Greetings,
I thought I would describe my journey as a I work through 100 days of extreme weight loss. For clarity sake, I am doing this under the supervision of a medical professional (2 doctors) and I am super obese due to injury, medicine, and years of bad decision making. My weight is dangerously high, to the point I cannot get proper medical care if I continue even at my current weight. I have a number of health issues and cannot even qualify for weight loss surgery. Keeping this in mind, please understand that this is to showcase what I do to reduce my weight and my perspectives on the journey. I do not recommend or suggest anyone do anything on this diet without speaking to a medical professional.
(Recap)
To begin with, I was at or near 600lbs last summer. I started a diet called the Ketogenic diet, and it worked for me like a wonder drug. Within six months I was down to just under 500lbs. When I say I was at or near 600lbs, it is hard to weigh yourself when you are over 500lbs, and my scale only goes up to 550lbs. Now that I am down to 498lbs now, I am seeing the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. My life before was unregimented and full of emotional eating and above all, Excuses.
Lesson: The Excuse
One thing I found is there is always a reason, there is always something, and there is always an event... to excuse yourself from the trials you face in life. For me it was food, I would use it to escape the night terrors, the PTSD flashbacks, the pain, and more. As I got off painkillers after being on them for 15 years, I dove into food to comfort myself from the lack of pain tolerance I had. Thing is, there is always an excuse to do something if you look for it. It takes a certain amount of courage to stop comforting yourself and walk the journey towards self improvement. Stop being comfortable and stand up for the YOU you want to be, is what I found to be true.
(Renewal)
I am renewing my efforts to start another journey on extreme weight loss. I fell off the proverbial wagon when it came to the final holidays of the new year. 2021 started off well but I fell into the excuse pattern once more and my weight went up to 504lbs. Seeing this trend upwards, I have taken measures to balance out my life, one of them being returning to the Temple. Learning to be a better person is both an internal and external thing, I know this... for I have transformed my life before. What I did and who I was matters little now though, what matters is what I do with what I have. Accepting the lesson of the fall, I am going to recommit to my doing another six months and track periodically how my progress goes.
Lesson: We Fall
Falling is a natural part of success. Succeeding on the first try does not teach a good lesson. Falling and learning to get back up, sometimes again and again... until we learn to stand strong, helps solidify the lessons in life we encounter. I remember being told the difference between a successful person and a normal person, is that a successful person has failed more and risen from their failures more. We all fall or fail, but it's getting back up and accepting responsibility.
---
I am following the Ketogenic diet mostly, with some slight modifications due to my size and BMI (approx 72). I eat at or around 2,000 calories per day and my meal schedule is roughly as follows:
- Morning -
3x Eggs
1/4th a cup of shredded cheddar
- After Morning Snack -
1/4th a cup of walnuts
Coffee w/ 1 tablespoon of heavy whipping cream
- Lunch -
Medium to Large chicken thigh, skin eaten
1/2 cup of Baby Carrots
1/2 cup Green beans (canned)
1 tablespoon of Irish Butter
- After Lunch Snack -
Tunafish can (water)
2 tablespoons of mayo
- Dinner -
Chicken Tenders (3oz)
1/2 can of carrots w/ 1 tablespoon of Irish Butter.
1/2 cup of green beans (varies)
--- Evaluation of Food ---
While my food varies, the above is roughly what I consume in a given day. I do not eat, for example, 7 cans of tuna a week. This is just a baseline. My goal is to eat at or around 2000 calories per day, maxing out at 2500 calories. Eating higher fats such as coffee with heavy whipping cream to help satiate me during those difficult moments, while staying within my goals. Fat I found is not my enemy, but can be a very useful tool in management of hunger.
--- Health Warnings ---
This is a low fiber diet and depends upon going into a ketogenic state, which is hard on the kidneys. Drinking half a gallon of water per day is required, as is a fiber supplement such as sugar free metamucil.
Now I start (today) my six month journey and will do my best to update frequently. Thank you for reading and I hope this helps more than just myself.
Respectfully,
Sulabri.
