Eat Less and Exercise: Before and After

A few years ago, I looked like the "before" picture to the right. I didn't look like that all the time, thank goodness -- this was some couples' party and I was doing the "ballerina dance" challenge -- but as you can tell, I was a tad overweight. Specifically, I weighed in excess of 100 pounds more than the top end of my idea weight range, which put me over 300 pounds.

I had been a skinny kid with a fast metabolism growing up. At 6'5" it takes a lot of food to get to full grown, even when I had only a medium build (I can't even claim to be "big boned"). In college, living in a fraternity served by a cook that believed fully in the benefits of meat and potatoes and having been born in the Midwest with a gravy ladle in my mouth, I got my "freshman 15" in the first semester and kept on going until I was the jolly fellow you see to your right (complete with the belly that shook like a bowl full of jelly).

I tried dieting. A few years ago, I was able to lose 50 pounds on The Geek Diet (it was a freely downloadable PDF file at the time), but gained it all back in a year. The problem was that that diet is fundamentally based on deprivation: you count calories and don't eat more than a certain amount based on your activity level. This made me hungry and crabby all the time. Then, one Christmas back in Fargo under the influence of my deep-fried meat, brownie, cinnamon roll and fudge pushing grandmother, I snapped. It was like a psychological rubber band, pulling me right back into my old habits. Also, I didn't exercise, so I'd plateau'd and my metabolism wasn't equipped to deal with even a few extra calories.

Over the last twelve months, I tried something different and as of a coupla week ago, I look like the guy on the left. I called it "eat right and exercise." It sounds revolutionary, I know, but I've lost 60 pounds over the last year and I've kept it off (even after the visit to my grandfather over the holidays!) The idea isn't to diet at all, but to change your habits. I can't say that I'm expert enough to recommend any of this to you, but here's what I did:

Stop Eating When You're Full. This was the hardest one to learn. In college, I learned up to drink and, most importantly, when to notice when it's time to stop drinking. However, it took me 'til I was 38 to learn how to tell when I was full. This involves eating slowly and being very ready to leave food on your plate (which I always try to do now).

There's Always More Later. This is the other key to stopping eating. As much as I might like something and want to finish it, I had to realize that there would always be more of whatever it was later. I learned to feel good about leaving food uneaten, no matter how good it was.

Eat Better Food. If you have to choose between eating 1000 calories of Doritos or of broccoli, I think we all know the right choice to make. The key is, making it. I've had to learn to like salad, fruits and vegetables, which I'm still working on. I'm always trying new things to learn to eat things that are better for me.

Don't Buy Grazing Food. If I'm doing something I don't like or am bored or reading or watching TV or any number of other things, I can easily eat chocolate or chips or any other manner of things that are bad for me, even if I'm not hungry. I have a hard time saying "no" to an unhealthy snack when I'm watching a movie, for example, so I don't buy them. Instead. I buy apples and applesauce and melons and other things that are good for me so that if I have to snack, there are only good things available.

Eat Lots of Meals. This one is counter-intuitive, but I find I do better if I eat a small amount every few hours than larger meals three times a day. In general, if I'm hungry, I eat and if I'm full, I stop. It's really just that easy.

Don't Deprive Yourself. If you want a piece of chocolate or a chip or whatever it is that you crave, then have it. Life is short and there is a variety of wonderful things to enjoy. Don't gorge yourself -- everything in motivation -- but don't make yourself crazy, either. I find it makes me feel good to eat a piece or two of my grandmother's famous fudge and it feels equally good to stop eating it.

Exercise Regularly. This is one of my major failings with The Geek Diet. I was depriving myself of calories, but I wasn't boosting my metabolism, so my body was just adapting to fewer and fewer calories. These days, I try to swim 2 miles/week and that seems to keep me at my fighting weight.

Mix It Up. I find I'm happiest eating a bunch of small portions than one or two large portions at a meal. I like variety, so I like a little bit of a few things. Also, to make sure that my body doesn't get used to my level of exercise (it's getting easier and easier to swim for distance), I try a variety of exercises. For example, I just did a 90 minute hot yoga class the other day (I thought I was gonna die) and I regularly do sprints in the pool, going as fast as I can. The latter's useful because it always sucks, no matter how fit I get, so it's almost more than I can handle.

