Here's a link to my original post about part I. Listen to this first.
https://gardengirlkp.blogspot.com/2019/02/food-addiction-and-dr-robert-cywes-must.html
I believe
1. Food addiction is real, yet different from other additions in some ways.
Trigger warning:
Example: I wasn't going to jail for impaired binge eating half a skinny cow ice cream studded with 1 WW point of M&M's but I was going to be stuck in emotional and fat pants hell for many years. An emotional prison yes, lose my job and family in jail, no. Such different consequences. All bad outcomes. Unique.
Every day I thank my higher power I stopped counting WW points and started tracking my food and abstaining from trigger food. Many of us cannot moderate junk food. It's okay. Life is still great. I don't need food to sooth anymore.
2. That I had to get to my own root causes of obesity, investigate, then run a good CAPA, corrective and preventive action. Plus an honest effectiveness check. Rinse and repeat for as many root causes and steps as it takes. Even 7+ years into this.
3. That food sober living tools are 100% a must for my best life. Not everyone needs extra steps. That's cool but don't fool yourself. Be honest.
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My main take aways from part I of Dr. Cywes lecture.
A. Methodology is wrong for weight loss (for some of us).
B. Obesity is (in part) a mental health problem- it probably was for me, yo!
C. Preventive includes management of endorphins and stress with the right tools.
D. Emotional management- AKA old enabling stories you tell yourself, over and over again
E. Replacement of the drug (hyper palatable foods) with something else for endorphin management.
F Abstinence is not enough (AMEN!- that's why I use 20 tools)
G. Carb addiction model for recovery.
F. Yes, Apple vs Ice Cream can still give you a crystal meth high- Dr. Cywes is in recovery himself.
Just as an aside, I have such a high risk for Type 2 diabetes, my blood glucose spikes and stays high if I eat a whole apple. Small slices of apple don't trigger my binge eating, so if I feel like an apple, I'll have one slice at a farmers market, in season.
Yes, sweet fruit was a root cause for disease, so I manage it for my biomarkers and weight maintenance, more so than binge eating. For example, pineapple is a 100% binge food. Always was always will be. So I abstain even when vacationing in Hawaii. No big deal, but fighting binge urges is a big deal.
Big question that Dr. Cywes asks: Are you willing to give up your "best friend".
Watch the video. Feel free to disagree, in a respectful way. Until I started using absaining tools, I could not earn my weight maintenance brain and pants. :)
Here's what brings me good, helpful endorphins.
Long walks, and photography, beach combing, time with family
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| Lunch time walks key for maintenance |
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| So relaxing |
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| Coffee with my college kid! |
Choose your "best friends" wisely. Onward.
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| These two torties are a hoot! |
This is such an insightful post, Karen. Thanks for sharing your takeaways. I especially like your focus on replacing foods with something else for endorphin management. That is something I have learned to do. I had someone tell me that I would regret eating the office cookies on my deathbed as she was eating them in front of me. I politely told her no I would not. Not eating junky store bought cookis at work is not something I'll regret. (I will have plenty of regrets, especially not getting to read all the books I want to, but not eating the cookies is not going to be a regret.)
ReplyDeleteYes, office break rooms are typically disease causing T2D, obesity and food addiction feeding troughs. Ugh!!! Even at employers who have insurance discounts for biometrics, they don't do squat to manage the brake room environment.
DeleteFascinating watch. I've never been obese or diabetic, but I instinctively view many foods as analogous to alcohol. I consider dessert or anything hyper-processed in that category. I eat "treats" the way a lot of people drink wine. I'm not a drinker myself, but my 1-3 dessert foods a month are probably close to the frequency of others' moderate alcohol consumption.
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I would no more eat a donut or pop tart for breakfast than I would drink a beer at 9am. Those actions both feel the same to me--not a good idea!
That said, I must be a part of the population for whom carbohydrate itself, IF unprocessed, is fine. Carbohydrate makes up about 50% of my diet, fat 25%, and protein the other 25%. As an athlete (in a weight-class sport, no less) I have found the best success eating this way with all of my carbs coming from whole, unprocessed sources like potatoes. I do need to moderate fruit, though. It doesn't satisfy me as the main carbohydrate source I consume. I prefer to base my diet on vegetables, starches, and meat. I feel like the issue that's the worst is both high fat and high carb. That is where people get in trouble. I'm in the camp that prefers higher carb, lower fat... though 25% is not really "low," especially considering my calorie needs are about twice that of inactive people my size. I have tried eating low carb in the past. It doesn't suit me except short-term if I have to lose water weight to weigh in for a competition. However, I am very much on your side in the spirit of eating unprocessed whole foods. I also like your scientific approach to yourself and what works best for you. I try to do the same in terms of measuring body fat, RMR, and performance variables like mile time and 1RM in weight-lifting to see how different diets suit me.
One I grabbed a glucose meter, I realized I would become a T2D if I didn't stop. Here's to collecting your n=1 data
DeleteJust had to comment on your photographs - lovely to see, especially the purple sea glass.
ReplyDeleteHappy April Wishes
All the best Jan
Thanks, Jan!! My first purple. So exciting. The area where I was looking is an area where the city dumped trash long ago, so some fun items show up there.
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