Stuff That Matters In Life

“You’re lucky you don’t have a weight problem, really lucky!” Said the nurse at my doctor’s office. (I was there to see about my recent headaches. Most likely sinuses.)

Is your weight a matter of luck?

I suppose if you have a high metabolism, you’re “lucky” that you can eat a lot and not gain weight.

But controlling your weight is mostly by effort, not luck. You have to eat less, exercise more. It’s no secret, and it always works!

I majored in Dietetics in college, worked 2 years in food services at Long Beach Unified School District planning school lunches. People ask me how I keep my weight – same for the last 30 years even after 4 pregnancies.

There’s no secret – I don’t eat junk food. I don’t eat chips, don’t drink soda or other sweetened drinks, artificial or natural. I don’t eat candy and I don’t love chocolate. Yes, occasionally I’ll enjoy a KitKat or munch on a few SunChips, but the “secret”, if there is one, is to stop. Stop after one piece of chocolate, stop after a handful of chips, stop after 1 serving of garlic mashed potatoes. No matter how good something is, just remember that you have the rest of your life to eat more of it. You don’t have to gorge yourself.

But I’m not enjoying life, you say? I don’t have diabetes, I don’t have high blood pressure. I don’t think I’m missing anything. I must say, though, I need to exercise more. I’m not overweight, but I’m not strong.

And it’s not that I don’t enjoy food. I love a good steak, cheesecake is my weakness, and I use butter whenever I can. But I stop. And I drink a glass of water and go read a good book.