Weighty Matters

I admit that I have become a junkie when it comes to reading up on the advances that science is finding about the human body, especially as it relates to food and fitness. I know, some of that is from my own experiences and some comes from working in the industry (even part-time), but the ones that fascinate me most are the psychological studies in both fields. I like the physiological ones -- how food reacts in the body or how exercise affects the body, or the processes involved with each. But sometimes the biggest challenges (and opportunities) are found in our minds. For instance, just a few weeks ago, I learned about studies on "hedonic hunger" ..... eating when we aren't hungry because we have somehow responded to a cue. It could be visual (such as an ad on TV) or olfactory  (passing by a Cinnabon and inhaling. Deeply.), or even something as simple as "Hey, let's go get Chinese!" And suddenly, the fact that you JUST had a satisfying snack of something...

If I had any misgivings (wouldn't call it a regret) about the time I was in my weight-loss process, is that I feel like it almost happened a little too quickly. I had a bounceback over the last year and now I am working to get those last few back off. This time, however, instead of a race to see how fast I can do this, I want to be sure that I get it off and keep it off, even if I have setbacks or plateaus along the way. So I've been back on track for about 3 months now, and I've lost just over 10 pounds in that time. That's an average of 3 pounds a month, 0.8 pounds per week (more or less). I remember a time that I'd fuss over that figure, thinking a more reasonable expectation would have 10 pounds the first month and then maybe 5 each additional month. This time, I hold myself to a different standard: consistency.