My Turning Point

Pick a number between 120 and 165 and I’ve weighed it, at some point, in my adult life. I’ve been a lean, mean fighting-machine at 135lbs, a thin but very flabby 120lbs, and I hit my “turning point” weight at 165lbs. That’s when I looked down at the scale and said “Enough is enough!” Something just snapped inside of my brain and I refused to gain any more weight.

I never weighed 165lbs again… but I’ve come close, peaking a few years ago at 154lbs.

For over 18 years, I’ve been reading up on nutrition and exercise. I was so fascinated with it that I started FitWatch back in 2002. I wanted to share with others what I’d learned over the years – and to let them know they weren’t alone in their struggle with weight loss.

How I’ve Lost Weight

I’ve tried a couple of diets – just never had time to try all of them out there – but it seems to me it all comes down to two things: eating better, moving more. That is putting it a bit simply, but take a look at any “diet” plan, count the calories in the food they’re suggesting you eat in a day, and I’d be willing to bet that you end up eating less calories than you usually do. (Yes, there is the whole carb controversy. But, hey, I’ve lost weight doing low fat AND lost weight doing low carb. You need to do what works right for you.)

Do Diets Work?

They do…and they don’t. Like just about anything else in life, it’s what you do with it and what you get out of it that counts. You can learn a lot about nutrition by going on a diet. Most diet books will teach you about carbs, protein and fat; how to count calories and lots of other basics about nutrition. By tracking what you’re eating and your results, you can see what works best for you. Not only in weight (fat) loss results, but by seeing how you feel: factors such as energy level, muscle strength, mental state.

But obsessing about a diet, trying unhealthy diets, letting a diet control your life, feeling like a failure because you can’t “stick” to a diet are not good things. If you must “go on a diet,” use the diet as one tool of many — don’t let the diet “use” you. Make sure you’re always in the driver’s seat.

The One Thing That’s Stopping Your Weight Loss

There’s really only one thing stopping you from losing weight — or achieving anything you want in life: that one thing is YOU. Come up with any reason you have for not losing weight and there is someone out there in the world who has overcome that obstacle. I believe this wholeheartedly: barring any REAL medical/physiological reason, there is nothing stopping you from losing weight except your own belief that you can’t do it.

And, yes, you can be your own worst enemy sometimes. Believe me, I know. But, you can also be your own best friend, and kick yourself in the rear to get moving.

With FitWatch, I want to help you live the life you deserve by taking care of your body.