Help with being Healthy

Ah to be fit and healthy, it is almost seems like a fantasy.

God knows that we all have the capability of having that alpha human body and immune system, but not all of us have the willpower to obtain anything even close to it.

I for one have very little willpower (I would not make a good green lantern), it has been very difficult to give up some my vices so much so that I have truly only given up one (smoking cigarettes). But my other vices are still alive and kicking most notably my eating habits and even more notably my embarrassingly powerful addiction to cheeseburgers (mmmmmm cheeseburgers).

When it comes to food I just seem to be stupid. I know I did not get it from my parents, they were actually really good about feeding me healthy stuff when I was a kid. But in my adult life I just seem to have thrown all the things I was taught about healthy eating and living out the window and have jumped head first into the sinful ocean of cookie dough ice cream with its islands of fried chicken and french fry trees.

Logic seems not to apply to me when it comes to this subject. Some one says to me "You should eat healthier" and I say "You know? You are right"...

Five minutes later,

*NOM NOM NOM* "MUST HAVE MORE ONION RINGS!" *NOM NOM NOM*

This is one of the things in my life which really frustrates me, because its something that seems completely uncontrollable yet I know it is completely within my power to control it. I know I should wake up early and exercise, but I don't. I know I should not eat two double cheeseburgers and a large fry, but I do anyway.

I don't strive to be perfect, I mean what would life be without the occasional pizza, or hamburger, or any comfort food. But I seriously need to get my eating habits under control.

I feel like a child and I feel like I need to be treated like a child. So I am pleading to the members of ATS to give me some suggestions and advice to help me with this problem.

Has anyone out there dealt with this before? If so what are some things I can do to break this pattern of indulgence?

Portion control. If you want to eat an onion ring? Eat an onion ring. Then stop. Overeating is the biggest factor in weight gain.

reply to post by Openeye


You just have to want it.

Start small, work up.

Add more vegetables to your diet. Drink more water. Eat less carbs. Skip booze (I love booze, really hard to do for me).

Do some crunches. Do some pushups. Do some cardio.

You will feel better in an instant, the goal will be closer, and further endeavors towards being healthy / fit will become easier.

reply to post by captaintyinknots

Overeating is the biggest factor in weight gain.

Well I don't really have a weight problem. I'm 5 ft 6 and weigh about 125 pounds. Been that way since I was 16, I have never really changed in that department, other than my hair falling out

Originally posted by Openeye
reply to post by captaintyinknots

 

Overeating is the biggest factor in weight gain.

Well I don't really have a weight problem. I'm 5 ft 6 and weigh about 125 pounds. Been that way since I was 16, I have never really changed in that department, other than my hair falling out

So im confused about the issue then...its just about health? If so, I still stress that portion control is huge.

Portion control. If you want to eat an onion ring? Eat an onion ring. Then stop. Overeating is the biggest factor in weight gain.

reply to post by captaintyinknots


I think you're right with portion control. Dieting is a roller coaster. You starve your body of things you crave and than once you're off your diet, you lose control and gain more weight than when you started! I think if you eat your dinners on a saucer plate, it may help you reduce the amount of food intake. But than again, some people can create a mountain of food on the same small plate.

reply to post by captaintyinknots

So im confused about the issue then...

You and me both

If so, I still stress that portion control is huge.

Well I will take your advice into consideration for sure, I have been trying to cut down on the size of some of my meals recently.

I've struggled with my weight all my adult life. The big thing for me is just to stop thinking about it so much. The more you worry about it, the more you're still thinking about food and will eat.

Understand that the more you eat, the more you want to eat. It's an addiction. Try fasting for two days.You'll likely end up going crazy by the second day. Do whatever you have to do, like sleep as much as you can, anything besides eating. YOu're body is going into withdrawals not because it needs the energy, but from all those chemicals. Way worse than stop smoking, which is only a minor physical addiction.

You don't need three meals a day. One is enough. your stomach will shrink, your metabolism will get slower, and your body doesn't have to process so much toxins out of your body so you'll live longer. And you'll feel great about yourself, esp when you look in the mirror.

Hope you can do it!

reply to post by CircleOfDust


I agree that it is an addiction, but one meal a day is not healthy at all. In fact it's better if you eat 4 or 5 small healthy portions a day to keep your metabolism going.

I know what you mean. I'm a 25 year old, 5 foot 11 male who weighs 260 lbs. I don't even like fast food though... Today is the fifth consecutive day of me walking on a .64 mile track at my university, I did 3 laps a day for three days then kicked it up to 4, today was the second day doing 4 laps. The walking isn't difficult and I actually enjoy doing it.

