It starts...

What is it about birthdays and holidays that cause us to evaluate our lives? I know it's not just me. Valentine's Day causes single people to examine their past relationship/life choices, Thanksgiving and Christmas cause people to think more about family and priorities, and January 2nd marks the busiest day of the year for the diet and exercise industry. There is just something about these annual milestones that cause us to look back, take stock, and think of a day, one year in the future when things will be different, things will be better, things will have (hopefully) changed.

One month before my 41st birthday, I found myself postured in much the same way. After being overweight for most of my life and suffering from chronic migraines for half my life - and facing another birthday, single, very much alone, childless, and, frankly, afraid of life most of the time - I mustered up just enough hope to try to change...again.

Me...hoping.

I want to say this time felt different; this time I knew it was going to work; this time I knew I'd see it through to the end. But, I didn't. Like all of the other times before, when I failed or I gave up part way there, all I had was some information, a plan, and just enough hope to try to change...again.

So, on a Wednesday, after suffering through an 18 hour migraine, I decided to give it one more try. I took information from my past experiences and some that I'd gathered through research on food manufacturing and nutrition as medicine and formulated a plan. It was pretty simple:

1. Scratch the sugar - If I'd learned one thing for certain over the past 20 years of fighting losing battles against my weight and my migraines, it was this: my body no likely the sugar...or anything that turned into sugar after I ate it. So, candy, cake, chips, breads, Kraft Mac & Cheese, gravy, fried chicken skin and southwestern cheese fries (i.e. the staples of my diet) were out.

2. Focus on fresh - When I wasn't thinking about dealing with my health, my diet was (as you see above) completely devoid of fresh fruits and vegetables...unless you count the wilted lettuce and mealy tomato that Mikey D's and BK put on their double patty burgers or the apples in Popeye's cinnamon apple pie. So, my goal was to make fruits and vegetables the main event at every meal. My reasoning was this: Obviously, something that is naturally grown is better for you than something manufactured...or any food that is passed to you through a window and eaten in your car, for that matter. Plus, fresh produce is lower in calories and way more nutrient rich than the aforementioned "food". Another plus, fresh produce has never caused me to slip into a food coma or get a migraine, so...win/win.

3. Minimize the meat - Now, before you feel judged or faint in shock I don't have any intention of becoming a vegetarian or a vegan. I loves me some meat and do not think it is unhealthy or even unethical for us to eat animal products (provided it is raised responsibly). Man has survived and thrived as an omnivore for centuries (well, before we started processing and pumping preservatives into our food, that is). However, to make item #2 work (i.e. eat more fruit & veg), the meat had to take up less space on my plate. The truth is, I was probably consuming, on average, 2 to 3 times the amount of meat I actually needed at each meal. Cutting back would not only make more room for veggies and fruits, but would also significantly cut calories, so, again...win/win.

4. Deal with dairy - I've read a lot on the evils of dairy and, much like the whole meat issue, I don't really see a problem with it (provided it is organic and not full of fillers and chemicals and things that probably shouldn't be ingested). But, also like meat, dairy is typically high in calories and fat, so keeping this to a minimum is probably not a bad idea.

5. Ease into Exercise - I live a sedentary life. I spend 9 hours a day in a desk chair at work, then most of the evening on my sofa watching TV and/or working on my 2nd job. Being the size I am, and considering the fact that I'm not on a reality show, I knew that there was no way I could go from where I was to exercising as much as I needed to. So, I gave myself one month to get my eating habits solid and more routine (and also lose some weight), after that I'd start a run-walk program accompanied by some strength training.

That's it. That was the plan.

Armed with this and a list (which I miraculously remembered to take with me instead of leaving it on my desk or in my car), I ventured into a place I never thought I would: 

Whole Foods.

Whole Foods!!! Ahhhh!

I confess, I was one of those people that rolled my eyes and looked down my nose at people who shopped exclusively at Whole Foods (meaning they went in there for more than the Chantilly Cake). I thought it was the grocery equivalent of designer jeans or ridiculous shoes you only wear for one hour, once a year. I didn't think the food was better, or better for you. I thought it was a fad, a status symbol, a place for snobs and hippies and conspiracy theorists an snobs (yes, I know i already said that).

Before that Wednesday after the 18-hour migraine, I'd watched a bunch of documentaries on food production and health and nutrition and decided organic food probably really was better than regular food. But, in my city, you can only buy organic at one store. You guessed it...that store is Whole Foods (aaaahhhh!!!).

So, being as I had no choice, I swallowed my middle-class righteous indignation, told myself as long as I really wasn't a snob it didn't matter where I shopped, took a deep breath, brought one of my brothers for emotional support and ventured in. Without a fancy re-usable grocery bag. 

The next day, I still went to my dead-end job, talked to friends, wore my off-brand clothes, loved my family, washed my own dishes and used my outdated phone. I didn't rush out and buy a pair of Birkenstocks or Louboutins. I just had lots of natural, healthy, chemical free food to eat, that I then had to cook and eat at home, like our our ancestors did, instead of in my car as I drove around the city. 

This, I'm told, is called "food". You can't get it at the drive-thru.

Whew! Crisis averted.

A little over two weeks later, I was down 16 lbs, wearing jeans I hadn't been able to get in for almost a year, and migraine free.

So far, I've learned a lot, tried a few things, made a few mistakes and felt better than I have in a really, really long time. No matter what my previous positions were on nutrition and food choices, or hippies, or snobs, you really can't argue with those results.

I'll be blogging my experience, what I'm learning, mistakes I'm making, and (hopefully) little victories I'm achieving all along the way. Factoring in my size, what the AMA says I should weigh and the fact that science says it is almost impossible for women over 40 to lose weight...this blog should continue for at least the next 53 years. So...grab a (healthy) snack and strap in, folks. It's gonna be a long, probably not totally boring, ride.

Hopefully,
t