FAT: What no one is telling you

I'm a sucker for documentaries. I luff them. I love all of them. Last night we watched one called "Lord Save us from your followers." Saturday night we watched one called "Enlighten Up!" Both highly recommended.

The one I want to talk about though was called "FAT: What no one is telling you" It was a PBS documentary and it was excellent! Here's a clip



One of the many things I found interesting about this film were the weight loss statistics. I'm not quoting this directly, so these numbers are not accurate but... they were saying like 70% of all people who try to lose weight give up, out of those who don't give up, 10% reach their goals, and out of the 10% who reach their goal, 3%maintain the loss. Well isn't that uplifting! I remember the numbers being so stacked against us that it almost didn't seem realistic to try. So why do we do this?

Why do we blog about it? Why do we workout every day, every damn day? Why do we count calories, or points, or carbs, or protein? Why are we doing this if statistically we have about a 3% chance of succeeding? To add insult to injury, the numbers look even worse if you were overweight as a child. Well I'll be dammed! My elastic husky kid jeans are still haunting me.

I'm doing this madness simply because I can't not do it. I may only have a 3% or 10% chance of beating this twinkie beast, but I'll have a 0% chance if I don't try.

50% of all first marriages end in divorce. 60% of second marriages end in divorce. This is my first marriage and my husband's second. Where does that leave us? 55%? Those odds are not so good, but we still did it. I thought about it, long and hard. Committing my entire life to one man? I was a child of divorce and it devastated me. I don't want to put a child through that pain, but more than that I don't want to have to live through it again either. So why did I do it? Because not doing, not trying was worse than the potential of divorce

My husband pretty much lives his life by the line, you are the master of your own destiny. Sounds a little "Master of the universe" to me. Seriously though. His father walked out on the family when he was a teenager. His dad was in and out of his life, traveling for months on end in South America. He didn't have the idyllic version of childhood-by far, but I think for all the shit his father put on his family, he did some good too. After Scott's first year of college the money ran out. His father made too much for him to qualify for any financial aid, leaving Scott without many options. He could work, but that wouldn't afford him enough money to pay for college AND housing AND have time for school. He said some choice things to his dad after he found out he couldn't qualify for financial aid. One of those things was "you're ruining my life." That's when his dad told him that the only one that can ruin your life is you, he also said that Scott was the master of his own destiny.

After that, Scott got a job and quit school. Years later he started back up at community college, opened his own business, started teaching community college, transitioned into attending University of Phoenix, started teaching at UofP, got his bachelors degree, then a couple years ago got his Masters. He had every reason to give up...statistically.

We have every reason to not lose weight. We can sit on the couch watching re-runs of The Duggars (19 kids and counting), and to eat ourselves into oblivion. After all, we were fat kids.

But... BUT we are the masters of our own destiny. If we want to lose weight...and keep it off, we can. Let me say that again. If we want to, we can.

When Scott and I got married, rather when we got engaged, I had a little freak out. Would divorce just happen to me? Would I wake up one day and fall out of love? Would he? Would I have any say in it?

Realizing that we have control over almost everything is really empowering. Really empowering. If we wanted our relationship to succeed, then hot damn, it was going to.

If I want to lose weight, then guess what, I can!

I know this is a simple concept, but I think it's one that we can overlook.
So, throw out the statistics, and the excuses, and the twinkies. If you want this, go get it.