If I Had Hammer

Thursday, March 8th, 2018     by Debra DuPree Williams     Start the Conversation


by Debra DuPree Williams @DDuPreeWilliams

I have a lot of family and friends who have decided to jump on the let’s get healthy band wagon. I have to applaud their efforts. Some have done quite well with their lifestyle changes, but others are like me, they go up and they go down, and they go up again, and down again. You know, the proverbial, cliched yo-yo. You’ve probably seen the cartoon of the woman with a hammer or some such object in her hand, and the scale broken into a thousand little pieces. That’s so me. Some days, I just want to bash that scale.


I’ve struggled with weight issues all my life. Unlike my mother and my sister, both of whom were created with a small-boned frame and a tiny waist, slender feet and hands, and even bird ankles, I was just the opposite. Now, it’s true that Mama, Bobbie, and I are all short, but I didn’t get that tiny-boned frame. I’m built more like our daddy, who was also short, but he and I were blessed with big bones, big feet, and big hands. In fact, my hands are the spitting image of Papa’s.

 DIETS
I’ve been on every diet known to human-kind. I’ve done one popular diet program at least five or six times─probably more than that. Now, true, I do manage to lose some weight─the last time, forty-odd pounds, but I’ve never reached the goals they set for me . . . ever. It isn’t for lack of trying. They look at me and automatically say, “Hey, five-foot tall, female-of-a-certain-age, you should weigh this and no more.” They have not once taken into consideration how big my bones are for those five feet of space I take up vertically. I’ve fallen short of their set goal weight by at least twenty pounds. And even though I’ve worn size eights and even some sixes, it isn’t where they think I should be. (Heavy sigh inserted here.)

I’ve done the cabbage soup diet, popular back in the seventies and eighties. I lost a few pounds eating those foods, and I lost it quickly. But, it was so horrid a routine, I couldn’t stick with it for more than a couple of weeks. Toss that one in more ways than one.

 Then I moved on to the grapefruit and boiled egg diet. All I’m going to say about that is, no wonder I eventually became allergic to citrus. Ugh!

LOW CARB

The diet with which I’ve had the most success is a low-carb diet, or as some call it these days, the keto diet. I’m not much of a red meat eater, but I do eat chicken and turkey and some fish. I don’t eat shellfish as I fear an allergic reaction like the one my mother had in her later years. I’m sensitive to, or allergic to, so many things, I don’t want to take the chance. A little shrimp isn’t worth it to me.  I like eggs as long as they aren’t just plain boiled eggs (see the diet above), so I usually do scrambled eggs at breakfast. I like bacon, or Canadian bacon, or turkey bacon, though, if I’m going to eat it, I do prefer the real thing. Now, I must insert here that my doctor isn’t thrilled with the fact that I eat so much bacon. She prefers that I not eat it at all, but I suspect that she’s a vegetarian anyway, so naturally, she wouldn’t want me to eat bacon.

I love vegetables. In fact, I could actually live as a vegetarian. I’ve just never felt compelled to do so for any reason, so I’m not one. But my daughter-in-law is. And I respect that. When we visit them and I cook for her family, I always prepare her food first, and if anyone wants meat products in what I’ve cooked, I prepare that separately and let them add it. Her husband, our eldest son, is a vegan as is their elder daughter. Just fix some veggies and grains or some tofu, and they are good to go. Our younger granddaughter is an omnivore. I like to kiddingly say that she eats anything that doesn’t eat her first. She loves food. All kinds of food, but neither she nor her sister care for sweets. They much prefer veggies and fruits, though Little Bit will get down and dirty with a good steak every now and then.

My nephew and his wife have been doing Forks Over Knives for about two years. They’ve both done well with it. My niece has a bit of a struggle with it as she works crazy hours as the charge nurse, working nights at the hospital. It’s a stressful job, plus she is the mother of seven, and grandmother of soon to be, five. And, we all know that men always manage to do better with weight loss than women. Always. But because of the foods they eat, both of them have amazing blood test results.

 CHOICES
So, if you are thinking about doing some kind of weight-loss program this year, you can see that those programs come in all manner of sizes and styles. You have to choose the one that best suits your lifestyle and your particular tastes. Choose the one that you will stick to, that you feel you can do for the long haul. And if you fall off that wagon, just get up and start again. There’s no shame in trying and not reaching that goal. As long as you keep your good health as the focus, you can do this.

Find an accountability partner. My hubby and I did one diet program along with our son and his wife a few years ago. We all did great, even though, yet again, I didn’t reach the goal they set for me. Hubby, to this day, writes down each morsel he puts into his mouth every single day. If I’d done that, I’m sure I’d not had to start over again and again. I would have reached my goal if not theirs. But I’m never giving up on at least trying. As long as my cholesterol and my blood sugar numbers are good, I’m a fairly happy camper. And let me add that it also helps that I fit into my clothes.

 ATTITUDE
I’d like to be around for my family, to see my granddaughters enter adulthood, get married, have a family. It’s all about attitude. And if you embrace that this isn’t a diet, but a lifestyle, you will be one step ahead at the start. And the Bible says that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.(Phil.4:13) So, don’t forget to pray as you embark on this journey to good health. Oh, and don’t forget to consult your doctor before doing any diet program. Let your doctor guide you in your decision. And . . . put away your hammer. I did.

Have you begun a new manner of eating in this new year? Tell us your choice and how you are doing. We’d love to cheer you on.

TWEETABLE
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