Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead

I just finished watching a documentary called Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead; an interesting project by an Aussie guy. A first-time producer. It screened late the other night on some obscure channel here in Melbourne, so I recorded it to take a peek at a later date.

Snapshot

It’s basically a well-produced video account of a guy (the producer) who, for a range of common and uncommon health reasons, decides to lose a crap-load of weight by going on an extended juice fast (60 days) while traversing the U.S. He also connects with a bunch of interesting people along the way; from random strangers to selected medical experts. Of course there’s a little more to the story, but that’s the snapshot.

Now, I’ve never met or spoken to the guy, so I’m not here to do any kind of promo for his movie but if you are interested in weight-loss and all the associated psychological and emotional issues, it’s certainly worth getting your hands on a copy. On the totally-unknown Craig Harper movie rating scale (the one I just created), I give it four stars (out of five). While there were many interesting revelations to come out of the conversations as Joe (weight-loss juice dude) chats with a broad range of characters along his travels, there was a fascinating mindset that became apparent through many of the informal interviews.

On some level, many of the people interviewed were saying:

“I’d rather be fat and eat whatever I want than to (be forced to) eat healthy food and be miserable.”

Wow.

Imagine being ‘forced’ to eat food that will, not only drastically improve your overall health, function and energy levels (physically and mentally), but also potentially add years, or maybe even decades, to your life. Such a sacrifice.

How Did We Get Here?

So, how did we (well, some of us) arrive in this place? Where did this crazy belief come from? How is it that so many people associate healthy, fresh, whole foods with misery? Or with some kind of punishment? And I mean many people. Why are so many people terrified of fruit and vegetables? When and how did we learn this unhealthy lesson and arrive at such a life-shortening conclusion? How ironic that, despite the overwhelming evidence, people still associate junk food with happiness and a healthy diet with some kind of painful deprivation.

Here For a Good Time Not a Long Time

One seemingly-intelligent interviewee who appeared to be in his early fifties (a father of six) calmly stated that he would rather die at fifty-five while eating junk food than seek longevity through a healthier diet. He didn’t consider it to be a worthwhile option. Interestingly, the same guy had already survived one heart attack and subsequent surgery.

Double wow.

Sadly, this guy and his beliefs belong to a very large (in more ways than one) group. For many people, their problem is their thinking and the consequence is their body. While the collective mindset says that a life without high-fat, high-salt, high-suger, processed foods is somehow an inferior alternative, obesity will prevail.

And we’re meant to be the intelligent species.

As always, love to hear your thoughts and if you’re interested, you can take a peek at the movie trailer here.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

© craig for Motivational Speaker - Craig Harper, 2012. | Permalink | 52 comments
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

I don’t often write long posts these days (apparently they don’t ‘work’ in the blogosphere) but for some of you, taking five minutes out of your busy schedule to read the following might be very worthwhile…

Food and You

What kind of relationship do you have with food? Healthy? Unhealthy? On again, off again? Is she your high-calorie, high-guilt mistress? Do the two of you get together late at night? Under the cover of darkness? Away from prying eyes? Do you find yourself day-dreaming about her? Does she call out your name from behind her seductive wrapper? Is she your escape? Your medication? Your distraction?  Your drug of choice?  Is she your dirty little secret?

Over the years, she’s been all of that (and more) in my life.

Food and I have had a torrid and tempestuous affair for as long as I can remember. She wooed me with her tastes, textures and smells when I was but a child. A fat child. As a kid, I was a total foodie. I loved food. I mean l-o-v-e-d it. And not in a healthy way. I thought about it, lied about it, planned for it, bargained for it (at school) and consumed it at every opportunity.

I even hid it.

Like a squirrel storing nuts for the winter. A fat, sneaky teenage squirrel.

For a long time, food represented pleasure in my life. Instant, glorious, sensory pleasure. It was my drug of choice. My escape. Interestingly, I would later discover (as an adult) that the moment certain foods pass my lips, a roller-coaster of feel-good chemical reactions are triggered. Not unlike the experience of a drug addict.

Amazing huh?

Addicted to Pleasure

Interestingly, alcohol, drugs, food, sex (and a bunch of other things) are very similar (on a level) in that they can all produce an almost-instant feel-good chemical response. If you’re a dog lover, even lying on the floor with your canine buddy can facilitate biochemical changes throughout your entire body in a matter of seconds. Dopamine (a chemical associated with pleasure) is released in certain areas of the brain (specifically, the nucleus accumbens and the prefrontal cortex) by, not just addicts using their drug of choice, but also by the guy inhaling donuts at his desk. And the couple sharing their nightly glass of wine. Or five.

No wonder addiction is such a huge problem in our society.

In reality, the addiction is actually pleasure. It’s only the mechanism that varies.

One day, while peering out of my fat teenage body, I experienced something of a paradigm shift. A realisation. Things changed. Or, more accurately, I began to change. Because of my ever-expanding body (and the subsequent issues and challenges), I started to associate food with pain. Emotional pain. Psychological pain. Sociological pain.

