Fat Ass: The little steps will help in the long run

Recently, I have written at length about “malaise” and being “stuck in a rut.” Last week, I promised things would change. After little more than a week’s worth of effort, things are indeed looking up.

I went to my partner and said, “You cannot be happy with the way that we are eating and the kinds of food that we are bring into this house. I do want to try eating better!” Jeremy has not been feeling his best lately and agreed wholeheartedly that we needed a change. First things first! We cleaned out our cabinets and refrigerator. Honestly, there was not a lot to throw out. In recent weeks, we have been eating a lot of prepackaged dinners and meals on the go. Second, we picked a diet. How many times have I warned against using this word, “diet?” In the past, Jeremy and I have had a lot of luck with the Abs Diet, a food program targeted at men from the publishers of Men’s Health.

Even the name “The Abs Diet” makes it sound like the most cliché, charlatan, food program that one could buy into. However, the authors of The Abs Diet created a program specialized for men meant to ramp up metabolism, lower intake of fat and sugar, and increase intake of healthy carbohydrates and lean proteins. When I first met my partner five years ago, he was a dedicated follower of The Abs Diet plan. Things ended badly for him because of me. I could not accept that eating six to ten times each day was healthy.

Later, he begged me to give the diet a chance. The diet focuses on eating from the “perimeter” of the grocery store and buying organic foods whenever possible. The Abs Diet allows for one “blow it” meal each week. We save this for our date nights on Fridays. In the past week, I gained more energy, my system is, um, regular, and I feel great – quite a change in tone from the last couple of weeks. Also, you can come in our house almost any night to the smell of a healthy foods being cooked. Since diets are generally designed to aid in the shedding of pounds, it will behoove you to know that I lost three pounds in my first week of returning to The Abs Diet. Jeremy has lost one.

Food is only half of the story. Last week I mentioned that I stopped attempting to go to UNCG’s wonderful health and recreation facilities in favor of a private club. Last weekend, I did a pretty intense cardio and upper body workout. It felt great. I had that sore feeling that comes from the muscles repairing themselves after lifting weights. I returned to the club for more than just a workout. I needed a place to go and relax, grab a snack, and have access to a spiritually enlightened atmosphere. While I agree that UNCG’s recreational facilities are fantastic, the atmosphere can come across as a bit of a meat market. Forget about networking or reaching any spiritual awakenings. And finally, the turnstiles, gatekeepers, and sign up sheets can make the recreational facility feel a bit like its goal is to herd cattle. Personally, I had to escape this atmosphere. I admit that I am getting older and my attitudes towards the recreational facilities at UNCG reflect my age.

All-in-all, I am very happy with the changes that I have made. My body is thanking me. My mind is thanking me (and my partner is thanking me). While it may seem as though I engaged in huge changes to jump-start my diet, a closer inspection shows that I have actually done very little. Basically, I took steps to eat better foods and get more exercise. Certainly, there are shorter and cheaper routes to what I have done in the past week but you have to do what works for you.