I take credit

[GonzoStyle]

I will be honest with you, it’s a totally different mentality from being one way to the complete other.

What people fail to understand is that food is like any drug, it’s what crack is to a junkie and alcohol is to an alcoholic. What is the basic issue an alcoholic has? The fact that he can't have one drink like a normal person, he has to have 15. An alcoholic does not fathom how people can have just A beer or half a glass of whiskey. An obese person is the same way, the issue is not having a slice of pizza, it’s having 4 slices. I never understood how a person at a restaurant could leave like half a plate of food, I didn’t eat to live, I lived to eat, it brought me massive joy.

So it’s obviously very difficult to kick it cold turkey because obesity isn’t viewed like alcoholism or drug abuse, you just get a simple "stop eating you fat bastard".

You have to realize, its not the food itself that is helping deal with your depression, its the joy it brings you. The same way sex can bring you joy, so its not like the food itself is the cure to your anxiety. So find another outlet, for me its the gym now and being a compulsive I overdid that too at first. The food is actually building your anxiety and depression cause afterwards you feel even more disgusted with yourself.

I went on and off and on and off diets for years now. I always did it for the wrong reasons, for someone else, for my family, cause I was embarrassed, but never because I wanted to for myself, because I loved eating disgusting food.

First off it’s the want, then comes the planning. You can't just wing it; you should plan out your meals in advance. Do NOT "diet", I do not think of what I am doing as a diet anymore, it's just a way of life for me now, its not diet, its how a person should live. Also don’t diet in the sense of going on slim fast, or la weight loss, etc. Because what do all of those diets advertise? Eat this for breakfast, lunch and then a nice dinner. Well duh, of course if you drink a 250 calorie shake instead of eating a 700 calorie meal, you are decreasing your calorie intake. Its not the actual product that’s making you lose weight, it’s the decrease of calories.

Also remember that you didn’t get fat overnight, you aren’t going to get in shape overnight. It’s much easier to break down the house of cards than it is to rebuild it.

Dealing with the monotony of meals is not issues as well, just remember all that shit you've put into your body, you've lived the good life for 4 people. No one is saying you can’t eat some of the foods you like, but the key is portion control. In the super size era, people have no clue what a portion looks like. A small soda is actually what a serving size should be, but because it’s specifically called small, people think its kids shit. A serving size is not 16 ounces of meat; it is 3-4 ounces. So pretty much whatever you get at a restaurant, toss about 70% of it.

The other key is to eat 6 smaller meals a day, making breakfast the biggest. This way you don’t get hungry and your metabolism is constantly working. Also don’t starve yourself, no matter what, if you are hungry, then eat something.

But here is the key.... are you hungry? This sounds stupid but it worked like gangbusters for me. Next time you are looking for a snack or something to munch on, literally say it out loud, it has to be actually said out loud, don’t just think it. Ask yourself “am I really hungry?” 90% of the time, it is no and your brain realizes it and the hunger goes away.

In the end the key is getting started and getting through the first 2-3 weeks of the withdrawals but once you get through it, it becomes easy.

For me it’s just the daily routine, get up have breakfast, go to work, bring a bunch of small meals with me. Go to the gym after work, and do it everyday. Its just second nature now.