The problem is the changes in my diet. This whole watching what I eat thing is killing me. I could kill for a bacon cheeseburger right now! And I don't mean some crappy fake burger from a fast food joint, I mean a real burger that I personally grilled. I'm trying real hard to eat healthy. I am going to! I will not break! BUT food...

I'm also someone who has quit smoking, cold turkey. That was nothing compared to changing my eating habits. People say portion control but that's excruciatingly difficult. My thing is... NO homemade cookies and other deserts! None! Watching carbs... man I love pasta type foods and mashed taters and breads. Another problem for me is that I have NEVER been able to acquire a taste for many healthy foods, they taste disgusting to me and make me gag... I mean... there are some I can eat, like green beans, any kind of beans really, and some greens like spinach but I cannot eat a salad. I REALLY wish I could make myself tolerate salad.

There are lots of sites that specialize in before and after pics. It's very inspirational.

Oh and:

First off I think You should give yourself a big pat on the back for quitting smoking !! That for me was the hardest thing to overcome , so you should be very proud of yourself !! Dieting is not the answer , I think by slowly changing your attitude about food may help you have a healthier way of life . I start my morning of with a smoothly with coconut water , frozen berries, ground flax seeds , chia seeds , whey protein , shelled hemp seed , maca powder,fresh ginger root and cinnamon . Keeps me full till lunch and for lunch I eat a big salad with kale or spinach , and a light supper . On the weekends I usually pig out at least once , I'm 5 foot 10 and I weigh 180 pounds I'm never hungry and if I crave a snack I grab an apple or some grapes ! Best of luck to You !!

reply to post by Openeye

HI OP My line of work is actually fitness coaching soo.. I can message you if you like?

Photoshop your head onto a reasonably fit (no needs for extremes) body of similar bone-type/stature as yourself to serve as an inspirational goal.
If your face also is 'un-fit' looking, you can morph, some of the extra weight off your cheeks and chin as well.

Once you've got a reasonably realistic-looking healthy and fit inspirational version of yourself to look at, print it out and tape it to your bathroom mirror, set it as a desktop background, or whatever it takes to remind you what you COULD look like.

Join a gym. Get a trainer. Make friends that have an exercise routine that fits your schedule.
Quite often we are who we hang out with, and if you find yourself a workout friend, or better, a group of friends, turning the exercise part of your day into a social occasion makes it less like work, and more something to look forward to. The peer pressure and support structure of having a group of supportive and motivational people to push and inspire you can work well towards keeping you on track.

As far as health and wellness goes; a quick and easy way to begin boosting your immune system is to stop wearing shoes. Go barefoot everywhere; driving your car, walking around grocery store, around your house and yard, whatever, wherever. The added exposure and contact with your environment will do your body good.
Some benefits to going barefoot.
There's also the more alternative view that touts the benefits of electrical grounding:
Electrical grounding and barefoot

All in all, it's your health and wellness. Changing your social climate to include healthier, more active people and/or joining those friends you have that are already healthy and active will benefit you, in more ways than you might imagine.
Sex always improves with healthier more active lifestyle changes, for one. If that's not motivation, then, well, it's up to you to find what might motivate you.

gym,
walking
running
An activity involving manual labour

any and all of the above.

Well, first, I just have to give you kudos for this poetic prose:

and have jumped head first into the sinful ocean of cookie dough ice cream with its islands of fried chicken and french fry trees.

That was wonderful.

I've been where you are, and still struggle with the cheeseburgerdom. I don't know if it will help you, but this is what I did: I started eating fruit. I am blessed with having lots of papaya, mango and acerola cherries. I started eating fruit for breakfast, and it energized me. I started having fruit whenever I had cravings for heavy carbs, and after a while, I started craving fruit instead. Unlike you, there are no fast food places where I live, so I don't have the constant allure of golden arches or Wendy's or *whine* Carl's Jr.

Give it a try. I am a big guy, and I was 50 lbs. overweight. I started nomming on fruit and nuts and eventually lost my deep mind-numbing craving for burgers and fries and onion rings. Now, two years and change later, I occasionally have those things -- occasionally-- but I make them myself, and they are much better food.

Hamburger:

ground chuck, mixed with minced onions, garlic, pepper and a dash of salt. Onion bun, mustard, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, sliced pickles, sharp cheddar.

