20 @60 or What happened to the fat boy?
Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2011 9:10 pmWhen I was five, I weighed about 100 pounds. Mom and Dad thought they were feeding us well: breakfasts of eggs, sausages or bacon and buttered white toast, jelly and milk; lunches and dinners also contained plenty of rich food and milk. Maybe that type of diet was not unusual but I was unusually fat for a kid of five.
I wore Sears' “huskies".
When I was about 11 Mom and Dad persuaded me to drink Metrecal (maybe similar to Slimfast) and join a health club. It worked! I lost a considerable amount of weight and developed some self discipline. However, I was still too heavy and still had a lot of poor eating habits.
My junior high football coach told my dad that it was unusual for a heavy boy to practice football and not lose weight but I was supplementing my meals with floats—Cokes or Seven-ups with ice cream. I was an average football player—probably as good as most fat kids but all of the exercise never enabled me to reduce to a normal size. I weighed around 190 pounds in high school.
I really began to blossom (
) in college. At 27 I weighed 250 pounds. I walked up a flight of steps at a school and I was panting. 
That was my big moment of truth. I knew it was time to get in shape. I began walking and then running. I ate raw veggies and less of the rich food. I became an avid runner and I got "fit"…but still not thin. I still ate a high-fat diet and often said that ice cream was my favorite vegetable! 
In 1979 and 1980 I ran in several road races including two 10-mile races. Of course I was not really “racing” and I was still heavy. As I continued running over the years, I still struggled with weight management. Stops at Dairy Queen did not help.
I had read Dr. McDougall’s McDougall's Medicine - A Challenging Second Opinion.
However, my nutrition teacher’s lack of faith in Dr. McDougall’s dietary advice, deterred me from taking the book very seriously. I suppose I was naïve—easily misled.
As the years went by, I continued to read a lot of books related to health and diet. I tried the high protein (high fat) diet advocated by Eades & Eades. I read Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman and considered it the best book on nutrition I had ever read. I was getting closer.
I was especially concerned with preventing cardiovascular disease since I had a history of high serum lipids and both parents had been subjected to CABGs. I also wanted to prevent diabetes since several in my family (including my mom) had been afflicted with this. Two uncles had died when they were about 45!
In 2009, I discovered this site and after reading some of the great articles and posts here, I was convinced. I believe that Dr. McDougall’s and Jeff Novick’s guidance here is solid (and FREE)!
So I began to follow their guidance and about 26 months later, I am very pleased with the results. My BMI is less than 20 (71” tall/142 pounds) and I do not think it will be difficult to maintain this level since I enjoy lots of steamed colorful veggies, brown rice, potatoes and sweet potatoes.
So…I extend a big thanks to Dr. McDougall, Jeff Novick and many others here who have provided guidance and encouragement.
Here are some of my tips for those who are still struggling with weight management:
1. Embrace your hunger. Do not take it too seriously. If you are not hungry enough to eat an apple or a bowl of rice, you probably are not really hungry. You just want to eat! So let your hunger tell you that you are succeeding—not stuffing your gut—not killing yourself with food. Learn to recognize true hunger and do not eat when you are only craving something. Eat to live! See http://www.crsociety.org/.
2. Follow the program with confidence that you can adapt and succeed as many others have. Do not expect to make minor changes and get major benefits.
My current diet:
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=29593
I feel very good about being 20 @60 and I am also grateful for our McDougall friends here.
I wore Sears' “huskies".
When I was about 11 Mom and Dad persuaded me to drink Metrecal (maybe similar to Slimfast) and join a health club. It worked! I lost a considerable amount of weight and developed some self discipline. However, I was still too heavy and still had a lot of poor eating habits.
My junior high football coach told my dad that it was unusual for a heavy boy to practice football and not lose weight but I was supplementing my meals with floats—Cokes or Seven-ups with ice cream. I was an average football player—probably as good as most fat kids but all of the exercise never enabled me to reduce to a normal size. I weighed around 190 pounds in high school.
I really began to blossom (
) in college. At 27 I weighed 250 pounds. I walked up a flight of steps at a school and I was panting. That was my big moment of truth. I knew it was time to get in shape. I began walking and then running. I ate raw veggies and less of the rich food. I became an avid runner and I got "fit"…but still not thin. I still ate a high-fat diet and often said that ice cream was my favorite vegetable! In 1979 and 1980 I ran in several road races including two 10-mile races. Of course I was not really “racing” and I was still heavy. As I continued running over the years, I still struggled with weight management. Stops at Dairy Queen did not help.
I had read Dr. McDougall’s McDougall's Medicine - A Challenging Second Opinion.
However, my nutrition teacher’s lack of faith in Dr. McDougall’s dietary advice, deterred me from taking the book very seriously. I suppose I was naïve—easily misled.
As the years went by, I continued to read a lot of books related to health and diet. I tried the high protein (high fat) diet advocated by Eades & Eades. I read Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman and considered it the best book on nutrition I had ever read. I was getting closer.
I was especially concerned with preventing cardiovascular disease since I had a history of high serum lipids and both parents had been subjected to CABGs. I also wanted to prevent diabetes since several in my family (including my mom) had been afflicted with this. Two uncles had died when they were about 45!
In 2009, I discovered this site and after reading some of the great articles and posts here, I was convinced. I believe that Dr. McDougall’s and Jeff Novick’s guidance here is solid (and FREE)!
So I began to follow their guidance and about 26 months later, I am very pleased with the results. My BMI is less than 20 (71” tall/142 pounds) and I do not think it will be difficult to maintain this level since I enjoy lots of steamed colorful veggies, brown rice, potatoes and sweet potatoes.
So…I extend a big thanks to Dr. McDougall, Jeff Novick and many others here who have provided guidance and encouragement.
Here are some of my tips for those who are still struggling with weight management:
1. Embrace your hunger. Do not take it too seriously. If you are not hungry enough to eat an apple or a bowl of rice, you probably are not really hungry. You just want to eat! So let your hunger tell you that you are succeeding—not stuffing your gut—not killing yourself with food. Learn to recognize true hunger and do not eat when you are only craving something. Eat to live! See http://www.crsociety.org/.
2. Follow the program with confidence that you can adapt and succeed as many others have. Do not expect to make minor changes and get major benefits.
My current diet:
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=29593
I feel very good about being 20 @60 and I am also grateful for our McDougall friends here.
