Tuesday, June 28, 2022

55 y/o Man Loses 45 lbs so Far! 272 to 227!

Well, I honestly thought I would never get here again. This is the least I've weighed in probably 12 years. Action sports injuries, surgeries, the pandemic, lost hope, all conspired to weigh me down, literally.

The funny thing is, I'm a mental health therapist and I've finally (maybe) put all the pieces in place except for my own health. I robbed myself and my family of time I can never get back, but I'm not focused on the past. I'm focused on what I do right now and what I'm going to do tomorrow, next week, next month and next year.

My weight loss journey is going to sound controversial, possibly. I was pre-diabetic, on blood pressure meds, cholesterol meds, nerve pain meds, anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxers, sleep aids. And in January of this year, I felt like a hypocrite trying to help people when my own inability to manage myself and my feelings, was on full display. So I said I was done. Absolutely. Done.

I spoke to my doctor and I went on Adipex. Now, this drug isn't for everyone or maybe anyone. There were a shit-ton of side effects. Fogginess, headaches, extreme dry mouth, but it stopped me from eating. And the goal, my goal, was to be able to modify my own behavior, such as polishing off a bag of chips on the couch. To know when I was full, understand the signal and then stop eating.

And the weight came off. Like crazy. Now, I have sustained a lifetime of injuries due to competitive downhill mountain biking. A grade 3 shoulder separation, rib fractures, one concussion, fractured the L1-L2 transverse process on the rt side of my spine, knee injuries that resulted in a knee replacement (at 40) on the right that got infected and morphed into over a year down and four more surgeries. I am bone-on-bone on my left knee, had an L3-L4 spinal fusion that is now collapsing into my L2 and will require another surgery. And despite the pain, I wouldn't change a damn thing. Well, maybe I might have cut down on the crashing part. That would have probably helped.

But I stopped taking the meds about a month ago and the weight is still coming off. I was able to kayak a week ago without too much pain. I'm lifting weights again although supervised and modified. I'm putting the work in and things are changing.

The problem with food addiction, unlike a substance addiction, is that you can't stop eating food. I mean you can try, but it never works. You have to figure out a way to modify your behavior going forward. This is why diets don't work, because they don't modify your behavior. People diet, lose some weight and then go back to eating terribly again. Rinse and repeat.

If you have unresolved issues that spur your eating, really think about therapy. Therapy can help change those core thoughts you have about yourself and put you in better position to be successful.

Anyway, I'm heading for onederland, who's coming with me?

submitted by /u/Church_of_Realism
[link] [comments]

from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/s0FqnKZ

No comments:

Post a Comment