You Are Not Old....You Are Just Fat
Five years ago I was very close to giving up small stream trout fishing. I had convinced myself that it was a young man's sport and I was done. I even took all the gear out of vehicle and put it in the closet with the other archived outdoor related gear. I was fishing from my recliner then. An upcoming back surgery had limited my mobility and placed me in a serious funk. Along with the funk came an additional 30 pounds on top of not exactly being skinny. I was crying in my beer to my wife one night and she recommended losing some weight to make the possibility of my upcoming back fusion being successful. I began my diet that night.
I dropped 15 pounds before my surgery. My back fusion was more complicated than expected and I rode the recliner for a year. My 15 pound weight loss quickly went away. I even added back a few more than 15. My wife is a nurse and researched diets I could actually stay on. We decided a diet I had tried 20 years prior and did well on was worth another try. It was the Adkins Diet. I had stayed on it for six months prior and lost 38 pounds. It all came back within 6 months of going off.
Another year was lost due to a knee replacement. The need for weight loss was glaringly obvious then. After my knee was replaced and I did physical therapy I went on Adkins again. The research said that once on Adkins you needed to stay on it. A maintenance program it was called. The last time I was on the diet I remember it getting old really quickly. I failed to research the diet and make the meals fun and fulfilling. This diet causes your body to burn your fat you have stored. I turned into a carb counter for a while. I was limited to under 20 carbs in a day.
About a year ago I quit counting carbs and decided I was removing completely a few things from my diet. No pasta, potatoes, bread, and beer. I am allowed one cheat day from my diet a month. I do it up big time on my cheat days. I lived in Germany for 6 years so the German Beer was hard to give up. I replaced beer with Korbel and diet seven up diet coke. So all of you reading this are cringing now. You think it is diet you could not stay on. You are wrong.
You will have to force yourself to eat meals like this on this diet. It is a sacrifice you should make.
My weekly diet:
Breakfasts typically are bacon and some version of eggs. "Lots" Sausage sometimes.
Lunch consists of some cheese and lunch meat or leftover meat from day before meal. Buy a large variety of cheeses. Along with this you must drink lots of fluids.
Weekly supper menu:
Cabbage and onions and bacon...add some kielbasa to vary this meal...maybe a Andouille for variety
Pork chops and steamed cauliflower with melted sharp cheddar over
Boneless chicken thighs made into a fajita. Hold the soft wrap . Lots of onions and garlic and bell, red and yellow peppers. Marinate the mixture in butter. Butter is not limited in this diet. Eat lots...no bird portions.
A large porterhouse with 2 kinds of mushrooms and onions and garlic. Some asparagus steamed or sauted in butter with parmesan sprinkled on top.
Large salad with grilled chicken and scads of veggies and some cubed cheese. No tomatoes or carrots. A low calorie vinaigrette dressing.
Meatloaf....no bread crumbs or cracker fillers. Lots of garlic and onions in mixture. Spice it up with sage. Make a big meatloaf so there are leftovers.
Egg Plant and Zucchini Parmesan .....no tomatoes sauce or pasta. Four varieties of cheese. Use egg plant and zucchini as layering.
Kraut and kielbasa....make sure you are full.
Seafood night...Grilled scallops, shrimp, and skinless salmon. Make lots...don't leave table hungry.
Seafood Gumbo....leave out rice and tomatoes...lots of okra...sausage and chicken good...use your imagination on types of seafood.
I have about 5 other meals I have for supper.
Go out this night and get a king sized prime rib with asparagus on the side.
There are many Adkins pre-made meals at grocery store.
Eat supper before 5pm and make sure to drink lots of fluids.
Sauces and condiments typically are loaded with carbohydrates. Catsup and gravies are a no go. Mustard is good.
If you need to snack during the day let it be a meat stick or some cheese. Be imaginative with your cheese. A horseradish Havarti is my favorite snack.
Berry cheese given to mother in law.
October 20th I was on my diet for a year. I have lost 73 pounds. I am planning on another 45 to be lost.
Those long walks on the trout stream can be part of your exercise. I walk more than I did in the past with my wife. This weight loss was without a crazy exercise program.
I went trout fishing more times this year than the five years before combined.
The door to the outdoors that you thought had closed because you have no stamina will return with this diet.
You will be amazed how much better you will feel weighing less.
