through excessive consumption, and a lot do it though just poor quality excessive consumption. We give our bodies too much or poor quality food and then are surprised at how it reacts to it. The first thing that I think a person needs to do to regain their health is to learn what is good nutrition and how to BALANCE food and life. It is a necessity that we eat, but it is a weapon against ourselves that we overeat. But education and understanding about our relationship to food is the only true defense. Diets usually are borne from the false belief that food is the culprit. We are blaming food and not ourselves for consuming it. This creates a situation with food that makes us think of it as an enemy when in fact the problem is that we are overindulging; ultimately this gives the notion of food as a powerful thing, when in truth, it has no power over you at all instead you have a weakness over it. The second and most important thing about diets is that they are not sustainable in regular life and this is their critical flaw. Changing your behavior (eating habits and relationship to food) requires a long term plan and steady effort over time to get to the goal of eating food for live and not living for food. There is no shortcut to weightloss and losing weight requires working within a system where temptations are all around us everyday.Your words:"I will have been worrying about my gain for some time I will usually get ahold of myself and lose 15 or so lbs. That will drop me back to 195, and then my diet will losesteam. A year or two latter I'll have to do this again. And of course, my racing wt (ideal wt) should really be 160 or 165. I've recently become diabetic, so getting to that racing wt would be a lot more help these days." "I know something about diets and over eating and will power."I think that you are actually speaking words that most of us have. We talk in terms of things that our out of our control and then reinforce the difficulty of our own struggles by adding more elements to it; I believe that this is an effort on a subconscious level to nullify our feelings of inadequacy in regard to our ability to control indulgence issues.Your words again:"When we don't eat enough, our bodies go into starvation mode and it hangs on to the fatso we don't lose." "I have trouble with this statement. I'm not saying that it isn'ttrue, but my diets have always worked when I am motivated enough to stayon them."This is I think a profound statement on your part. You say that diets have worked for you in the past. But obviously they haven't. They do accomplish short term goals but fail to address the underlying control issues which are at the root of weight. All diets are guaranteed to work but what is also guaranteed is that a diet is rarely successful permanently. They are really just a temporary respite from a battle that we are not willing to fully commit to. The only way to truly be successful in losing weight is to not sustain the behavior that helps you maintain the weight you have. Eat well, eat properly and eat to live - the body will naturally do the rest."I think that if you do2000 calories of efforts and only eat 1000 calories of food that thebody will get the other 1000 calories from either your fat reserves or from your muscle tissue. I can't see it any other way."This is something that I have just recently talked with a health professional about and was really amazed at how wrong the statement is. One word fits here perfectly -Deficiency.It seems logical that 2000 out and 1000 in means that you are burning the excess storage. If this was a daily routine then the body would adjust to it but most times these numbers are just a blip on the radar of calorific intake for an overweight person. Secondly, in most cases the body is trying to survive and will hold onto fat stores for later consumption and when there is a intake drop from normal levels the body will be slow to react and the result is nutritional deficiency not stored fat use.To create and maintain and intake/output balance we need to maintain the balanced intake/output patterns over a long period. The body will adjust to the new levels and start releasing the stored fat to bring itself into its new balance. So overtime consuming less calories, not starving oneself, will ultimately lead to a more balanced body and weightloss."I do know that when my diets eventually stall out, it is because Ihave started to break from what has been working, and adding extramouthfuls along the way, telling myself that its ok for some reason."I think you will agree that it is not the diet that fails but your resolve to make it a long term change, we need to find balance in life and work out a long term plan to maintain that balance."I'd appreciate it if any of you can tell me why the above quote istrue. I, like most other, think that you are making an excuse foryourselves. Hold on here folks. I'm not trying to start a fight. Iwould just like some help understanding."This is an interesting statement and I think indicative of your frustration with yourself and your battle with food. It is not uncommon to hear this sort of contradictory language in someone with our common problem. I get thousands of emails just like this. In the first line you are asking for advice, because you feel like you do not have the answer, a notion that I completely disagree with by the way. But then in the second line you berate those whose opinion that you seek with the blanket statement that they "are all making excuses for themselves". And the in the third and forth you are back to seeking understanding from those very same people.I think the important thing to remember here is that you are on a quest to understand why your weight is beyond your control. I am saying that it isn't your weight that is out of control. If you want to lose weight then you have to be prepared to fight with the sneakiest, most insidious enemy that you will ever face. You, specifically your weakness!In short, forget dieting, forget empty diet food and embrace life and all that it has to offer including food. But just do it in reasonable moderation. Eat well, eat properly and eat to live - the body will naturally do the rest. But most importantly, when you transgress, which we all do, learn to forgive yourself by understanding that fighting overeating is a long term commitment and transgressions do not mean failure, they are merely setbacks and then opportunities to succeed over them.Just my opinion.Stevehttp://www.thefatmanwalking.com/Keep walking Steve!!!