Commit. The key to making anything happen is to decide it's going to happen and then route around obstacles until it does. The days I swim without resting or swim a mile when I normally go half are the days I decide to do so. The key to weight loss or any other accomplishment is first to commit.

Don't Beat Yourself Up. Didn't do as much exercise as you wanted this week? Had a few too many Twinkies? So what. You're human. Let it go. Don't give up. Do better today.

The whole point of all this is that it's not about a temporary diet, but about changing my habits permanently. I still have 40 pounds I'd like to lose, but I don't obsess about it. In fact, I haven't weighed myself in months. And even if I never do lose those pounds, I'm down from a 44 waist on my pants to a 38. If I do nothing but stay there, I'll be happy as hell with myself.

I love that most of these tips are just like Scott's newsflash -- gives me some validation. Do you have tips to contribute? Tell me about them.

Hey Chris - congratulations and thanks for sharing your experience!

One trick that has worked for me: I stop eating when I've eaten half of what I'd be inclined to eat. It takes about 20 min. to start feeling full. If I stop at half time, I usually end up no longer having the urge to eat the other half. Works (almost) every time.

Another one has to do with the fact that I have a hard time not having seconds. So I've started to think of seconds as a last taste of what I'm really craving. I start with a smaller portion, knowing I'll have a small second. Then, instead of getting another full plate I get a little taste and nibble on it until it's gone (at which time the 20 min. have passed and my body realizes it has had enough).

Finally, one thing I'm still working on: I still catch myself thinking that not being hungry means having a full stomach. When I have an empty stomach I often have an urge to eat even though I know my body doesn't really need the food. So I have to find a way to start liking that feeling of emptiness.

I ran across your article today and I also struggled with my weight for a good 10 to 12 years before I figured out what I needed to do. Just like you, I was about 38 when I realized that it was just that I needed to eat better and exercise. I lost about 45 pounds, from 210 down to 165, and I've stayed at that weight for the last 2 years. All your advice is right on target, and just about everything you mentioned in your blog is exactly what I did. What's funny is when people ask me how I did it, I just say "eat better and exercise". It seems so simple. But you explained it very well and now I can point them to your blog... Thanks!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

I’ve found that a great way to maintain the weight is to put regular targets that require exercising. I am going to try and run my 4th half marathon in few months.

Again, well done Chris!

Congratulations, Chris. I remember you working on a diet last time I was at your mother's house. Glad to see some habits stuck.

I find that exercising with friends is a useful way to lose weight. Rather than going drinking with them all the time, or in addition to drinking so that I can prune the beer calories, I try to line up bicycling outings. If I bike for 2-3 hours, then our other bad habits become a little more tolerable. I do GPSing with friends for the same resaon.

Totally right on. I've learned the exact same things myself (the hard way, and more than once.) Especially the part about grazing food.
 
Now if you excuse me, there are Christmas cookies left over that are calling my name. :-)

Chris... I just wanted to let you know that I went through (about five years ago) pretty much the exact same routine and habit changes that you talk about. I have been able to keep myself in good shape, health, and weight for several years now. At this point I hardly even try.

A few additional tricks or comments:
1. I was able to cut out things like mayo and soft drinks (without alcohol in them) out of my diet virtually right away. Diet colas and 2% milk take about a week (I found) to get used to before you accept them as natural tasting.
2. I started drinking a lot more water. I have this theory that your body *must* use energy consuming cold water since it has to maintain its body temperature. I have no idea if that is accurate.
3. Exercise, or just activity in general, is such a holistic healer. When I first started this habit change, I was doing weight training and running every day. Nowadays I try to be active three times a week. It really helps if you find something to enjoy... for example, I play squash as much as I can at lunch time. If I can play squash a couple times a week and maybe get to the gym for weight training once, I am happy. I also love to snowboard in the winter and play basketball on the weekends in the summer.

Anygoo, good luck with your goals.

What's your thoughts on Pop? Did you cut back on the soda? Thanks, Brian

*can't get disturbing picture of Chris out of my head*

  ;-)

 --larsw

I'm exactly where you were - about 100 lbs over. I know exactly what I need to do - just as you describe. But I find it incredibly hard to change my bad habits. Especially the dietary ones.

thank you for sharing it on your blog