And then to ease all that pain, I’d eat. Of course I did. I’d numb the emotional pain (of being a fat kid) with some momentary physical pleasure. Namely, food. In hindsight, not a great strategy. And something of a vicious cycle. But then I was never that smart around the pantry.

Okay, not smart in general.

A Glorious Distraction

And that story is the reality for many over-eaters. It’s a messy cycle of reactions, emotions and regrettable decisions. I was not (am not) unique. It’s curious that the same thing can be the source of both pleasure and pain. For the same person. And more often than not, all in the space of five minutes. Of course, we don’t always eat because we ‘need’ food. No, we eat because it makes us feel great. For a moment. For many people, food is a glorious distraction.

From the crap. The pain. The reality of a certain situation.

For years (as an adult), I ignored much of what I knew (about health and intelligent nutrition). Unbeknown to most people in my world, I was constantly alternating from healthy choices and behaviours (around food) to unhealthy ones. I constantly did what I knew I shouldn’t do. And then I would rationalise the crap out of my destructive habits. If there’s one thing I excelled at, it was rationalising bad behaviour and poor choices. I could justify anything to anyone.

Including myself.

I remember a time in the nineties (I was in my late twenties) when I had a thriving personal training business (probably the busiest in Australia), was a well-known trainer and educator and when nobody was looking, I was eating my arse off. Or, more accurately, eating it on. One day, I stepped on the scales at work and the number said 117kgs. 257lbs.

F*ck! Was my measured response.

To put that number in perspective, my weight today is 86kgs (189lbs). In that moment, I felt sick at the sight of those three numbers: 1, 1 and 7. Sick and disgusted. And ashamed. The days of living in baggy trackpants and big sweat shirts had to come to an end. The only thing that stopped people from realising how fat I actually was (the fat trainer; not a great career move), was my muscle mass and my baggy wardrobe.

Yes, my biceps were big. But sadly, my gut was bigger.

Big, Fat, Fraud

For years, I felt conflicted about food. How could one thing be the source of so many emotions and issues? I knew what to do but I didn’t do what I knew. I often felt like a fraud and a fake. And in many ways, I was. There were many times when I was all or nothing. Years, in fact. I was either eating like a competitive bodybuilder (lean and clean) or a bear about to hibernate for the winter.

A bear with food issues.

I guess I was about thirty years old when I became significantly more aware of (and proactive about) my relationship with food. I acknowledged that it was more about the emotional and less about the physical. For me. I stopped waiting for my food issue to ‘sort itself out’.

Finally.

Over time, I came to explore and understand the concept of conscious eating. Of listening to, and respecting, my body. Of delaying gratification (that was massive for me). Of owning up and stepping up. To my behaviours and my decisions. Of course there were ups and downs. Peaks and troughs. Physically and emotionally. All part of the transformation process. My unhealthy relationship with food was so long-standing that it would have been unrealistic and ignorant of me to expect a ‘quick-fix’.

And don’t we love quick-fixes.

I came to acknowledge (publically) that I had an issue with food. Not dissimilar to admitting alcoholism or drug addiction. I acknowledged that I had behaved erratically around food. For a long time. Too long. That I had destructive and unhealthy habits. That I needed to change my relationship with food.

Uniquely Wired. Or is that Uniquely Weird?

Over the years, I’ve come to understand that we all have our own unique relationship with food. Some of us have a healthy relationship, some unhealthy and some, somewhere in the middle. My experience has taught me that there is no single best strategy when it comes to the issue of food or changing our relationship with it. Clearly, different things work for different people. Which is why no single program or product has a one hundred percent success rate. The way we each feel, behave and react around food is influenced by many things: physical, emotional, psychological and sociological.

It might interest you to know that over the last twenty (plus) years I’ve worked with numerous doctors, psychologists, trainers, dieticians and professional athletes who have struggled with food issues. Their eating habits typically sat somewhere on the scale between ‘disordered eating’ and ‘eating disorder’. And while education and knowledge might influence behaviour (and outcomes), they certainly don’t determine it. People who believe that the solution to our current obesity is education (alone) clearly don’t understand the depth or the complexity of all the relevant issues.

More importantly, they don’t understand the way people behave around food.

I’m not here today to give a prescription for, or solution to, anything. My intention with this post is merely to open a conversation that might be interesting and relevant for some. To stimulate thought and to share some of my personal story. What you do or don’t do with this information is totally up to you.

Abstinence?

One of the obvious challenges for a ‘foodie’ (me) is that I can’t avoid it or remove it from my life (as is the strategy with many other addictions). Therefore, I need an eating strategy and philosophy that works for me. Practically and emotionally. For example, over the last few years, I’ve discovered that I’m better off avoiding certain things altogether (cheesecake for example), than to have the occasional piece. When I don’t eat it at all, I don’t miss it (honestly) but when I do open the cheesecake door, it’s like I flick some kind of chemical switch that’s almost impossible to shut down. As crazy as it sounds, it’s more enjoyable for me to have none, than ‘just a small piece’.