[Guest guest]

WOW Steve!

Re-read what you wrote in this post and then think

back on where you were just six short months ago, or

better yet, one year ago. You have come so far. It

is absolutely amazing.

WOW.

Mona

--- Vaught wrote:

> Pete

> Thanks for the message on my group. I thought that I

> might add my

> two cents in on this because your message seems to

> encompass a lot

> of the elements that I think are usually present in

> an overweight

> person's life. I have come to understand a few

> things about my own

> weight problems and hopefully I can help others

> giving my opinion

> about the things in your message.

>

> As I see it, the main contributing factor to being

> overweight is

> nutrition; most people think that being overweight

> is a settling

> place for the body and I think it is the opposite.

> Most people have

> to work at staying over weight through excessive

> consumption, and a

> lot do it though just poor quality excessive

> consumption. We give

> our bodies too much or poor quality food and then

> are surprised at

> how it reacts to it. The first thing that I think a

> person needs to

> do to regain their health is to learn what is good

> nutrition and how

> to BALANCE food and life. It is a necessity that we

> eat, but it is a

> weapon against ourselves that we overeat. But

> education and

> understanding about our relationship to food is the

> only true

> defense.

>

> Diets usually are borne from the false belief that

> food is the

> culprit. We are blaming food and not ourselves for

> consuming it.

> This creates a situation with food that makes us

> think of it as an

> enemy when in fact the problem is that we are

> overindulging;

> ultimately this gives the notion of food as a

> powerful thing, when

> in truth, it has no power over you at all instead

> you have a

> weakness over it.

>

> The second and most important thing about diets is

> that they are not

> sustainable in regular life and this is their

> critical flaw.

> Changing your behavior (eating habits and

> relationship to food)

> requires a long term plan and steady effort over

> time to get to the

> goal of eating food for live and not living for

> food. There is no

> shortcut to weightloss and losing weight requires

> working within a

> system where temptations are all around us everyday.

>

> Your words:

>

> " I will have been worrying about my gain for some

> time I will

> usually get ahold of myself and lose 15 or so lbs.

> That will drop

> me back to 195, and then my diet will lose

> steam. A year or two latter I'll have to do this

> again. And of

> course, my racing wt (ideal wt) should really be 160

> or 165. I've

> recently become diabetic, so getting to that racing

> wt would be a

> lot more help these days. " " I know something about

> diets and over

> eating and will power. "

>

> I think that you are actually speaking words that

> most of us have.

> We talk in terms of things that our out of our

> control and then

> reinforce the difficulty of our own struggles by

> adding more

> elements to it; I believe that this is an effort on

> a subconscious

> level to nullify our feelings of inadequacy in

> regard to our ability

> to control indulgence issues.

>

>

> Your words again:

>

> " When we don't eat enough, our bodies go into

> starvation mode and it

> hangs on to the fat

> so we don't lose. " " I have trouble with this

> statement. I'm not

> saying that it isn't

> true, but my diets have always worked when I am

> motivated enough to

> stay

> on them. "

>

> This is I think a profound statement on your part.

> You say that

> diets have worked for you in the past. But obviously

> they haven't.

> They do accomplish short term goals but fail to

> address the

> underlying control issues which are at the root of

> weight. All diets

> are guaranteed to work but what is also guaranteed

> is that a diet is

> rarely successful permanently. They are really just

> a temporary

> respite from a battle that we are not willing to

> fully commit to.

> The only way to truly be successful in losing weight

> is to not

> sustain the behavior that helps you maintain the

> weight you have.

> Eat well, eat properly and eat to live – the body

> will naturally do

> the rest.

>

> " I think that if you do2000 calories of efforts and

> only eat 1000

> calories of food that the

> body will get the other 1000 calories from either

> your fat reserves

> or from your muscle tissue. I can't see it any

> other way. "

>

> This is something that I have just recently talked

> with a health

> professional about and was really amazed at how

> wrong the statement

> is. One word fits here perfectly –Deficiency.

> It seems logical that 2000 out and 1000 in means

> that you are

> burning the excess storage. If this was a daily

> routine then the

> body would adjust to it but most times these numbers

> are just a blip

> on the radar of calorific intake for an overweight

> person.

