Weight Loss Tips: Good and Bad Days Are the Same

6 Feb 2013

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Healthy Weight Loss

by Tony

“Can you give me some weight loss tips/advice?”

It is 11:45 at night, and your day was horrible. You think back on your day…

It started off by waking up late. You had all of these plans to go to the gym. You even had your clothes ironed and ready in your gym bag. But that would have to wait another day. You try to justify it a little. I mean, you needed your sleep, right? Sleep is very important, right?

Yet, you really had plans to go to the gym.

Then you go to the refrigerator. The honeycrisp apple you were wanting is gone. Where is it? Oh, that’s right.  Your wife decided to eat it last night. You cannot get mad because it’s not “your apple”. When you are married, nothing is “your”.

Then you stop at the store to get a honeycrisp apple. You decide to also get a few candy bars for the guys at work. Everyone is not on a healthy eating journey, and some people do not have food addictions. For those people, we salute you with a candy bar, full of cookies and caramel. You are angered that you would not be satisfied with one candy bar.

Then you get to work. You boss is excited to see you. Because you have been doing a great job, he decided to give you a gift. A box of Cherry Pomegranate breakfast bars. He knows you are trying to eat well. He cares about your health. He tells you that they are only 130 calories each, and have antioxidants in them. You thank him. What else can you do?

Tell him you would eat the whole box?
Tell him that sugar is a main ingredient in it?
Tell him your life story again and again?

Then work does not go as planned. It is stressful. You stay focused. Yet, nothing goes your way. You officially are having a bad day.

Now it is 11:45 p.m.

You are beating yourself up for not working out. You are wondering why your day was stressful. You wonder if you’re mad your wife ate that apple. Then, you stare at that box of Cherry Pomegranate breakfast bars and start believing they are healthy. Maybe they are, or maybe they will spiral you to eat 5000 more calories.

You start believing you can only eat one of them.
You start to believe in the antioxidants they have.

Then…

That is what weight loss is to me. There will be days where everything goes your way. The eating is there. The workouts are great. You and your spouse are loving life. The baby takes naps all day long. Life is grand.

What about the bad days? The ones where nothing goes your way. The days where you are hungry and do not care what you eat. When you skip a workout.

You have to treat them like the good ones. When I got married I said for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part.

When I decided to change my life, it was the same.

I think “weight loss advice” you see in magazines can be a little condescending, because it is the same advice I have heard all of my life. Practicing is harder than the preaching.

So my “weight loss advice” is treat the bad days like the good ones.

Oh, I forgot to finish…

Then I threw away the box of Cherry Pomegranate breakfast bars. I went to the gym because I belong to a 24 hour gym. I already had my clothes packed because I packed them the day before. I worked out hard and then came home. There was a honeycrisp apple waiting for me. I ate it, and went to bed, ready to start my new day.

Photo by LexnGer

Be well!

Tony

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