Because I'm Fat, I'm Fat, Ya Know It

Hi, my name is Sandy and I'm fat. 

"Fat" is such a loaded word in our society. Because of that, I would never call anyone else fat, but I absolutely reserve the right to call myself fat. And I am. I'm about 35 pounds over what I would consider a reasonably attainable and healthy weight, and about 50 pounds over what I would consider my ideal adult weight. At 5'7.5" tall and 178 pounds, I am, by any reasonable standard, fat. 

I don't want to be fat. I don't like how it feels. I don't like how it affects my health. I don't like how my clothes fit. I don't like that I don't look good in the styles of clothes I like to wear. 

I want to fix it. But I'm not the personality type that would do well with a meeting-based program like Weight Watchers, or a prepared food program like Jenny Craig, or even a menu-based program like Richard Simmons' Deal-a-Meal. And I don't need a psychology-based program like Noom to tell me why I'm fat. I'm fat because I'm menopausal, sedentary, and I eat and drink too much. It's really that simple. My metabolism has changed and I haven't changed my exercise or eating habits to counterbalance it. I have health issues that discourage me from getting regular exercise. (Also, I'm inherently lazy.) I like drinking cocktails. And my portion sizes are too big. I don't eat a lot of unhealthy foods, I just eat too much of the healthy ones, which is also unhealthy. And I don't drink enough water. 

Why am I telling you this? Frankly, it's because I need motivation. It bothers me when I try to lose weight (often somewhat half-heartedly) and I don't succeed, but telling other people that I'm trying to lose weight and not succeeding is more likely to make me buckle down and figure out how to make it work. So I'm publicly announcing that I'm working on losing weight in the hopes that being somewhat accountable to the world at large will encourage me to follow through and find a plan that works for me. 

Here's what I'm doing to start: 

• Drink less alcohol. I think that tapering off gradually will work best for me, so for now I'm only going to drink alcohol on the weekends. One cocktail each on Friday, Saturday, and maybe Sunday. Possibly an exception if we go out to eat during the week. I'll also try to drink lighter cocktails, by cutting them with seltzer. And no overly generous pours. 
• Shrink portion sizes. I'll take smaller portions of sides and mains and larger portions of vegetables and avoid eating bread with meals. 
• Drink more water. I'm going to combat both overeating and hunger by drinking a lot more water. Again, starting slowly, I'm hoping to drink at least two 20-oz. tumblers of water per day. (I'm starting from a baseline of about two sips a day to take my meds, so this is more of an increase than you might think.)
• Walk every day. This may be a little difficult in winter, but we do have a treadmill I can use. (I'll have to clear off a bunch of the kids' stuff, but it's under there somewhere.) I'll try to park farther away from the store when I run errands. And I'll get up and walk around the house every once in a while during the day. 
• Write down all the above. I'll take advantage of my love of spreadsheets by making a chart of what - and how - I'm doing to track my progress. 
• Track my weight. I wouldn't advise this for everyone, but I got an app a while back to track my weight and it made me realize how my weight has been creeping upwards. Hopefully it will also help me see it creeping back downwards.  
• Blog at least once a week. I'll let YOU know how I'm doing. Admitting to other people when I'm failing - or even simply struggling - could be helpful to push me to do better. And letting others know when I'm succeeding will hopefully do the same. 

Feel free to comment with weight loss tips, recipes for delicious low-calorie meals, words of encouragement, or any other advice you think might be helpful. (Please note that I do screen all comments, because bots, so there may be a delay before your comment posts.) Thanks in advance!

Quote for the week: The pounds you don't gain are just as important as the pounds you lose.