Comments on comments

Thanks for your comments yesterday. I've privately e-mailed a couple people, but thought someone else might also be wondering so I'll say a couple things here, as well.

Loretta wondered why I switched from Weight Watchers to eDiets. Here's what I wrote her:

There are two reasons I switched from WW to eDiets. The first is that WW just wasn't working for me. I was counting points, but eating junk, and I can't afford junk calories, since I'm learning that I have so few to play with. I also didn't go to meetings, as there is only one out here in the Middle of Nowhere, and it wasn't at a convenient time for me.

The other reason is that over the past few years I've learned more about insulin resistance, and have come to realize that's a big part of my inability to lose. eDiets offers a specific plan geared toward the Glycemic Index that has worked great for me. I bought a book – The Insulin Resistance Diet, I think it was called – but didn't find it very user friendly. I'm much happier having my menus worked out for me.

Mariah suggested this little bump in the road sounded like it might be a Good Thing, and she's right. I learned a lot by straying from the path. I absolutely know what works and, unfortunately, now I know what doesn't. Pffffft! I already knew eating lunch meat and salty snacks weren't going to support me nutritionally. I wanted to cut loose and have some fun with food. I still need to figure out ways to have fun without food, which is hard to do with a houseful of food-loving relatives.

For Greta, who thought I should have lost weight averaging about 1300 calories and 70 minutes of activity daily, I direct you to the link Mar!a provided. When I plug in the numbers, I should be eating slightly more than 1200 calories daily to lose weight. That calculator is, as Mar!a said, painfully honest. I think Dr. Hussman should rename it "John's No-Bullshit BMR Calculator."

Right, Stretchy?

You and so many others are such great cheerleaders; it's great to know you can tell it like it is, as well. I feel like I'm getting better support from this little virtual meeting than I ever did from a structured group, whether it was Weight Watchers or therapy.

In other news, Alton Brown, host of a couple of programs on the Food Network [y'all don't watch any of those shows, do you?], spoke to the IFT recently. Here's a short article. As part of his keynote speech, Mr. Brown said:

“I care about the big picture. While facts may be the ‘proof of evidence', they don't point to what we're doing,” he said. And what Americans are doing today is overeating.

That's telling it like it is, don't you think?