In her book, “Sweet Judy Blue Eyes,” the singer Judy Collins writes about being an alcoholic by the time she was 20. She notes that “I did not drink because I had problems. I had problems because I drank.”
In writing this, Collins is suggesting that the circumstances of one’s life have little bearing on whether one drinks or not. The circumstances of one’s life are simply a convenient excuse for taking a drink.
This way of thinking has implications for dieting as well. Some will say that they go off their diet because they had a bad day at work or because of money problems or because their children are being particularly difficult. Food marketers who extol the virtue of “comfort food” to make one feel better support them in this choice.
But suppose the circumstances of one’s life are simply a convenient excuse for eating without regard to nutrition or weight control. In other words, one doesn’t overeat because one has problems. Everyone has problems. One has weight problems because one overeats. The circumstances of one’s life have no bearing on this choice.
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Something that will greatly assist dieters in making the choice to be healthy is to create a team of people who will support one another. As noted in a story in the November 15th, 2011 issue of the New York Times called “For Weight Loss, A Recipe Of Teamwork And Trust,” “Research has always shown that if you want to adopt and maintain new habits, it helps to not do it alone.”
However, it’s important to choose a group of people who are friendly but not close friends. As the article notes, “People who are too close to each other tend to fall into permission giving.”
When it comes to losing weight, love must be tough.
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Finally, at this point, is there anyone who needs diet and nutrition advice? Is there anyone who needs to be told that sugary cereals and soft drinks are not good for one’s health? Is there anyone who needs to be told that exercise is important?
I was thinking about this while reading an obituary of Dr. Muriel Petioni who died at the age of 97 on December 10th, 2011. Dr. Petioni started practicing medicine in the early 1950s and, from that time until her death, preached against sugar, junk food and obesity. As she often told her patients, “You’re digging your grave with your fork.”
60 years after Dr. Petioni started practicing, the USA Today newspaper on June 16th, 2010 ran a story called “Four Steps To Fighting Obesity.” The steps are based on a panel’s recommendations called “2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.” The steps are:
1. Cut calorie intake and increase physical activity.
2. Shift to a more plant based diet.
3. Significantly reduce the intake of foods containing added sugars and solid fats.
4. Meet the 2008 “Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans” (at least 21/2 hours of moderate-intensity physical activity each week or 1¼ hours of vigorous-intensity activity).
I’m sure you’re not slapping your forehead in amazement and proclaiming, “What a revelation.”
As Judy Collins writes in her book, “Each day I chose not to drink.” Each day, each hour, each second, we have the option to make healthy choices or not. No matter how much information we may have about nutrition, we have to transform our thinking to transform our bodies.
