"That's why Americans are so fat."

I can't do it.

I wish I could think like this every time I sit down to eat, and I respect that you can do that. I just know, and it will probably be my ultimate demise, that I live to eat rather than eat to live. I just enjoy good food too damn much.

 

You don't have to do it every time you eat. Only enough to change old habits. But that's why diets succeed temporarily. Permanently changing how you eat is about changing a fundamental part of what makes you you.

 

Factor in where you come of age. Genetic predisposition plays a role. Culture, geography, adapted identity hangtags such as SES... all of those things serve as determinants. Not gonna sugar-coat this. Sometimes I crave grilled red meat. I spent a chunk of my developmental years in West Texas deep in the heart of cowboy culture. I have a colleague who was born in Amarillo and whose childhood to mid-teens were spent in Memphis. He'd rather suck pumpkin spice infused IPA from a pink vinyl go-go boot than eat any BBQ that isn't pork.

I'm being glib, but the truth is environment and situational cognition play big roles in how we see ourselves as eaters. Look at the nostalgia for 90s and 00s junk food for other examples.

 

WEAK SAUCE

 

Ur just mad 'cuz my brane is biggr thn Urs, Five Hole.

 

We aren’t here to kink shame.

 

I dropped about 30 pounds five years ago. I mainly did it by eating a bit better and moving a lot more. Workouts don't have to be intense, IMO, but they need to last a while. Whether I'm running, walking, hiking or playing tennis, I care more about time in motion than intensity or distance. But maybe that just works for me.

One of the best things you can do is go for a walk after dinner. I've seen this a lot in Europe and I know I feel better when I do it.

 

Every fad diet, weight loss trick, scientific nutrition plan, whatever, typically boils down to those two basic fundamentals — eat a bit less, move a bit more. Burn more calories than you take in. It's simple math.
Unfortunately, I've always sucked at math.

 

Maybe you could forage for insects in the woods.

 

My issue has always been that I'd rather do pretty much anything than go on a solo run, or use a treadmill or exercise bike. Pre-pandemic, I had gotten in with a fun group of pick-up hoops players, but that group partially disbanded and partially tightened around the better players, so I'm stuck trying to get random games at the local park (almost always shitty) or playing at the college I work at (I'm pretty much the only one older than 25). I'm probably the only guy looking forward to hitting 40, simply because I can get in the 40+ league around here, haha.

 

During golf season, I walk (interspersed with swings) about 3 1/2-4 miles a day five-six days a week, which is pretty good for a septuagenarian. But then winter comes and I just don't find exercise options appealing. When it's not raining or snowing I walk maybe 1-1 1/2 miles a day before I get bored with the usual neighborhood scenery. So for the last month, I've been on a pre-holiday diet, as I know I won't really restrain myself between Thanksgiving and New Year's. No alcohol, no salty snacks (a big weakness), no appetizers or dessert on rare occasions we eat out. So far I've lost somewhere around 3-4 pounds. Still fat, but less fat.