How To Lose 85 Pounds, One Food At a Time
Photo: Donna Trope/Trunk Archive
I’m almost done with my battle against obesity. I hit an all-time low nine years ago, which led to the consumption of lots of fast comfort food and alcohol. When I finally dusted off my scale two years into that binge, it revealed the cold, hard truth: I’d gained 100 pounds.
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It took another three years before I visited a doctor. With a family history of heart disease on one side and diabetes on the other, I was told, “If you don’t change your ways, you’ll be lucky if you just have a mild stroke in the next five years.”
The message was clear: Drop the weight and change your eating habits, or life as you know it will cease to exist.
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Two years later, I’ve lost 85 pounds, and I’m working on the last 15. The number-one question is always how I’ve done it. While I started out trying various diets, none of them ever presented a sustainable way of living and eating, which resulted in yo-yo weight gains. What has resulted in the long-term, largest amount of loss is consistent exercise (I work out for an hour, at least five times a week) and changing my diet, one food at a time:
Photo: Courtesy of the author.
High fructose corn syrup
I started here because it’s pervasive. I had to scrap everything in my pantry: pasta sauce, salad dressing, bread, breakfast cereal, juice, crackers, even cough syrup and some vegetable soups. I relied heavily on packaged, processed foods, so it took almost a year to accomplish, particularly when traveling. Once a week, I just removed one more thing.
Cook at home
I can live and die by Seamless, but a weekly run to the Farmer’s Market and Fresh Direct followed by a Sunday night spent cutting and cooking keep me honest. It’s cheaper and makes a world of difference when you’re watching what you eat.
Fast food
I used to live and die by the drive-thru, so I had to start taking a different route home. There’s no other alternative other than to stop eating it. I had a couple of items from one of the chains about six months ago after nine months of abstinence and promptly erupted into hives. It’s off the menu—for good.
Vegetarian/vegan/raw fare
Cookbooks like The Kind Diet and The New Moosewood Cookbook have really helped, and I love cooking blogs like Cookie and Kate, which is filled with whole food and vegetarian dishes. I try one new dish a week. I’ve also learned that just because it’s vegetarian/vegan/raw doesn’t mean it’s low in calories. Salads? Chow down. Guacamole? Slow down.
Soda and Artificial Sweeteners
I immediately made the transition to diet soda and artificially-sweetened seltzer waters, but found they made me crave sugar more, which I just didn’t need. I went cold turkey on diet soda earlier this year and artificial sweeteners three months ago, and my digestive woes have stopped. Plus, the sugar cravings are less frequent; I don’t find myself on a quest for candy at 4 pm.
Natural sugars
It took me almost a year to get into stevia. I also found I was mainlining grapes, which are loaded with concentrated sugar. I now have an apple, berries, or a grapefruit a day, and that stops the sugar cravings.
Fried Food
If you cover it in batter and introduce it to oil, I want to be its friend. However, my circulatory system and I disagree on that relationship. I had to learn healthier recipes of my favorite “bad” foods. I eat what I want in moderation, but fried foods — even just a taste — are a slippery slope, so I eat baked versions of my favorites like chicken fingers and fries, and have the real deal once every couple of months.
Dairy
I’m still working on this. I love it, but now I bloat instantly, my sinuses clog, and it binds me up in the worst way possible. If I crave it, I eat it, but now it’s really infrequently. I also love organic almond milk now. Who knew?
Fish
The more Mediterranean I eat, the better I feel. I try to buy local and ask about farming techniques and the diet of the fish. I’m toying with becoming vegetarian, but one step at a time.
Red meat
Man, this is still hard. I love a good steak, but it’s just too hard to digest. I’ve had exactly two hamburgers this year, but I got there by doing turkey burgers on a George Foreman grill once a week to satisfy my cravings.
Alcohol
I don’t drink at all anymore, but that’s not realistic for everyone. Boozy beverages are loaded with sugar and can become a gateway for all sorts of bad decisions. Just be mindful and try to drink water when you imbibe.
Nut butters and avocado
I fell in love with all-natural nut butters and avocado instantly. They just feel decadent. I add them to almost everything.
Wheat
I still love bread and pasta, but it affects me much in the same way as dairy. Meet the Babycakes bakery and cookbook. I’m not allergic to gluten, I just don’t like what it does to me, and their cookbook helps a LOT.
Low-fat “diet” foods and processed foods
I used to live on “diet” everything, but got caught in a vicious cycle; anytime I stopped, I gained weight almost overnight. If it doesn’t come from the outer perimeter of the grocery store, I don’t bring it into my house.
The bottom line is that slow and steady wins the race. I’m happy that I’ll soon reach my weight loss goal and that I did it my way, one food at a time.
