Does This Gallon of Ice Cream Make me Look Fat?

There's an old adage that if you want to look thinner, hang around people who are fatter than you. I've noticed that some overweight people are starting to hang out with me. I assume it’s because I make them look thinner. We characterize fat people as being happy and jovial. And there's jolly old St. Nicholas. But really we look down on fat people in our society and nobody wants to be fat.

I've gained some weight this past year. I'm not happy about it or feeling jolly. The "cottage cheese" on my hips makes me look like ten pounds of potatoes in a five-pound bag. And the "basketball" in my abdomen makes it difficult to bend over. It also makes it harder to breathe with any exertion. My clothes are getting tight and buying new ones is not fun when you're doing it because you've outgrown the old ones.

You're probably thinking, "If it bothers you that much then go on a diet and lose some weight." I've done that. I went to Weight Watchers about 40 years ago after the birth of my youngest child. It took me nine months to have the baby and another nine months to lose the weight. But I did reach my goal weight. That lasted about five minutes.

So I've dieted off and on repeatedly over the years. I've probably lost 200 pounds, 10 to 20 pounds at a time. Problem is I've gained back about 200 pounds, 10 to 20 pounds at a time.

But the past few years it seems like I lose 10 pounds then gain back 15. And it gets harder to lose weight when we get older. Our metabolism drops about three per cent every decade. So at my age my metabolism is so low I can gain weight eating broccoli. Exercise helps. I walk/jog every day and do calisthenics three times a week. But one thing I've learned is that I can't outrun fat. As good as the exercise makes me feel, I can't lose weight without counting calories.

That’s difficult for older people because eating is our main source of entertainment. Eating equals pleasure. Most ads on television, except the ones pertaining to body parts and functions, are about food that will make us happy. Most of these happy foods are full of sugar, grease and calories.

I think sugar and fat are addictive. It's been scientifically proven that sugar is. I used to smoke. I know what the addiction of nicotine is like. And I have those same cravings for sugary and greasy foods. When I smoked I could quit "cold turkey.” With eating, you can't stop "cold turkey.” We have to eat to live. And once you take a bite of something sweet it doesn't satisfy your craving. You just want more and more.

There's a great emotional attachment to food. We use food to celebrate holidays and we are now entering three months of food binging holidays. We always have food for birthdays, weddings, family gatherings, and even sporting events. We take food to families after a death. We eat when we're sad. We eat when we're happy. And when we want to relax, we eat No wonder America is one of the fattest nations on this earth.

Nowadays when you mention dieting you're told that dieting is not good and the weight loss will not last. You have to change your lifestyle. That’s really easy. I ask myself, what am I going to do today? Let’s see. I have to do some laundry and go to the store. And, oh, yes, I'm going to change my lifestyle. Piece of cake.

When I gain weight I'm unhappy. To feel better, I eat. My greatest weakness is ice cream. I love nutty coconut and black walnut from Baskin Robbins. I wouldn't turn down cookies and cream or Bryer's natural Vanilla. Eating ice cream, I gain weight.

And so it goes. I hate to give in or eventually I might explode. If anybody reading this has these same difficulties with their weight, I feel your pain. Call me. Maybe we can work together on this. Or if you have any suggestions that might help, let me know. I'm going to keep fighting, but right now I think I'll just go get some ice cream and learn how to be jolly.

Keep smiling.

Linda Messmer can be reached at 812-448-8725.