Lose It

In my busy life, anything that makes it easier is appreciated. It's always been that way. When I've gone on diet plans in the past and succeeded, it did so because of broad rules. "Eat as much as you want from these basic foods," kind of mentality. Even Weight Watchers had that plan, because I had to face facts, I hated counted calories or portions.

Now that I'm older, that kind of general thinking wasn't really working well. Last spring, my husband reached his breaking point about his weight and opted to try a calorie counting app called Lose It. He showed so much success in that first month, and I had to count everything for him anyway so he could log it, I decided to give it a go.

I fully believe that accountability, that knowing of how big my portion is and tracking my calories, is in large part responsible for the success I've had this time.

Even over the holidays, when we pretty much stopped tracking because we weren't so much losing as just holding ground, the mentality that Lose It instilled prevailed. We were always aware of portion sizes, and times when we could be better about calories, we certainly took them. Now, I'm ultra-aware of just how oversized everything really is, as well as how many different fatty things go into processed and restaurant food to make them taste good.

For some people, they won't care. And I don't blame them. The argument can be made that it's better to enjoy life than cheat yourself. But you know, I don't feel like I'm being denied anything. I can eat what I want as long as I record it and am prepared to face the consequences. For me, the consequences of my weight being unhealthy aren't worth it. There are so many diseases in this world that I can't do much about to prevent. Some of them are genetic. Some of them will happen for no apparent reason. But those related to my weight? Those I can control. And I will. I'm not willing to cut my life shorter because I'm indulging in one particular area. What about wanting to see my kids grow up? Seeing and enjoying grandkids if they have kids of their own? Getting to spend retirement with my husband and enjoy each other's company the way we want? Those are just as important. If not more so.