A week of Success

I have food issues.

There, I said it.

I'm addicted to food.

The thing about food is that you can't just give it up. I used to be addicted to alcohol, but one day I decided: No more. I gave it up. I haven't had a drink since October 31, 1996. It was a beer, by the way. A bottle of Bud Light.

I fully recognize that not everyone can just walk away from his or her alcohol addiction. Some need more help than I had. I used a new church community as my support group. Some may need something more structured, like AA.

But anyway, no one can just walk away from food. That's why weight loss is such a frustrating journey for food addicts. Alcoholics know that you can't just have one drink...it doesn't work that way. The trick is not to take the first sip. The same principle doesn't apply to food addiction. You can't NOT take the first bite. So it's about controlling the behavior as best you can:

-Getting all the junk out of the house
-Not waiting until you're famished to eat
-Not eating 'mindlessly' (e.g., while watching t.v., reading the paper, in the car, etc.)
-Starting a meal with something healthy (e.g., soup, raw veggies, etc.)
-Eating lots of fiber and whole foods; eliminating processed foods

There are all sorts of emotional issues intertwined with my particular food addiction. I'm working on working them out. Until then, I'm content to attempt some behavioral control, which includes a regular excercise program. I'm trying to train for a half-marathon: Last week, I ran/walked 2 miles a day on Mon, Wed, and Fri. I consider this to be a success, despite the fact that it is far below my performance levels of just 5 years ago.

You have to start where you are.