I've realized that
I don't want to CHANGE my LIFE.

I LIKE my life.  ....Most of it.....

Maintaining a small body size
is only one small PART of my life.

To manage that part,
I'm willing to eat less.
That's really ALL I need to change.

                   

Sometimes it just needs to be said.

Once upon a time, an old farmer lived in a poor country village. His neighbors considered him well-to-do because he owned a horse, which he used for many years to work his crops.

One day his beloved horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors gathered to commiserate with him. “Such bad luck,” they said sympathetically. “May be” the farmer replied.

The next morning the horse returned, but brought with it six wild horses. “How wonderful,” the neighbors rejoiced. “May be,“ replied the old man.

The following day, his son tried to saddle and ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. Again the neighbors visited the farmer to offer their sympathy on his misfortune. “May be,” said the farmer.

The day after that, conscription officers came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the farmer’s son had a broken leg, they passed him by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out. “May be,” the farmer replied.

Positive and negative events are often entwined, making predictions about consequences very complex. Sometimes when we consider the single best thing that has happened to us during past years, AND the single worst thing, we may be surprised to learn that they are often one and the same.
 


      “Joy and woe are woven fine.” (William Blake)

We can’t know immediately which events are life changing, and in what ways life will change as a result of that event.

Sometimes a totally positive event, - like winning the lottery, getting promoted, having a child, - sets into motion a crisis or deep disappointment. At other times a misfortune – like losing a job, a dream, or a life partner – is a gateway to something wonderful.

No matter how clear the way forward seems, there is no one direct path or only one way to look at our situation. Instead, there are multiple routes.

“Whatever we do, even whatever we do NOT do, prevents us from doing the opposite. Acts demolish their alternatives, that is the paradox.” (James Salter)

We can’t predict our future feelings about the results of future events,
but we can learn how to choose the way we THINK about them,
and how we THINK about things is the main determining factor about how we FEEL about things.

 It's probably not a great idea to weigh in front of others.

Activities, especially the ones we find unpleasant or painful, that don’t yield a positive return to us individually, are counter productive. Acts such as reducing sodium, eating “organic”, or “exercising daily” can sometimes actually prevent a person from creating a healthy lifestyle for themselves.

Hate running? Then don’t run. Don’t like giving up pizza? Then figure out a way to fit it into your diet. Don’t like salads? Then don’t eat them.

So what would be a successful strategy for weight loss?
Choose the most painless, most effective way-of-eating possible, for you personally.

It’s foolish to force one’s own fitness or nutritional ideologies on others. Many people treat fitness and nutrition as though these issues are a Religion and try to push their own preferences on to other people.

Perhaps the Paleo diet worked very well for you. That doesn’t mean that it will work for someone who feels horrible on low carbs or loves bread.

Perhaps limiting all eating to three or less mealtimes a day feels “natural” to you. That doesn’t mean eating in that manner will be effective for those who greatly value daily snacks, or for those who have a strong personal preference for eating a larger number of mini-meals daily.

Perhaps it’s easier for you to restrict the amount of your food intake by establishing a pattern of skipping meals or fasting a few days each week. That doesn’t mean that an eating/fasting pattern is workable or desirable for everyone.

If you find a diet that works for you, congratulations! It’s okay to recommend this diet to your friends, but don’t turn it into Nutritional Dogma. Just be thankful that you’ve found a good strategy and move on with your life.

Saying that there is only one way to eat is the same thing as saying that everyone shares a common heritage, comes from the same cultural background, and has the same personal preferences. People are different. We are not all the same.