Musings on diet and the holidays

So, I've lost about 5 more pounds, bringing me to a total weight loss of 155lbs.  I'm still 20 lbs away from my goal, but that's OK.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, though.  Now, I've gotten several comments and questions personally and seen the sameTweeted and blogged and whatever-you-call-posting-on FarceBook'd.  The question?

"Oh, so how do you handle the holidays?"

Uhh, what?  What do you mean 'handle' the holidays?

Well, it turns out that during Thanksgiving and xmas, apparently, like Halloween, people (mostly women) have some sort of mental breakdown that causes them to gorge themselves.  They know that they are going to do this in advance (which is, frankly, scary). They psych themselves up, work out more, diet more, fret and worry all the way up to the holiday in question.

Then they gorge themselves anyway.

THEN they flog themselves on twitter and blogs and farcebook about eating too much.  Then the next holiday arrives. Lather, rinse, repeat.

They all want to know how *I* handle these holidays, how it is that *I* won't gain weight. Well, the answer is simple and here it is:

I'm not dieting.  period.

I can't 'fall off the wagon' or 'cheat' because I'm not on a diet.

Diets don't work. They are a powerful, pervasive, MYTH. If you are on a diet or dieting right now, then you are just treading water.

Sugar and grains are bad for you. They will kill you. They cause obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. I want to be a fit and healthy 80 year old, not a fat, sick, and tired one*. Indulging myself now on sweets and 'comfort foods' just because I want to is not worth ending my life unable to walk or breathe.

So I don't eat them, end of story. I'd no more eat "just one tiny piece" of Halloween candy than I would take "just one tiny" drag off of a cigarrette.  I'd not eat a slice of pecan pie any more than I would snort a line of cocaine.  I adore pecan pie and I'm pretty sure cocaine is fun but neither one is good for me.

I enacted a lifestyle change 2 years ago that I'll be sticking with for the rest of my life. My poison of choice is alcohol which, I'm proud to say, I have cut back quite a bit and only drink in moderation.  The rest of that stuff is gone out of my life. I love the foods I eat and can eat up to 3000 calories a day and not gain weight. It's a perfect lifestyle for me.

So how do I handle the holidays?  You nom all you want at the dessert table; get seconds, if you like.  Pass me the turkey!

*Yes, yes, I know, everyone has the anecdotal relative who drank, smoked, and ate a loaf of white bread a day and lived to be 90 and felt like a teenager. Genetics and lifestyle do play a role. But I don't know how well my genetics are going to protect me and I've spent half a lifetime abusing my body with sugar and grains, so I'm gonna err on the side of caution, LOL.