One of the reasons I lost weight and have managed to keep it
off so far is that I’ve stopped
listening to my body. I listen to my doctor, I listen to my nutritionist, I
listen to other people who have been successful at maintaining a large weight
loss. If I listen to myself, I just hear a lot of whining. “Oh woe is me, this
is soooooo hard!” “But I don’t wanna stop eating after dinner!” “This is not
fair! Not fair at all!”
Still, I like the idea of listening to my body and, in ways
unrelated to food, I do. When I feel tired, I go to sleep. When I’m cold, I put
on a sweater. When I get really grouchy, I know it’s time to kick back and have
some fun. But when I’m hungry? Whole different story.
The thing is, how do I know I’m really hungry? I think
there’s a big difference between being hungry and having an appetite for
something. We blur that line an awful lot (at least I did), eating not because
our body actually needs nourishment, but because we’re seduced by the
anticipation of a flavor that we’ve become addicted to. Or because we’re in the
habit of eating something sweet after dinner. Or because it’s a family
tradition. Or because whatever. Yada yada yada. There are a million reasons why
we eat; hunger is just one.
And let’s be honest. I know for a fact that chocolate causes
cravings, as does ice cream, and cheddar cheese, and heaping bowls of macaroni.
But does anyone really crave broccoli? Cauliflower? Brussels sprouts? I like
those vegetables and I’m glad when I eat them. But I don’t lay awake at night
having cruciferous dreams. So to say that my body would somehow tell me to eat
those foods because they’re super-nutritious doesn’t jive with my experience –
it’s my head that tells me to eat
those foods. Decades of being extremely overweight have severed any connection between
what my body really needs and what it tells me it wants.
This is the real tragedy of obesity, this disconnection of
our minds, our spirits, our souls, from our bodies. As I can no longer trust
myself, I have to trust others, which is good if they are telling me to do something
that is healthy, not so good if they are selling a scam. I often feel quite self-righteous
about my resistance to dietary mumbo-jumbo since, after all, I’m following the advice
of a doctor, but then I remember that
doctors used to think letting blood was an acceptable treatment. Who’s to say
that a hundred years from now, people won’t laugh at what passes for standard
medical advice now?
So, should you listen to your body? When I have an answer, I’ll
be sure to let you know.
The bloodletting debacle notwithstanding, in this case listening to your doctor has resulted in two great accomplishments: losing a very large amount of weight, and; keeping it off over a very long period of time. I think, in this case at least, the doctor can be trusted.
ReplyDeleteYes, I have had good results, but when I first saw this doctor, he insisted that if this program didn't work for me, that I HAD to consider surgery. Not COULD consider it, but HAD to consider it. I know surgery has helped many people lose weight, but no one really knows the long-term consequences. It seems like a great big experiment to me, yet doctors seem so sure about it recommending it. That and all the wonder drugs that turn out to have terrible side effects and end up being part of lawsuits just a few years after being heralded as the end all and be all. So I think some skepticism is necessary when dealing with the medical establishment.
DeleteWe were taught that whole wheat/grains are good for you. You need it. You can't function without it. I went on a strict low carb/no sugar diet and lost weight. I felt great. I added wheat back into my menu. When I started maintenance I felt awful. Evetually, I made the wheat connection and removed it from my menu. I felt great. I had another doctor and a personal trainer convince me I needed to add grains back to my menu. I felt awful. I did this cycle a few times. Eventually, I learned to listen and trust to my body that I did better without the grains.
ReplyDeleteYou are right about not trusting your body when it comes to believing you need that second piece of dessert. But, is that your body or the sugar/grain/chemicals talking to your brain?
I do get a craving for broccoli, oven roasted broccoli!
You make a good distinction here about WHEN to listen to your body. Listening before you eat something could very well just be the sugar talking. Listening after you eat something seems essential. And roasted broccoli sounds very interesting...
DeleteMostly I agree with you about not trusting my body. But when all is well in my world, and I am trying to listen to what my body needs/craves, I will find that 'meat' or 'green vegetables' is what I want. And when i look back over the last few meals, I will realize that I was a little low on those particular foods.
ReplyDeleteI can see that happening. But you have to shut off all the chatter in your head so you can hear that soft little voice. That's my problem.
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