First things first...100 followers, you all are awesome, thanks for DreamSteem-ing with me!!
"I eat a bowl of cereal with skim milk for breakfast, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and some veggie straws with a small apple for lunch and a small plate of spaghetti without sauce for dinner and a small salad with honey mustard. I still can't lose weight," a young obese boy shared on the television, with clear emotion. He seemed absolutely defeated by the hard work he had put in, only to see his weight stay the same. He also complained of feeling hungry all the time and his parents had been concerned about the child's physical, but also mental well-being.
"This kid is me", I thought. Damn near in tears over how much my stomach howled, I would try to keep my portions small, dutifully comparing meals to the recommendations of the United States Department of Agriculture pyramid that had been a part of my school curriculum since kindergarten.
Source Our ignorance was filled with sweet breads and cereals, but at what cost?
Many of us want to achieve a healthy lifestyle, so that we can enjoy the optimal quality of life for the time that we are alive. Get about 8 hours of sleep, drink water, try to exercise for half an hour a day, and eat right. Well, that last piece is easier said than done when the information meant to guide our health was intentionally deceptive. Industries paying off government agencies to misinform the public was out of our control at the time, but we must work to educate ourselves about what evidence indicates for optimized nutrition.
This time last year, I was in bad shape. My weight had ballooned back up to my (known) highest weight of 215 and at 5'6", I was obese. I was mortified that I couldn't remember a time that my boobs had stuck out further than my stomach did. And while the other excess body fat is not benign, little research was necessary to understand that my stomach circumference indicated elevated serious health risks and I had to change if I wanted to see and enjoy many years to come.
The methods that I used to achieve my body recomposition were not constant throughout 2017. I changed my way of eating several times and I want to share my experiences with these different mentalities for nutrition in the hopes that it can provide some anecdotal evidence for how much these small sacrifices add up!
I know its not going to be a perfect guide to show how to achieve weight loss, but it is my sincere, personal journey for better health that shows that we don't have to spend hours is the gym or buying "cleanses" to help our body heal itself. I will discuss my failures alongside my victories, in hopes of showing that it doesn't have to be "perfect" to work. We just have to keep at it. Oh, and I found I was pretty bad at replicating the same picture angles. If you choose to use pictures to track your progress, consistent angles and lighting make it that much easier to track.
On February 1st, 2017, I dedicated myself to avoiding added sugars in my diet and cutting back on processed foods. I also utilized the simple mathematical equation of Calories In<Calories Out. After I used an amazing spreadsheet tool to find out how many calories my body needs to maintain my weight, I selected a moderate deficit to encourage a decent amount of weight loss, by encouraging my body to use my stored fat energy to make up the deficit.
I hope to see you all back here for the March update, where I will be including not only my one month progress pictures, but also one year progress pics and comparisons of my weight and measurements. I am happy to answer any questions about my personal experiences with weight loss, but encourage anyone considering a significant change in lifestyle to seek scientific, peer-reviewed evidence before adopting new habits.
And remember, the steem work makes the dream work!