Ending the Insanity

As I've stated previously, my eating on Friday and Saturday is atrocious. Saturday is especially dangerous because it's hard to log my food that day, and I seem to take that as carte blanche for pigging out on low-carb junk food. Sure it's low-carb, but it's still junk!

Well, as the left column under "Reading" indicates, I'm currently reading The Ultimate Weight Solution by Dr. Phil McGraw. As a book tackling obesity from the psychological point of view it's interesting and has a lot of merit. If you overeat for emotional reasons and really work the program outlined in the book, you will lose weight. On the other hand, some of the nutrition information is abysmal. In my option, "Key 5," dealing with nutrition, should be skipped in favor of books that have a bit more truth involved. None of this should surprise anyone. Dr. Phil has a Ph.D. in psychology, and is not a medical doctor nor a nutritionist. I hope to tackle these issues in this post.

First, the kudos. Key 4 deals with "mastery over food and impulse eating." I do eat only when I am hungry. My problem is being hungry all the time and ingesting way too many calories, even if the food is diet-friendly. I'm especially vulnerable on Sabbath when I'm liable to be home and bored. Faced with the desire to overeat (eating more calories than my body needs to sustain my weight), Dr. Phil offers many options, classified in three categories: "fun activities, those you do for pure enjoyment; relaxation activities, those you employ to reduce tension; and obligatory activities, those things you must do" (pg. 203). I found things in each category I could do. Here I'll simply list the ones I marked and that I plan to do.

Fun:

Write letters or send emails to friends or family.

Write in your journal. (I would add that I could blog here.)

Give yourself a manicure.

Read your favorite magazine.

Read a good book.

Relaxation:

Dance to some upbeat music.

Take a shower or leisurely bath.

Engage in prayer or meditation. (I could meditate on God's Word!)

Obligatory:

Do housework. (My apartment is a total mess!)

Do all the things the dentist wants you to do: brush, floss, rinse with mouthwash. (Who wants to eat when their teeth are clean?)

So there you have it - some coping mechanisms I can teach myself to deal with hunger when I know my body doesn't need those calories. I really only need 1800 calories a day, not the 2500 I eat when left to my own desires. I actually gained almost a pound in February and am currently two pounds above goal. Sure, some of that is probably muscle; I have been hitting the weights hard. But all of it can't be muscle, and I'm certainly not losing body fat. So bleh.

Now for my gripe on Key 5 dealing with nutrition. He actually states that besides sugar and "sugary processed food" that "saturated fats...shoulder much of the blame for 'insulin resistance.'" Say what?!? Fats do NOT contribute to insulin resistance. They do not raise the level of insulin in the blood at all. Zip. Zero. Zilch. It can't contribute to something it has no effect on!

This is the kind of idiocy I'm running across when it comes to nutrition and healthy eating. He even takes time out to slam all diet plans because "as soon as you return to your old ways of eating, your weight returns, with interest" (pg. 222). Screech!!! Diets - all diets - are meant to be lifestyles, Mr. McGraw. There should be no going back! There's other idiocy, too, but this should give you a taste. I liked his book a lot better before getting to this chapter.

My advice - skip this "key" completely and try a better book where the author actually knows what he's talking about, researches the science, and talks about what actually goes on in your body when you eat something. I suggest Jonny Bowden's Living the Low Carb Life. More than a low-carb book, this is a book about making good nutritional choices to make your body happy so you will be happier.

Now that my diet is healthy for the first time ever, my body is working with me rather than against me. It feels good to have it as an ally.