That’s right, I’m going to make the case for yoyo dieting. Bear with me, I haven’t lost my mind.
We all know someone who’s always on a diet – and always fat. Oh, they may lose weight every now and then, but they always gain it back. They try every type of diet which frustrates you – because “why can’t they just eat everything in moderation”? After all, you’ve never had a problem with weight control, how hard can it be?
From this point on – I’ll write about me and my journey, not the unnamed, un-faced “those people”.
Once I got into my twenties, I’ve struggled achieving and maintaining a healthy weight. Most of the time I wouldn’t even work on my weight. I have a fairly robust self image that, unfortunately, is impervious to the man in the mirror. That said, I have embarked to lose weight more than a few times. I’ll talk about just two of the most successful – that ultimately failed as always.
In my mid forties I was at my heaviest (until then) at 315lbs. A bad night in the hospital woke me up to the notion that I wasn’t going to die young, I was going to live sick. That was more terrifying to me, and the next day I embarked on a journey to lose weight and get fit. I couldn’t even do a single push up at the time. I started the Less of Lee blog on day one of that journey before I’d lost a pound. I thought by announcing to my friends, family, co-workers, and the entire world of my plan to lose weight – that it would box me in and keep me on track. And it worked.
I lost 85lbs in 10 months. No fasting back then. Just a Weight Watchers/calorie counting approach as I slowly transitioned to a low carb diet. In one of my earlier failed attempts I had learned about, come to believe, and had some success with low carb. I just wasn’t ready to jump straight into an Atkins diet. So I counted calories, used portion control and slowly started swapping out the high carb highly processed foods for low carb, whole foods. I walked and walked, then ran a little then built up to running 5ks. I did not have arthritis back then. Next I embarked on the P90 fitness program and started building some muscles. That’s the version of me in the photo on the left.
I looked good, felt good, and everyone was proud of me – I was proud of myself. Then the fear went away and the life of a father of three caught me up in other priorities and the weight came back. I’d try to get back on track and it wouldn’t stick, at all. And now I’m in my mid fifties, 336lbs, type 2 diabetic with arthritic knees, walking with a cane and driving with a handicap sticker. That’s me on the right, three years ago,
My A1c hit 11.2, Trulicity was added to the two meds I’d been taking for years and I was to start insulin shots at the next doctor’s appointment. The fear returned and I embarked on my current journey. There has been a LOT of success. I got off all the meds, never had to take insulin shots, and achieved a normal A1c. It’s 5.6 right now, two and a half years later without meds. I went from walking with a cane to running 5ks. Unbelievable.
Oh…and I lost 85lbs and was on my way to getting to a healthy weight.
BUT – instead, I gained back 40 of those pounds. I didn’t go back to my “wildly unhealthy, eat whatever I wanted” ways. I simply had too many days and times where I didn’t eat well. I gain weight EASILY. It’s quite hard to lose weight. I have not arrived.
And yet, I have not given up.
That’s why I am praising the yoyo dieter. To me, that’s someone who hasn’t given up. If I had never endeavored to lose weight, I’d be over 500lbs. I’d be on diabetes meds, and taking insulin shots. What does insulin shots do? It causes you to gain weight. I’d be walking with that cane if not a walker.
We assume that the problems are in the diets and in the dieter. And for sure, there are some questionable diets designed only to sell magazines and supplements. And sure, some people seem to fall for any wacko scheme.
And yet. The real villain is the modern, highly processed foods that taste so good, are so cheap, are everywhere in your face. No diet. No way of losing weight. No type exercise. None of these things work when you return to eating these “foods”.
Well, just never eat them. Yep. I’m guilty. The struggle is real. If I’d have learned my lessons in my twenties and never again made bad choices, I’d not be in the situation I’m in now. That I do the wrong things is not praise worthy. Do not be like me in this. I urge you to be perfect, all the time. For sure, that’s the best thing.
But…
Never give up. Never give in. Never quit. Never let past failures convince you to just stop trying. Just as surely as every bad choice has harmed me, every good choice, every good day has been to my benefit.
Others may label you a yoyo dieter because all they see is the failure without appreciating the struggle. I praise you as the unrelenting warrior that you are on your best days. If yesterday wasn’t one of your best, shake it off and move forward.
You warrior you.
p.s. Always consult your own health team for your specific needs
p.p.s. Educate yourself to fully participate in your health strategy
My Journey: lessoflee.wordpress.com
Less of Lee 
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