#41 kirstie, Kirstie, KIRSTIE

I was watching Oprah the other day and one of my [used to be] favorite actresses, Kirstie Alley, was on. She was talking about her stint as the spokesperson for Jenny Craig, why she left Jenny, and her subsequent weight gain. Bypassing all her reasons for leaving Jenny and her reasons for gaining back her weight, this is what caught my attention... drum roll please..... not only did she gain back the 70 ish pounds she had lost, but she put on an extra 10 lbs.

Do I sit here and judge her? NO WAY!! Want to know why? Because once upon a time and a time and a time, I too dieted myself fat. I'm not sure if you have heard this saying, "dieting yourself fat", but it means exactly what it says. You go on a diet, you lose weight, you work diligently to keep it off, but somehow at some time, your dieting stamina leaves and KABAM! What took hard work, will power, determination and six months to lose -- found its way back in only 3 months. And just to make you feel even worse about this regaining, another 5 or 10 lbs has joined the ranks. Dieting one's self fat is a perplexing thing.

Dieting oneself fat is discussed much amongst my friends who diet, or who have dieted and maintained, or who have dieted, maintained and gained back their weight. I can't tell you how many times a new member comes to my Trevose group saying something like, "I never thought I would be this weight, I mean I've been dieting my whole life". We group members sit there nodding our heads 'cause we understand -- been there, done that.

Since I started writing my own blog, I try to visit other blogs dealing with weight, diets, food issues and other topics of interest. I've read numerous blogs of successful dieters and working dieters. However, at some point in their blogging, they mention that they never thought they would see, for instance 170 on the scale and the next thing they know, 190 pounds is peaking out from between their stubby toes.

So, I decided to do a little research. I found a website [Fitness Tips for Life] that says fat people stay fat for a number of reasons. I read through them, thought they were really good, and decided to share them with you. The author explains and expands on his 5 reasons, but I'll give you my babble version in a nutshell:

1. Fast Food - it's everywhere, portion sizes are ridiculous, and it's marketing to our children with toys and fun play areas makes it hard to say NO! It's also inexpensive [for what you get], so it attracts those with a hurting wallet.

2. Not eating [enough] fresh fruits and veggies - six or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day... need I say more?

3. Using starches as your main food group - guilty...sometimes

4. Not exercising - the author blames hours of tv and internet playing, I concur.

and my favorite.... second drum roll of this babble

5. Bouncing from diet to diet - as I've said before, you can't live on a diet. If you find an eating regime that works with your lifestyle, YOU CAN lose and maintain IF you don't go overboard on those items called "treats".

To be successful at anything, you need to commit time and energy. I once read that people are more committed to losing weight than they are to changing their lifestyle -- they want to go for the home run before they really know how to bat correctly. Others stay heavy because the known is always a safer bet than the unknown, and of course fat also covers a myriad of insecurities. BUT, if a person doesn't deal with those problems, the weight will keep coming back. So, after the 6th or 100th commercial break [I really can't remember], Kirstie tells Oprah that she has created her own weight loss program and will be marketing and selling it [I guess, perhaps, who knows, oy vey] soon. Part of me wants to call Kirstie and say, "Girl, conquer your demons first". The other part of me, the scale devotee, the worrier of body mass, the desirer of the secret to eternal thinness, is of course curious as hell.

Quote of the day: "Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself"
George Bernard Shaw