Stop reading this immediately, if you get bored rigid with people talking about losing weight. I am about to write several paragraphs on the subject.
I have long believed that most people are exactly the weight they want to be. Becoming overweight, and maintaining it requires considerable effort. I speak as someone who was becoming so. I was bothered that had become 30 pounds overweight, but not enough to do anything about it. Like most people, I kept meaning to get around to it, but something else always came up.
Let’s cut to the chase here. Nothing shocked me into action. I didn’t have a health crisis, hit a significant age, or even a significant weight milestone. I simply took a notion to stop eating everything in my path, and stuck with it. I was 207 pounds (14st 11lbs), and wanted to be 177 pounds (12st 11lbs). I realised that given the option of skipping eating a large meal or going for a 10 mile run, it was far easier to forego the food. I’m lazy that way. I realise that millions of people exercise their way to slimness, but frankly I cannot be arsed with that. Rather than burn it off, how about not consuming the stuff in the first place?
I’ve never been on a diet before, so decided not to eat on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. After a bowl of cereal, there would be nothing at all till the next morning. Not a sausage, not a bean, not even a gypsy cream. On the in-between days, and at weekends, I could eat what I liked. I wasn’t changing what I was eating, simply when I was eating it. I started at the beginning of September, and have had several big events in that time, where I’ve eaten like the proverbial horse; weddings, holidays, The NORAs etc. So far I’ve lost somewhere between 25 to 30 pounds in 10 weeks. I can’t be precise, because I got new scales a few weeks ago, and it seems my old scales were flattering what I thought was my starting weight.
Anyway, it seems that there are a whole raft of medical benefits to alternate day fasting. Personally, I’ve noticed loss of heartburn, increased energy, concentration levels. Having not been on my bike for ages, I found that hitting top-gear at speed was now a doddle without the extra two stones in weight to carry. The main thing is that by slightly overeating at every meal, your system is continually working, and under strain. Giving your system a rest each alternate day means you can break that cycle. I quickly found too that I just couldn’t manage big meals anymore.
To be clear, I’m not saying this diet would suit anyone else. It works for me, so I’m going to try and stick with it. If anyone wants to ask me about it, give me a call. So I still eat cakes, sweets, puddings and pasta, just not on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. It’s much easier than going to the gym.