Diet Secret Revealed-Self Discipline!

I am one of those people who have been weight conscious for years.  It’s almost a hobby.

In my high school years I was in two sports and didn’t even think about it. In college, I put on the typical 20 pounds from over consumption and under burn. After college I started running, which I started in college and took to a new level.  I was running 5 miles a day at a seven minute pace and burned off all the college excess.

Then I joined a track club and started running 60 miles a week and took off another ten pounds. I was 10 pounds under my high school weight at 165 pounds. At 5′11″ people said I was too skinny. I loved it.  For runners, the only way you can get faster at a certain point is lose weight; oxygen uptake increase.

Since the track club days, I have had to face the everyman dilemma. More calories in than burned equals more weight. I have always been a gym rat, always loved to run and bike, and always loved to eat. I found that no amount of exercise in my new reality would over come my food intake. I began over several years now of trimming down my intake.

I learned when I had to get to a lower weight to qualify for a “superman” life insurance policy that if I cut out carbohydrates other than vegetables and fruit, I could lose 6 pounds in a week. Now I have learned that if I eat high protein and mostly fruits and vegetables with no flower, little sugar, and no fried foods, I can easily maintain my weight.

When I add two hours of easy exercise a day (hour walk in the morning and hour walk in the evening) I can lose 1/2 pound a day. But, if I don’t walk or give in to hunger at night before bed I can wake up in the morning a pound or two heavier. I then wipe out two or three day’s efforts.

At first, not eating something yummy before bed felt like I was starving myself. My mind and brain joined together to threaten me with death if I didn’t get some food in quickly. It’s quite a battle. Hard not to listen to them. But I had to determine that my goal was stronger than my brain’s uncanny ability to have my complete attention all the time and work on me mercilessly.

It becomes a battle of the wills, but I am in reality fighting myself.  I found that after I won the first night and didn’t die, I could probably win the second night and once again be safe. I have put on 25 pounds since my high school days. I don’t think I will ever be back to that weight. Its ok. I want to do it the proverbial 10 pounds at a time.

I have begun to enjoy the battle.  Forget Afghanistan, I’ve got a real war right here in my head. Who will win? I have to stick to my two hours a day of exercise. I like to do some cross training so a treadmill, a pre-cor, a bike ride all change up the dynamics and my metabolism burn. I eat protein each couple of hours to activate the digestion and make my brain think I am not starving my body. Please don’t send it any emails to let it know what I am doing.

I think I can win.

If you want to get a little more on the diet, look at my post, “How to lose 1/2 pound a day”.