The diet of Sisyphus

LMQC Boomer Blogger Alan Sivell shares the ups and downs of his diet and fitness journey – which, unfortunately, has included occasional stops at the fridge.

I spend a lot of time reading articles by diet and fitness and lifestyle gurus who seem to have all of that stuff figured out. In the back of my mind, my envy and jealousy glands begin to throb. I imagine they are living the perfect life, that they once had to worry about their exercise and food habits but now are on a glide path to perfection.

Just so you know … don’t EVER get that idea about the writer of this blog. Because as stated above, I am still searching for that glide path. And have no doubt that I always will.

Although I know the reality is, that any path through life has lots of bumps, twists and stumbles.

And I hit one of those dietary/fitness bumps over the holidays.

Life as a “big loser”

A brief bit of history: This relatively fit new me began seven years ago. That’s when I joined a Biggest Loser contest put on by Bettendorf policeman Josh Paul. It’s a three-month, online contest (this year, with 256 participants) that motivated me to lose 20 pounds. And it’s three month, Josh says, because that’s the time you need to break bad habits and make good habits.

I made so many good habits that I kept losing weight after the program was over and wound up losing 30 pounds. And for several years, kept all of it off. I stopped bringing ice cream home and deserts were only a very occasional thing if we went out.

I liked the new me much more than the momentary pleasure of a slice of pecan pie. Or that handful of peanut M&Ms.

For many of us, the typical diet pattern is “diet, lose, sneak, eat, gain, repeat.” How do we stop the madness?

I’m sure you know what happened. In the last year or two, I slowly had to admit, all those new clothes I bought after my transformation didn’t fit quite as well. The word snug comes to mind.

It’s all down hill from pretty much everywhere

All that was just the beginning of the ball rolling down the hill. What made it dive off the cliff was my selflessness. At least that’s what I tell myself.

You see, I make Christmas fudge for family and friends. At least a half dozen batches that I have to taste test. Each one. For quality, of course. And I make Christmas pizza, from my mother’s recipe (Eleanore Maimone), and that can’t be limited to a serving of two pieces.

So I, as the LMQC older guy fitness guru, am rededicating myself to be a bit more disciplined in my choices. I rejoined the Biggest Loser challenge not to drop weight but to act as my conscience who will say, “You don’t need it!” when the one in my head says, “You want fries with that!”

Oh, fudge!

By the way, I really didn’t need to test the fudge. It’s always good. Well, one year it wasn’t. That was because while it was in its boiling stage, my wife and daughter showed up with two kittens and I got distracted.

That was the year I burned the fudge. Which turned out OK. Because I couldn’t eat as much.

Despite all my years of reading about and trying all manner of food, exercise and lifestyle programs, I’m still a work in progress. Aren’t we all?

By Alan Sivell

I spend a lot of time reading articles by diet and fitness and lifestyle gurus who seem to have all of that stuff figured out. In the back of my mind, my envy and jealousy glands begin to throb. I imagine they are living the perfect life, that they once had to worry about their exercise and food habits but now are on a glide path to perfection.

Just so you know … don’t EVER get that idea about the writer of this blog. Because as stated above, I am still searching for that glide path. And have no doubt that I always will.

Although I know the reality is, that any path through life has lots of bumps, twists and stumbles.

And I hit one of those dietary/fitness bumps over the holidays.

Life as a “big loser”

A brief bit of history: This relatively fit new me began seven years ago. That’s when I joined a Biggest Loser contest put on by Bettendorf policeman Josh Paul. It’s a three-month, online contest (this year, with 256 participants) that motivated me to lose 20 pounds. And it’s three month, Josh says, because that’s the time you need to break bad habits and make good habits.

I made so many good habits that I kept losing weight after the program was over and wound up losing 30 pounds. And for several years, kept all of it off. I stopped bringing ice cream home and deserts were only a very occasional thing if we went out.

I liked the new me much more than the momentary pleasure of a slice of pecan pie. Or that handful of peanut M&Ms.

For many of us, the typical diet pattern is “diet, lose, sneak, eat, gain, repeat.” How do we stop the madness?

But then, over time – stop me if this self-sabotage sounds familiar – I believed I could have more than the very occasional sweet and still maintain the new me. After all, I’d maintained my new lifestyle for several years. And then I thought, why can’t I have three slices of pizza, even though two is what helped me achieve my goal.

I’m sure you know what happened. In the last year or two, I slowly had to admit, all those new clothes I bought after my transformation didn’t fit quite as well. The word snug comes to mind.

It’s all down hill from pretty much everywhere

All that was just the beginning of the ball rolling down the hill. What made it dive off the cliff was my selflessness. At least that’s what I tell myself.

You see, I make Christmas fudge for family and friends. At least a half dozen batches that I have to taste test. Each one. For quality, of course. And I make Christmas pizza, from my mother’s recipe (Eleanore Maimone), and that can’t be limited to a serving of two pieces.

So I, as the LMQC older guy fitness guru, am rededicating myself to be a bit more disciplined in my choices. I rejoined the Biggest Loser challenge not to drop weight but to act as my conscience who will say, “You don’t need it!” when the one in my head says, “You want fries with that!”

Oh, fudge!

By the way, I really didn’t need to test the fudge. It’s always good. Well, one year it wasn’t. That was because while it was in its boiling stage, my wife and daughter showed up with two kittens and I got distracted.

That was the year I burned the fudge. Which turned out OK. Because I couldn’t eat as much.

Despite all my years of reading about and trying all manner of food, exercise and lifestyle programs, I’m still a work in progress. Aren’t we all?