Well, I hate to use the words "sick and tired of being sick and tired", so I will quote Homer Simpson: "Gotta lose weight, Won't get chest pains from answering the phone". That was one of the revelations. I had no energy. I found myself always sleepy, even after 8 hrs of rest. Luckily, I had experienced before the natural energy from working out. I knew if I stopped pounding sugar in my veins and started exercising, my energy level would improve, and even more importantly, my mood would change.

You see, I was an emotional eater. I mentioned before that I am a recovering alcoholic. The main truth about alcoholism is that it is not the booze, it is a problem within us, and we drink to escape. I did the same thing with food. I hate when people say that "junk food is addictive". The food is not addictive, it is the person who is addicted. My alcoholism changes clothes all the time. I get addicted to working out, skin products, AA meetings, sex, football, the computer, etc. Some of these could be called "healthy addictions", but if these cause imbalance in my life, they is not healthy. Balance is the key, like Mr. Miyagi said to Danielson. I had to start asking myself, "what is this cherry cheesecake really going to do for me? Is it going to make things better or worst? Sure, it taste wonderful, and I will get a short sugar high, but in the end, it will show in my gut and a*#". I found the longer I thought about the consequences, the desire began to fade. Bad behavior doesn't stop without consequences!

I listen to Dave Ramsey. For the uninitiated, he is a nationally syndicated financial talk show host. He teaches common sense finance, what he calls "Grandma's financial advice". He says "live on less than you make, budget your money, sell what you don't need and pay off debt, and have an emergency fund". Sounds really basic, but thousands get out of debt by using this common sense plan. It is the same with food. Take in less calories, (live on less), keep track of what you eat, (budget), stop being a couch potato and exercise, (pay off body debt with weight), and talk to other people in the same boat, like this message board, (emergency fund). But yet, most of the American public would rather shovel out their wallets for a miracle placebo so they don't have to take inventory of the real problem. I was guilty of this for so many years. I could have bought a small yacht for what I spent on fad diets and cheese ball exercise units.

Is losing weight a tough row to hoe? You bet your bippy! There are so many fast food pits, and even the healthy food in grocery stores is next to the junk. You have to look at the bigger picture and have realistic goals. You cannot lose 50 lbs in 4 weeks, at least not without surgery or purging. And I have had 2 friends who had their stomachs banded and they are back to the same weight as before. Nothing good ever came easy. Rome was not built in a day, month, year, or even a decade. The point is that Rome is different for everybody. The nice thing is that when you get to you desired weight and work out regularly, you can eat a filet mignon. Just add a few extra minutes to the cardio. Works for me. I hope this helps. Hang in there.