Roger's Story part 2

[LINDA RN]

It Wasn't that I Didn't Try to Get a Handle on Things . . .

Although my eating was out of control, I desperately tried again and again to get a handle on it. I attempted so many diets that it almost became funny to me, so much so that I went around telling my friends I was going to write a book titled How to Gain and Maintain, by R. T. Wilson, President of the Tons of Fun Weight Club.

Humor was a mask for my heavy-heartedness.

I was a professional dieting failure. I just didn't have the discipline and willpower necessary to succeed. In recent years I've discovered that many people have tried some of the same things I tried:

• I Measured and Weighed. For about two weeks, I followed a diet that involved measuring and weighing food, food exchanges, and a weekly weigh-in and motivational meeting. The problem was that I just didn't feel like I got enough to eat. Even though this program undoubtedly works for a lot of people, it didn't work for me.

• I Tried High Protein and Fat. I ate cheese, bacon, eggs, meat, butter, and so forth, and lost some weight over a few weeks. But even though it worked in the short run, I got sick of eating all the greasy food that was prescribed and not being able to eat other foods. So, I gradually started eating in my old way and ended up heavier than I was before.


• I Tried a Liquid Diet. I drank powders mixed in water and learned about nutrition. Once again, even though this program undoubtedly works for a lot of people, it just didn't work for me. I lasted about three weeks, until at a University of Minnesota basketball game I told my wife I felt very weird, like I was in a twilight zone. She said, "Forget it. This diet might be causing more harm than it's worth." I was off and eating again.

• I Tried Acupuncture. I got to a point where I was desperate and willing to try just about anything. I went with our daughter's mother-in-law to an acupuncture specialist who stuck needles in our heads. This was supposed to cure her smoking problem and my weight problem. On our way home from the treatment, we looked at each other and burst out laughing. She lit up a cigarette and drove me to the doughnut shop.

• I Tried the "Taste Only'' Method. I decided it was only necessary to taste the foods I liked. So, without anyone knowing about it, I went to McDonald's and bought three Quarter Pounder burgers with cheese, two large orders of fries, two chocolate shakes, a cherry pie, and an apple pie. I then went into my bedroom and proceeded to chew the
food but not swallow anything. That's right, I used an airline bag to deposit the food after I had tasted it. The method didn't work, by the way. It lasted just that one meal.

Then Along Came a Very Good Reason to Lose Weight ...
After a string of failures, along came a very good reason to lose some weight. Our daughter, Tyra, set a wedding date, and nothing had ever motivated me more to lose weight. And nothing I had done before or have done since was more painful than losing the weight I lost in order proudly to walk her down the aisle. I agonizingly pushed myself away from the table for nine months and got down to 278 pounds. I was so proud of myself! But the day of the wedding, even as I was walking her down the aisle, all I could think about was pigging out at the reception.

Can you imagine not being able to fully enjoy your own daughter's wedding because your mind is preoccupied with a vision of foods you have felt deprived of? That night I ate and drank everything in sight. I was off and eating again, and I gained back all the weight I had lost-plus more.