For years, people have told me that “one piece won’t kill me”. In a literal sense, they’re right. Obviously. But can you imagine telling an alcoholic to have ‘just one beer’? Of course, I don’t recommend this approach for everyone, but for me, when it comes to certain foods, abstinence works best. Over the years, I have learned to shift my attention from what I’m missing (five minutes of taste-bud nirvana) to what I’m gaining (a lean, strong, functional body).

Nothing tastes as good as being in shape feels.

Interestingly, more often than not, the person trying to force-feed me cake is an overweight, unhealthy friend who hates their body. There’s some irony for you.

Still Learning

Like you, I’m a work in progress and will always be. And to be honest, I like that. These days I never feel deprived, I rarely struggle around food and I’m (arguably) in the best shape of my life. Of course, I still enjoy my food immensely (albeit a different diet) but it’s fair to say that the nature of our relationship has changed.

No more lies, no more secrets and no more baggy trackpants.

Any of this sound familiar? As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts. 

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

© craig for Motivational Speaker - Craig Harper, 2012. | Permalink | 71 comments
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

A Living Computer

Did you know that your body is a living, breathing organic computer that can easily be reprogrammed to operate differently? More efficiently and effectively? To do different things and produce different results? To run new programs? For some of us, it’s time to reboot.

Sugar Addiction

I remember when I switched from two sugars in my coffee, to one. Have you been there? For me, it was a very long time ago but I still recall it clearly. My coffee tasted like crap. I hated it. Not sweet enough. For a week or so. Then somehow, it tasted ok. A week after that, it tasted great. Sweet, even. A few months later, I dropped sugar altogether and my early-morning beverage was almost undrinkable. I hated it. Again. Sugarless coffee tasted bitter. Harsh, even. I persevered. A week later it was tolerable. Two weeks into the process, better still. Three weeks in, my body had totally reprogrammed itself to enjoy sugarless coffee. I had transitioned from about seventy teaspoons of sugar per week (good grief), to zero. If you listen carefully, you can still hear my pancreas and teeth applauding.

Mick

For the last eight weeks, I’ve been training (three days a week) with a mate; Mick. While Mick has worked out before, this is probably the first time he’s trained and eaten methodically and consistently. In less than two months, heavy weights have become light for him. Difficult cardio sessions have become easy. His slow recovery (between sets) has become fast recovery. His lethargic metabolism is now wide awake. His skin has changed. His eyes are clearer. His energy is through the roof. And his body functions more efficiently now that it has rid itself of twelve unnecessary kilos (26lbs). In order to cope with the new demands, Mick’s body has totally reprogrammed itself. Better program, better results.

A Carb-less Life?

Your body needs carbohydrate to function. To survive. With out any carbohydrate your brain can’t do what it’s meant to and you’ll eventually go blind. Cut all sugar and carbs (and I don’t mean just starchy carbs, I mean all carbs) out of your diet, even for a day, and you’ll start to feel like shite. Medically speaking. Having said that, obviously, there are some situations where people may not have access to carbs for months on end (some people living in Arctic regions, for example) but they still seem to function okay. How come? Thanks for asking. Well, your body (the living, breathing computer that it is) has the ability to reprogram itself in the absence of a required macronutrient like carbohydrate. Via a process called gluconeogenesis, your body will turn non-carb macronutrients (fat, protein) into usable carbohydrate. So, when there’s not a carb in sight, your body will simply adapt and make its own!

Now that is genius.

The Last Bit

Human bodies are incredible machines. They are highly adaptable, self-regulating, self-adjusting living computers that constantly respond to various kinds of stress and stimuli. Both good and bad. When we do different things (like change our diet, exercise habits, lifestyle and behaviours), our body can’t help but adapt. Reprogram itself. That’s the way it works. For most of us, the biggest challenge we have with our body, is our head. Your body will reprogram itself (adapt, change) when it has to.

So, give it a reason.

*I’ll announce the book give-aways (re Wednesday’s post) on Monday.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

© craig for Motivational Speaker - Craig Harper, 2011. | Permalink | 4 comments
Post tags:

Feed enhanced by Better Feed from Ozh

Over the last month (or so), I’ve received at least a dozen emails asking me for my thoughts on childhood obesity and how to address it. Well, the totality of my thoughts on this issue would fill a book (there’s a thought) but here’s a very brief snapshot.

Insult or Physical Classification?

Fat Kid: wow, there’s a term that’s sure to spark an emotional response anywhere on the scale from curiosity to outrage. Speaking of responses, here are a few terms that we seem to be okay with when it comes to describing our children physically: tall kid, short kid, red-haired kid, pretty kid, skinny kid and let’s not forget my two favourites; the thick-set kid and the stocky kid.

Thick-set. Stocky. Good grief. Any adjective but fat.

“Mrs. Smith?”
“Yes, doctor?”
“Now, we’ve assessed young Jimmy and it appears that he is.. er, short for his weight.”
“Oh, so you’re saying it’s a height problem then?”
“Exactly…”
“Knew it.”

(...)
Read the rest of Fat Kid (423 words)