Trying Something New

I had taken out a bunch of library books about a month ago.  I received my notice that they were due for return and I had only finished reading one.  I went to renew them all automatically and discovered one of the books I had out had a hold on it so I could not renew it.  I decided to give the book a quick look through at least.

The book was Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It.  I picked it up on a whim the last time I was at the library as it was on the shelf staring at me.  The author Gary Taubes also wrote the book Good Calories, Bad Calories.  The book is just over 200 pages so needless to say I did not get a thorough read in but the book did help me make a decision.  I am going low carb. 

I am sick of being heavy and need something to jump start the weight loss.  Yes it maybe gimmicky but it is a new way for me to look at food.  The old way I see food is not helping me at all.  It makes sense not to eat white flour and sugar.  Cutting back on crappy carbs (okay not the good vegetable carbs but all the processed crap that we eat) makes sense.  My problem is that I still eat crappy carbs regardless of what meal plan I am on.  All plans include some 'cheats'.  I then let those cheats take over.  I know this about myself and want to try and retrain my mind not to continue on this pattern. 

Why We Get Fat explains what didn’t make us fat: prosperity leading to gluttony and sloth. Obesity has been common among populations who were poor beyond our imaginations, even among those who worked long hours at manual-labor jobs. The scientific research shows that exercise may be good for our overall health, but does little to help us shed excess body fat. And of course, low-calorie diets have an abysmal track record — even the obesity “experts” who promote them admit as much in private. In other words, after 200 years of our existence as a nation we didn’t — in one generation, mind you — become fatter because we decided that since we’re well-off now, we should start eating too much and moving too little.

I really liked the matter of factness about the book.  Most obese people hate being fat and have tried many times to lose weight. As Taubes points out, if shedding excess body fat were really as simple as cutting 100 calories per day, pretty much every fat person would do it. The trouble is, most of them have done it, only to find it didn’t work. Meanwhile, people who’ve never been fat and regularly eat until they’re full expect obese people to spend the rest of lives feeling half-starved so they can become lean.

The book made sense.  It made me think.  It helped me to decided to give low carb a try. If anyone has any thoughts, observations or experiences they would like to share I would love to hear them.