>

> Secondly, in most cases the body is trying to

> survive and will hold

> onto fat stores for later consumption and when there

> is a intake

> drop from normal levels the body will be slow to

> react and the

> result is nutritional deficiency not stored fat use.

>

> To create and maintain and intake/output balance we

> need to maintain

> the balanced intake/output patterns over a long

> period. The body

> will adjust to the new levels and start releasing

> the stored fat to

> bring itself into its new balance. So overtime

> consuming less

> calories, not starving oneself, will ultimately lead

> to a more

> balanced body and weightloss.

>

> " I do know that when my diets eventually stall out,

> it is because I

> have started to break from what has been working,

> and adding extra

> mouthfuls along the way, telling myself that its ok

> for some reason. "

>

> I think you will agree that it is not the diet that

> fails but your

> resolve to make it a long term change, we need to

> find balance in

> life and work out a long term plan to maintain that

> balance.

>

> " I'd appreciate it if any of you can tell me why the

> above quote is

> true. I, like most other, think that you are making

> an excuse for

> yourselves. Hold on here folks. I'm not trying to

> start a fight. I

> would just like some help understanding. "

>

> This is an interesting statement and I think

> indicative of your

> frustration with yourself and your battle with food.

> It is not

> uncommon to hear this sort of contradictory language

> in someone with

> our common problem. I get thousands of emails just

> like

=== message truncated ===

[Guest guest]

lol...Pete, I am hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in sections.....I have logged 207 miles so far...this will be my longest section to date. I keep a map of the trail on my wall and highlight the sections as I do them. The first time I went with my daughter but she moved out and started having kids. I did not go for a couple years and then I decided that if I waited for someone to go with I would never do it, so I go alone now.

I had planned to do this section last Sept but we had to take care of hubbie having his kidney out so I am looking forward to this spring.

The next section after this which plans are for fall...will be over 90 miles.

exciting!

Jane

[Guest guest]

The PCT is incredible...at least the part I have done so far.

[Guest guest]

No, Steve, thank you for taking some time with me. I got sucked

into your story a couple months back, and have been following all your

journals.

So this dieting thing isn't rocket science, but it continues to be a

struggle. I'm changing my habits a little at a time. This time I've

been maintaining for about 4 months, and expect that I'll do the best

yet of all my yoyoing.

I'm happy that you are/have done so well. You Keep at it, and I'll

keep watching your progress.

Vaught wrote:

> Pete

> Thanks for the message on my group. I thought that I might add my

> two cents in on this because your message seems to encompass a lot

> of the elements that I think are usually present in an overweight

> person's life.

--

Peace

Pete

US postal UPS Ph #

deliveries deliveries push ups..12

Pete Springer 432 Edgehill ln, #121 sit ups...25

Box 938 Oceanside, Ca 92054 squats....30

Cardiff, Ca 92007 Cell chin ups..1.5

--

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[Guest guest]

Well, I say that you deserve a pat on the back. In 7 or 8 years you

will be at your racing weight. That is certainly good enough....and to

have stayed at this for a year is commendable all by itself. Soon

you will be able to keep up with Jane. LOL.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Jane says:

....in short, I'm a totally incredible person.

.....................................

..I am what I am......................................... as I have an

82.9 mile hike planned!

Jane, I'm convinced, hows about sharing just where it is that you

are going hiking for nearly a hundred miles. I just might get

inspired. I've been crossing the Pacific Crest Trail while riding my

motorcycle for years, and it has looked inviting.

jayped007 wrote:

> I average nearly 5 miles walking per day; and 4 of the miles are

> usually at 4mph, so not exactly leisurely pace. I guarantee I

> exercise more than the average " skinny " person. I exercise about an

> hour a day; for 6 or 7 days a week. Yet I have only lost about 6

> pounds in the last 9 months of doing this. I weight about 220 and

> should probably be at 170.

--

Peace

Pete

[Guest guest]

Way to go, Jane. I'm jealous. What section will you be walking. I

see that trail everywhere as I ride the Laguna Mtns, the Angeles Crest

Hwy, and I've even seen it when up at Kenedys Meadows. I know I've

crossed it on each of the Sierra Passes.

Its like it is haunting me...just daring me to get off my MC and

walk a bit..... That's a scary thought.

So If you walk 13 miles a day out there, what will you carry and how

much food will you need to keep you going. Do you think that you will

lose any weight.

I'm hoping that this list will motivate me to get down to 180 in

the coming 6 weeks. To that end, I ate about 800 calories yesterday.

