Weight Loss is such an important issue in our lives, isn’t it? Ask the people who have been trying to lose that excess flab for years and come what may, they never seem to succeed. And this problem is universal in nature and everyone everywhere seems to be facing it. It is quite literally ubiquitous across the world, across all societies across all age groups. Man may have defeated many enemies but weight is one enemy which has always dominated us and more or less our winning percentage against it is quite low.
An entire industry has sprung up using weight loss as its center and we have diet fads and health foods and weight loss supplements and slimming techniques by the dozen. I am sure secretly deep inside, we all know that these won’t work, but we have to convince ourselves, more than anybody else that yes, I did try my best to lose weight, and so we all at some point of the time or the other have tried something or the other to help us lose weight artificially.
One more secret is an open secret but which we tend to keep as a secret is that no weight can be lost without sweating it out physically and no weight loss can be sustained without doing it regularly. Diets and food fads may help you lose a few kilograms here and there but these are bound to jump back and even multiply once you taper off your diet and food options. Genuine weight loss in a healthy manner is only possible by physical exercise of some kind or the other. It is only then you will be able to sustain the weight loss which you do achieve.
Now I am not a doctor to be giving you all this advice. But yes, I am one of those who have carried around excess flab all my life and honestly, haven’t really tried hard to shed it. Occasional bouts of fitness do attack and weird starts are triggered to the whole process of losing weight and they only end up in the same speed as they started at the drop of the hat. Well begun is half done – so it has always been the case with me and my attempts to lose weight.
We all have bought endless sports shoes for exercise and track pants and tees for sweating it out in the gym or hit the road for walks and runs armed with sweatbands and the works – we may lose weight or not at the end of the day, that is irrespective, but there should be no dearth in conveying to the world or showing the world that I mean business – no compromises as far as style is concerned.
I am sure almost 90% of you my readers have, like me, invested money in gym memberships paying advance for the entire year, tempted by the discounts, and often ended up losing the way to the gym within a month or two of the membership and having contributed the rest of the year’s membership money to the gym owner’s welfare fund. It is a very common story which people often don’t like to share because it makes us look dumb and foolish and weak.
A deep introspect by all will definitely get me a majority in agreement because what I have shared above is the true story of a person who wants to lose weight, has the intentions to back it, but does not have the willpower to support it. And the willpower which he is able to muster occasionally disappears faster than it appears, leaving him back to square one.
So then it is about time to make peace with life. If Mohammad cannot go to the mountain, then its time that the mountain comes to Mohammad (old Arab saying). So how long can I keep fighting this fight with weight loss, especially a fight where I have always been losing all rounds continuously? Don’t you think it is time to throw in the towel and accept the fact that losing weight, the amount I want, is impossible during this lifetime. I need to compromise and accept myself the way I am and make peace with my alter ego and try to be happy with whatever I have and whatever I am.
There….the thought itself is so consoling. Once I have accepted this tough reality, I guess then I won’t have to keep torturing myself repeatedly to keep trying out different fads and pushing myself to try and lose weight. I think this is a better place to be mentally. Not that I am advocating that people should give up their attempts at losing weight, but only that some time or the other we got to realize that the enemy is much more stronger than us and it only makes sense to buy peace with the enemy and live a satisfied and peaceful life rather than trying to come up with devious methods of attack and defense every now and then.
So guys I have got my peace at last in the self-acceptance and trust me, it already is feeling so good. It is upto you as to how long you want to continue the battle or join my ranks and be at peace with yourself. All the best to you irrespective of your choice……have a good day
Dr. Rajesh Mankani
