Focus On Your Health Not Your Weight

 Many of us trying to lose weight look for the fastest way to drop a few pounds, but dropping a few pounds will not fix your problem. You have to ask yourself "how did I get this way". Being honest with yourself is the only way you're going to make any real change. 

My story is not any different than most. During my 20"s is was very fit, very athletic, and never thought much about my weight because I was thin and healthy. I didn't have to think about staying that way. In my late 30's as I became more successful my lifestyle changed. I was still active but more indulgent. We ate out more often, we had time for bigger meals, and started to drink more alcohol. I don't want to sound like an alcoholic but my wife and I would enjoy wine with dinner. Sometimes an afternoon cocktail with snacks. We were eating dinner later in the evening.     

During my late 30's and 40's and into my 50's I gained about 50 pounds. My doctor started to have those talked with me about my weight. I didn't have any serious problems but he was trying to warn me about what my future will look like if I don't lose weight. I get it, and I could remember my parents and the problems they had with their parents. Neither of my parents was seriously overweight, but they had health issues caused by their diet that I wanted to avoid. 

So, like most of us, I thought I could lose extra fat by exercising. Little did I know the only way you lose fat is by the body burning that fat as fuel. Your body burns fat every day to give your body the energy to function. But most of us have trained our bodies to simply burn the fat we eat because it's easier than burning stored fat. This brings me to admit the mistakes I made. Mistake one: you can't exercise away a bad diet. Losing fat is 90% diet, and 10% exercise, that's a fact. Mistake two: spending money on gym memberships and expensive diet plans, big mistake that took me 10 years to figure out. 

I definitely learned the hard way, but I did learn and I did conquer my weight problem. I learned that the more calories you eat the harder it is for your digestive system to process the food. Also, I learned that what you drink has calories too. In North American, half the calories we consume come from drinks. 

Now I eat only fresh poultry, seafood, vegetables, and fruit. I drink mostly water, lots of water, more than a gallon a day. Eventually, you will be able to return to a.  more indulgent way of eating, but like most thin people the key would is moderation. Wine is good for your blood but I only drink one 3 ounce glass a day. Cocktails are okay, but only one occasionally. You can't go crazy with calories and not add fat. Fat takes a long time to burn off and a short time to replace. I lost about 10 pounds of fat in a few months by not eating fat. If I stopped eating fat the body would have to burn stored fat. 

In our normal diet, we eat fat when we eat fried food, drink or eat dairy products. Eat snack foods and red meat. Processed foods are full of fat. Processed foods come in a can or box with a food label which I call a warning label. If you want to cut back on calories, eat fresh food. Starvation diets never work. You might lose a few pounds but you don't lose fat. 

Look for my podcast by searching “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight” on the podcast app that you use. You’ll see a piece of my book cover.

If you really want to lose your body fat look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $3.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans, or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, bn.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com and other online bookstores. Just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page.