Kevin Graham, 48, of Orange County, Calif., travels a lot for business, and being on the road makes it hard to maintain a regular exercise routine and eat the right foods. Over time, his weight inched up to 225 pounds, and at 6 feet 2 inches tall, he says he feels better at 215 or less.
About two years ago, he made a conscious decision to lose 10 pounds and keep his weight down. “I didn’t want the yo-yo dieting that we all do,” he says. He achieved weight-loss success by placing a photo of himself looking thinner in his wallet — this way he sees his slim picture every time he goes to pay for food. Here are the diet tips that made him a weight-loss success story.
EH: When did you first realize it was time to lose weight?
Graham: The realization had been there for a long time. You get over 40, you can’t keep your metabolism up, and it’s hard to stay as active as you were when you were younger. The waistline grows and grows and at some point you decide this is not the direction I want to head. It’s only going to get harder and harder. Two years ago, I made the conscious decision to lose 10 pounds and get myself to 215.
EH: What inspired you to start your weight-loss journey?
Graham: The desire for longevity. I wanted to have a strong and flexible body and be in control of my life.
EH: What diet tips did you follow?
Graham: My eating had been poor because I travel a lot and I eat late. I love salt and sugar and all the Mexican places in California. I didn’t give up anything. I just tried to work with smaller portions. I wanted to make small incremental changes that I could live with and maintain my weight-loss success. I wasn’t trying to lose 10 pounds by a certain date and torture myself. I was focused around calories, but I didn’t do any scientific measurement. I also cut out heavy drinks and went for water instead of soda and stayed away from shakes. When I went to a restaurant, I didn’t go through three baskets of bread before the meal.
EH: What was your exercise schedule?
Graham: I don’t keep to a strict schedule. I’m a referee for soccer, so that gets me exercising. I go to the gym and do some stretching and a little bit of weights to get some resistance training. I try to mix it up and get some activity every day, but I don’t always go to the gym or referee or get out and play. I get up every morning at 5 or 6 a.m. — sometimes I go to work and sometimes I go to the gym. It depends on what’s on my calendar for the day. The injustice of conditioning is that it takes weeks and months to get into shape, but only days to get out of shape.
EH: How do you stay motivated?
Graham: I’m trying to live a long life and have a flexible mind and body as I age. You want to look decent, too. I don’t want to be one of those [people] who flops in a chair with food in his hands all day long. Before I eat or drink something, I say to myself, “Is it really that good?” Also, I look at the thinner photo of myself that I carry in my wallet. It’s amazing what you can do over time if you have the right images of yourself.
EH: What’s your biggest food weakness?
Graham: Bread and chips and salsa and that type of stuff. I still eat sandwiches for lunch. If I would cut that out more, I probably would be leaner. I just had brownies with almonds for breakfast because they were next to the bananas. I let myself have some of what I like.
EH: How long did it take until you started seeing results?
Graham: Within a few days of making changes, I started feeling better. It probably took two to three months of ratcheting up the activities and not allowing myself to overeat or eat too late at night until I achieved the weight-loss success I wanted. I didn’t put a lot of effort into losing weight quickly. I wanted to make small incremental changes so I could sustain them and move forward.
EH: What are your best diet tips and secrets for weight-loss management?
Graham: My best diet tips are to know your goals and yourself. Picture what you’re going to look like when you’re thinner. Make a list of what you’re doing now in terms of activities and food consumption and identify the things that are most harmful to your health and get rid of them. Also, reassess your peers and don’t hang out with people whose habits may set you up for failure. I don’t monitor my weight by stepping on the scale weekly or daily. But I’m in touch with my body and I know when I’ve eaten too much or have been too sedentary and I get back on track. It’s not always easy, but when you set goals, it helps.
No comments:
Post a Comment