Body Challenges

I'm one of those people who was always bone-thin and could eat anything he wanted and hardly gain any weight. I was so thin that I wasn't too upset when (in my 20's) I went from a 27" waist to a 28, 29 and even 30. By age 30, I was wearing a waist size 30 and thought that was ok because my body was starting to look like a man and no longer a boy. I also remember the day I went to the store and had to buy a 32" pair of jeans. I was still ok with that, because I knew that at 6'2" that was the perfect waist size. Of course over time I hit 34" and currently I wear a 36" waist. This kills me because I vowed never to go over a 32" waist. Ironically, women, especially black women think I look pretty good and discourage me from losing any weight (I'm 210 lbs now). Unfortunately, I'm a black gay man and at 38 years young, the pressure is on for me to get my weight down and keep it down. I like to wear high-fashion clothing and many top designers don't even go above a 36 waist. This means I can still wear some nice clothing but if I gain 10 pounds my options will be severely limited. Add to that the current high-fashion trend of making clothes with very narrow cuts (no thanks to Hedi Slimane of Dior Homme among others!) and you have a man feeling very challenged.

I've just started back excercising after a 3-month hiatus over the holiday season. I'm doing a one-hour walk outside everyday (weather permitting). I'm also doing yogilates which is a combination of yoga and pilates, as well as good old-fashioned push-ups, and ab work. (Look for Louise Solomon's Yoga & Pilates from Alliance Atlantis circa 2002).

There are also the health concerns involved. As African-Americans we tend to have a distorted view of healthy weights. Even though many people think I look pretty good, the reality is that according to the BMI (Body Mass Index) chart I'm overweight. I also bet that many of you would be shocked to find that even though you like the way your body looks you're considered overweight as well. Check out this site for more details... http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/bmi/ According to this government site, I need to lose at least 20lbs to be in a healthy weight zone, and for every 10 lbs we're overweight, we're literally taking days off our lives.

In closing, I'll say, stop drinking soda and juices and you can easily drop 10-20 pounds (that's what I'm doing). Also, turn the tv off and take your family, kids included for a walk, even if it is to the mall.

p.s. don't waste your money on Kevin Trudeau's book "The Weight Loss Cure They Don't Want ou To Know About"...while there is lots of good information in the book, the premise for the plan is a medical treatment that is controversial and probably difficult to get in the states. The highlights I took away are as follows :

1) Drink more water at room temperature
2) Walk at least an hour a day
3) Stop drinking sodas and juices (except fresh-squeezed juice with no sugar or additives)
4)Drink lots of green tea (Wu-long which you can get in your local Chinatown) with no sugar or honey added) I just bought an organic green tea at my local grocer
5) Stay away from 'diet' foods and artificial sweeteners like Splenda and Nutrasweet
6) Stop using your microwave
7) Drink only spring water, don't use tap water even to cook with
8) Buy a filter for your showerhead to remove metals and lead from your bath water
9) Stay away from fast-food restaurants
10) Try colon-cleansing (colonnics) at a certified colon cleansing spa

There, I just saved you from buying the book which retails for $29.95. I figure if I implement 8 out of 10 of the above steps, I'll improve my health and lose weight simultaneously. (I should disclose that there are over 60 steps in the book, I simply listed the ones I thought were the easiest to implement and cost the least to use).


peace always,

strong