This girl I knew from high school (and thanks to Facebook, have current random contact with), Janice, has started a new blog. She's only made a few posts but I'm already loving what she has to say. Not just because of the delivery- though the homage to Jen Lancaster makes my heart happy - but because she already displays plenty of things that go through my head. The frustration of clothes being too big when you're too poor to replace them. The envy of going out in public and seeing a skinny girl and immediately retracting into your shell or overcompensating with personality. The endless pondering of what you're doing wrong and why you can't just fix what's "broken" when you know the problem. Losing weight is like untangling a necklace that's been stuck in a jewelry box. It was so damn easy for that thing to get tangled up just sitting there yet untangling it seems like an impossible endeavor that requires forceps and expletives. Packing on the pounds is simple. Losing them is hell.
I think the problem comes down to the contradictory resources there are for losing weight. It's a several billion dollar industry advertising quick fixes. And even those that claim they're the best way to lose weight and keep it off the healthy way (Yeah, I'm looking at you Weight Watchers!) doesn't mean its the best bet for YOU. Every body is different. Women. Men. Short. Stout. Tall. Lean. Thick. Petite. How can you possibly expect Person A to lose weight on the same plan as Person B? Janice and I, though fighting the same struggle, would never be able to lose weight the same way. Yes maybe we could enjoy the same activities and eat the same foods to lose calories but in the end when its time to reach goal we will drastically have to alter our styles in order to succeed.
And so this is the fight we have. Plan Surefire has already turned out to be a waste. Gym Guarantee has stolen your money with no results. We attempt to lose our weight with a certain exercise/food plan and the plan has failed us. We reject it as bogus. Yet the twist is that we blame ourselves for the failure. It is not our fault that eating bell peppers for every meal didn't work for us. It is not our fault that yoga is the most boring activity known to man and the thought of going is less appealing than bamboo under your fingernails.
I'm speaking in generalities. I should say this for myself: If a plan doesn't work, I will try something else. I will not blame myself for a failure. This multi-billion dollar industry has enough options to make a Chinese Buffet jealous. SOMETHING will work for me and make me happy. I just have to find it.
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