Passion vs. Obsession. Part One.

I went to Weight Watchers. Several times. That seems to be the pattern: people join, lose some weight, get frustrated, quit, join again, moan and commiserate at the meetings about all the reasons they failed and why they've come back...and I was certainly a part of that cycle. I can rattle off the names of lots of women who have done the same.

So let's see. We start out with high hopes. Obsess about fat/calories/fiber. Succeed a little bit. Then...fail.


And then we do it again. Ummm. Isn't this a faulty equation?

I've done the WW thing several times. I had my little slide rule, and like all the other women, I tried to find the most food for the least amount of points. What that leads to is eating a lot of "false food." White bread bereft of nutrition, microwave meals, etc. No matter how many times they write "HEALTHY" on that microwave meal, please, please, let's not kid ourselves. The first clue is the list of ingredients; it's a mile long! And you can't pronounce half the stuff! C'mon! Then it's microwaved--and we don't call it "nuked" for nothin' do we?!

I gave away my microwave. Sometimes use the one at work, because I must admit it's handy when you want a cup of soup, and we don't have a stove in the lunchroom.

So anyway, for me, Weight Watchers was obsession. I wasn't paying attention to my mind/body/spirit. I was just eating, with all my thoughts concentrated on how much I could eat and still stay in my points range.

I did not want to do that anymore. That's not freedom.

So...on passion. I prefer it. The better my food, the better I feel, whether I say goodbye to this last 20 pounds or not.

I did not count calories, did not count fat. What I did do, is pay attention.

I paid attention to labels, and put into action all the things that I knew in my heart and soul were true: that we have to nourish our bodies with whole foods, and indulge now and then, because life is fun, food is good, we should celebrate both together.

I pay attention to my body; I listen to it. When satisfied, I stop eating. When I'm hungry, I eat. I love to eat!

And listen, here's the part of the secret: We are set up to fail. I have read many books and articles on food and nutrition, and I have come to believe what many on the fringe have been saying: there are additives and ingredients in food that are meant to keep you from reaching satiety. There are ingredients that are put into food to ensure that you never feel full!

Is it evil? Oh yeah. Do the research. Type "high fructose corn syrup" into Google and see what you find. They type in "MSG." And food manufacturers, they are clever. They have found ways to hide the MSG! If you see "natural flavors" or "spices" on the list of ingredients, you are eating MSG (there are other ways it's hidden, too). A meal or two of that stuff probably won't kill you. But if your morning cereal contains MSG, and your microwave lunch, and your snack of low-fat chips (that probably also contain hydrogenated oils and other nasty non-foods), and your evening meal...it adds up. The ketchup on your eggs: probably loaded with sugar, HFCS, and MSG.

Think about your favorite munchie, whether it's chips or microwave popcorn, whatever. Think about sitting in front of the TV with the bag. Do you go into a sort of mindless eating stupor, where one chip just follows the other till the bag is gone? You just eat, and eat, and eat, not even tasting or enjoying the food anymore. And it's not joy, is it? It's...obsession.

How does that happen?
You don't go into that mindless stupor when eating apples.
So how does that happen?

Do the research and you'll see: the food industry wants you to eat like a pig. Don't let the industry win! We can change all that. Even Weight Watchers...do they really want you to succeed? I wonder. Because if you succeed, you don't need them.

I sure don't need them! Yay!

To be continued...