Confessions of a Fat Kid

So I found a great blog today, courtesy of CNN. This guy, Tyler, is trying to lose 150 pounds in 12 months. I hope he can do it (he has a month left and has lost 130 pounds),  but even if he doesn’t, he’ll  be real close and he seems to have done it the right way. He cut calories and started working out, you know, the normal way to lose weight. Nothing extreme, no surgery/pills/fads. I’m impressed with his honesty. He really puts himself out there and now he has all these people cheering him on. It takes some serious courage to really put yourself out there like that.

Which brings me to my next thought, The Biggest Loser. I personally don’t watch this show, but I know several people who do, and love it. I understand it’s motivating, and I’m incredible jealous of the results those people get, but I worry for them when they go home. What do you do to maintain your weight when you aren’t working out eight hours a day with your personal trainer? But none the less, they work hard when they are on the show and hopefully it helps them change their behaviors. I read an article a few weeks ago that says 50% of the people who go on the Biggest Loser gain their weight back, which is about the same success rate as a typical diet. I was on Facebook the other night, the day the Biggest Loser premiered, and someone who I’m “friends” with posted a diatribe about how disgusted she was with the contestants on the show. (NBC has been advertising it as the BIGGEST show ever) First of all, the person is not overweight and has never been overweight, so she is in no position to pass judgement on these people. If you’ve never been in that situation, then you have no idea what a struggle with weight it like, because it feels like a never-ending battle against an unknown foe. I can tell you why they are overweight, because they redirected emotions into eating, whatever those feelings might have been. It doesn’t take long before your weight is out of control. Secondly, you know this show is about fat people working out, and if you are so disgusted with fat people, why would you be watching it? If you want to see skinny people working out, go the gym. But where is the entertainment value in that?

For anyone who actually knows me, you are probably aware that I’ve got a little bit of a “weight problem.” In the immortal words of Jack Black, “I like to eat, is that a crime?” But anyway, I’m trying to take control of it as of late. I started a pretty restrictive diet. I know that’s not the ideal way to lose weight, but I needed something that worked and didn’t give me a lot of wiggle room. I’ve added in consistent exercise and am plugging along. From the middle of August through the end of December, I’ve lost 51.6 pounds. I’m still a long way from my goal, but that’s the most weight I’ve ever lost. And though it doesn’t really get any easier overall, small things are getting easier: going to the gym, remembering to drink a ton of water, eating every three hours, etc.

What else also impressed me about Tyler’s blog, was the fact that he looked like a different person when he was done. I’ve never been thin, ever. So I’m very curious to see what I look like when I get down a little further.

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