Today is February 2nd, and it's Groundhog Day.
For me, it is the first anniversary of my Groundhog Day diet, so it's a good time to reflect on whether or not I met my personal goal set last Groundhog Day not to repeat the diet mistakes of the past, and try to maintain my weight for a whole year.
Was I successful? Partly yes, and partly no. But the good news is I did better this year than I did in the past, so that's a start-as long as one has a long term view of life.
I won't bore you again with the details surrounding the Groundhog Day diet. You can go to last year's blog for that information. Let's just say it's a take-off on the movie "Groundhog Day" where Bill Murray relives the day again and again until he gets it right.
For me, my Groundhog Day diet moment came when I looked at my weight charts for the past 10 years (yes, Virginia, there are some of us who actually have that kind of information).
What I noticed was a very disturbing trend: every year I would start in January with a very high weight, dieted and lost weight, only to regain it again towards the end of that year. The bigger problem was that each year the peaks on the chart got higher, and so did the valleys. The result as you might have guessed was that I was becoming larger and larger in between moments of glory when I would lose a lot of weight.
My friends, that is not what we call a healthy lifestyle, nor does it comply with the American Cancer Society recommendation to maintain a healthy body weight.
So despite my efforts at exercise and attempts at eating "right", over time it was clear I was losing the battle.
So how did I do this year?
Well, the "success" is that the peak was lower than it was this time last year, but it is still too high. I did have weight variations over the course of the year, but by paying attention-and knowing that I would have to write this report today-to what was going on, I did have some success in controlling the amount of those fluctuations.
As usual, November and December were disasters, and yes I have some make-up work to do for these next couple of months. But we are all human, aren't we?
I guess the key lesson is that when it comes to diet and exercise, one has to be vigilant all the time.
Some of us are just born lucky when it comes to controlling our weight, and some of us have to struggle all the time to tamp down our desires for chocolate, donuts, steak, you name it. Some of us don't have to exercise at all to control our weight (although we need to remember that at least 30 minutes of exercise 5 days a week is good for our overall health) while others can exercise hours every day and it doesn't do a whole lot of good.
The bottom line is that this is a full time responsibility. There are so many ways on so many days that the gremlins try to get us. Maybe its something special in the coffee room at work, or a dinner out at a restaurant that serves big portions, or spending time with friends and having a couple of adult beverages.
On the other hand, there are "workarounds" that really do help.
For example, I stayed at a hotel in Austin Texas and walked a mile each way to a terrific grocery store (if you can call it that-it was more like a feast for foodies) to pick up some healthy take out dinner items and walked back that same mile to the hotel. Or carrying healthy snacks with me when I travel, or trying to be very selective when I get one of those free breakfasts at a hotel. And then making sure I either exercise or walk a reasonable distance every day.
My pedometer is my best friend when it comes to encouraging me to "do the distance" on a daily basis. Some days in some cities I can actually walk 5 or 6 miles or even more just by avoiding taking cabs and planning a bit of extra time into my day, or walking between terminals in the airport instead of taking the train. In Atlanta-which is my home airport-I can frequently add up to a mile just by walking (and no, I don't use the moving walkway).
Whatever it takes is what you have to do-me included. And, if you are like me, it is probably all of the above and more.
As I reflect on the past year, despite the difficulties and the failures, I see that the peak on the graph this year was lower than it has been for the past several years. In fact, it's about 10 pounds less than last year, and I take some modest degree of comfort in that. Heck, if I didn't do what I already know I need to do I can only imagine the size my body could achieve. We are talking really big here, folks.
Now, if I could get that peak to come down a bit more every year, then maybe the goal of getting off the "Groundhog Diet" treadmill will finally come to pass.
I will let you know next year. Meanwhile, I have seen my shadow so I have to go back to the gym and get on that elliptical for another six weeks.
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