Although I have a diet counselor through the VA medical department

who seems to think that I need about 2200 calories to maintain, it seems

that I don't lose significant weight unless I keep it under a 1000

calories. I can only do this if I eat a little many times per day to

keep my blood suger count thinking that it has something to work with.

but it is still tough to limit the eating because I have, for 60

years, used food as a reward system. I have to change that if I want to

live forever. LOL

jjsmth@... wrote:

> lol...Pete, I am hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in sections.....I have

> logged 207 miles so far...this will be my longest section to date. I

> keep a map of the trail on my wall and highlight the sections as I do

> them. The first time I went with my daughter but she moved out and

> started having kids. I did not go for a couple years and then I

> decided that if I waited for someone to go with I would never do it,

> so I go alone now.

> I had planned to do this section last Sept but we had to take care of

> hubbie having his kidney out so I am looking forward to this spring.

> The next section after this which plans are for fall...will be over 90

> miles.

> exciting!

>

> Jane

>

[Guest guest]

The section I am doing this time is from Burney Falls to Castle Crags. If you get the CA book it is section O. I ended at Burney Falls on my last hike. I have hiked the stretch from Mount Ashlund down to Seiad Valley. And I have now done from Hwy 70 to Burney Falls. So I have three more sections to fill in the blanks as it were. I have done other small parts as day hikes as well, and a little side trip here and there. Mostly day hikes through Castle Crags on the PCT there. The 10 miles or so between the freeway and North Fork Castle Creek. Section P is about 99.8 miles but I have hiked the 10 miles or so a lot of times so this fall when I do that section I will probably start around Dog Creek Trail and knock 5 or 6 miles off of it. That will still be over 90 miles.

I usually carry about 30 pounds...includes bedroll, tent or tarp, food, clothing and water. Sometimes I have a little more weight in water to make up for dry stretches, but I never go over 35 pounds. I usually lose at most 5 pounds on these hikes. lol. Oh well. I was really putting a lot of energy in it when I first started, but I came to the conclusion that it was not about that at all. I go there to enjoy myself. There are people who do the whole trail in 3 to 4 months but I am not in competition with anyone, and I have nothing to prove. It is my time to relax, regroup, and take time out from stress of life. So I just go when I want and stop when I want, and if I choose to spend a whole day leaning on a log with my feet up I do that too. (Actually only did that once...which is when I came to these brilliant conclusions!)

I usually take some freeze dried meals, some oatmeal, home made jerky and dried fruits and vegies, and a couple balance or zone bars. And of course, my own mixture of gorp! I really do not need that much for a week. Water is the biggest single weight factor. Up to 1/3 of the weight is water.

I hope you give in to the trail temptation. It is so worth it!

Jane

[Guest guest]

This sounds so wonderful, Jane. Hope you enjoy every second of it.

Elaine

>

> The section I am doing this time is from Burney Falls to Castle Crags. If

> you get the CA book it is section O. I ended at Burney Falls on my last

> hike. I have hiked the stretch from Mount Ashlund down to Seiad Valley. And

> I have now done from Hwy 70 to Burney Falls. So I have three more sections

> to fill in the blanks as it were. I have done other small parts as day hikes

> as well, and a little side trip here and there. Mostly day hikes through

> Castle Crags on the PCT there. The 10 miles or so between the freeway and

> North Fork Castle Creek. Section P is about 99.8 miles but I have hiked the

> 10 miles or so a lot of times so this fall when I do that section I will

> probably start around Dog Creek Trail and knock 5 or 6 miles off of it. That

> will still be over 90 miles.

> I usually carry about 30 pounds...includes bedroll, tent or tarp, food,

> clothing and water. Sometimes I have a little more weight in water to make

> up for dry stretches, but I never go over 35 pounds. I usually lose at most

> 5 pounds on these hikes. lol. Oh well. I was really putting a lot of energy

> in it when I first started, but I came to the conclusion that it was not

> about that at all. I go there to enjoy myself. There are people who do the

> whole trail in 3 to 4 months but I am not in competition with anyone, and I

> have nothing to prove. It is my time to relax, regroup, and take time out

> from stress of life. So I just go when I want and stop when I want, and if I

> choose to spend a whole day leaning on a log with my feet up I do that too.

> (Actually only did that once...which is when I came to these brilliant

> conclusions!)

> I usually take some freeze dried meals, some oatmeal, home made jerky and

> dried fruits and vegies, and a couple balance or zone bars. And of course,

> my own mixture of gorp! I really do not need that much for a week. Water is

> the biggest single weight factor. Up to 1/3 of the weight is water.

> I hope you give in to the trail temptation. It is so worth it!

> Jane

>

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks. that's certainly an inspiration.

Elaine

Thank you Elaine, I will. And you get well and strong, so you can do some hiking too!