Onion rings:

1/2 cup flour, 2 tsp. baking powder, 2 eggs. Mix that together, dip onion rings into it and then roll into a mixture of 2 tsp Old Bay Seasoning and Panko breadcrumbs. Fry on medium heat in olive oil. Eat immediately, or they will wilt and be disappointing.

You can do it. You just have to take responsibility for your health. I never wanted to. I almost waited too late to start taking care of myself, because I always thought that I was bulletproof and immune to everything. On my 50th birthday, I awoke to a giant blood clot on my leg. O, joy.

While you're at it, start stretching as a regular regime. Find a Tai Chi video and start working with it. You're getting older. You want to live.

Ive had abuse problems in the past and got over them relatively easily considering how hardcore I was going. I know drugs and food are different but I suspect the sickness that keeps us in the spiral may be the same. So hope this helps. Also keep in mind I may use terms having to do with drugs, but I am fully aware you problem is food. Feel free to use your own terminology. Its just easiest for me to write like this.

Several different factors to touch on in my case. Firstly, the most important thing is to know WHY you abuse. It requires you not lying to yourself. Youd be amazed at how many people fail at that. For me it took a few weeks of contemplation between the bouts of my drug induced coma/frenzy whatever. I always had it lingering back there in my mind but you have to flesh it out. Make it real and tangible. Know absolutely why you do it. No illusions.

Then Figure out what you want to do with your life besides what you have been doing. Aim for the sky brother. Pick something so fantastic that you may never tell anyone else what it is. Then accept you may fail and understand you get more then one try. You get as many tries as you want actually lol. There are never failures, only setbacks.

When thats worked out you need to understand your environment. Chances are your someplace easy to abuse. Probably have people enabling you. People who do the same thing you do. Things all around that are constant reminders. Bad energy everywhere. If you cant leave, then clean up! Move sh*t around or something lol. New space for new action. I swear to god this is more powerful then it may seem.

For a drug abuser it has to do with paraphernalia laying around. General clutter around the house. My place was only efficient for getting high. I needed it efficient for living life and achieving goals.

For yourself I would imagine healthy food in the fridge and cabinets is a good place to start. Clean up if you leave wrappers and containers everywhere. Maybe the dishes need to be collected and done. If you are super heavy maybe you moved furniture around so you expend as little energy as possible. Im not trying to stereotype you! Im just imagining the stuff I would do lol. Can you tell I used to live the life of abuse lol. If this does not apply to you just consider yourself ahead of the curb.

To sum it up, you should know;
Why you abuse. Why you dont want to abuse. What to replace the abuse with. How you probably have an environment that makes it easy to abuse and that you need to change it.

Thats how I worked it out. May not work for everyone, but considering what is as stake I cant NOT share. One day you'll wake up and you'll know then exactly how sick your thinking was. Your head will be clear. Youll feel powerful.

Well I don't really have a weight problem. I'm 5 ft 6 and weigh about 125 pounds. Been that way since I was 16, I have never really changed in that department, other than my hair falling out

Lmao stop smoking pot.

Seriously though, im 6'2 175 and I can out eat everyone I know. I get disgusting when I eat. Not long ago I did 5 lbs of bacon (and 2 pancakes) for breakfast and managed to get tossed around in judo without soiling myself or vomiting later that evening. I mean, I get kidney stones, but other then that Im fine. Sorry thing is, the kidney stones are not worth giving up bacon for lol. Maybe if they happened more often. But I can deal with once or twice a year.

Any other issues other then hair loss? Do you just not have much energy or feel healthy?

Walk, a lot. Increase the distance over the weeks (find a nice park, somewhere where others walk) stretch before you walk.

Lift light weights every other day. Do a lot of jumping jacks (same with walking increase amount as weeks go by)

Buy a leather wooden handled (with ball bearings) jump rope. start slow and same as with above increase with time. 10 minuets of steady jump rope is like running around two miles.

Clean the house a lot. (I live alone in a big house so I'm doing a work out just cleaning house and doing yard work)

Bottom line. Start with walking.

This is one of the places I go a lot www.pinellascounty.org... find a place like this and its pretty cool.

reply to post by StrangeTimez

Any other issues other then hair loss? Do you just not have much energy or feel healthy?

My hair loss is hereditary so there is nothing I can do about that really

But yeah a general feeling of unhealthiness is my primary concern. My energy level is okay I guess, only time I really have an issue is when I wake up in the morning. But once I'm up I'm okay. I don't drive I walk most everywhere, and I take the metro to work. My commute is pretty far so that may contribute to my eating habits, because by the time I get home from work the last thing I want to do is cook.