it's the same, only different
Something struck me as I was chuckling my way through this blog this morning. The basic premise is the nasty things that happen to women's bodies because of age and childbirth, and the effect on beachwear.
It came to me that the same thing happens to men, more or less, except we don't have near the excuses..as in children running around the house. While children will affect the grey hair count, or hair at all count, of the average male, we don't have the weight issues that come with bringing them into the world. All we have is age, but it's still there.
When I was twelve, we had a boat and went water skiing almost every weekend. The trip home almost always included a stop and Ronald's House of Fine Meats. I remember my dad telling me, "I'll buy you three Big Macs if you'll really eat them." He did, and I did...many times (and I wonder why I'm on cholesterol meds, but that's another related issue). Yet I wouldn't gain an ounce.
Through my 20's I ate everything and anything I wanted. Yes, I was fairly active, but I never made a concerted effort to exercise for the sake of exercise. Weight was never an issue. I could suck down a bazilion milk shakes and not gain a pound.
Then I hit my 30s...pretty much the same story, until my later 30s...when I noticed the weight starting to creep up...so I started exercising more.
Then I hit my 40s...and the metabolism slowed to a crawl. About then I also quit smoking...and anyone who has knows what that means. I noticed my pants getting tighter and knew I had to take action. I bought bigger pants. Mr. "My Doctor" started lecturing me as the weight increased, then inched up some more, and some more. Along came the blood pressure and cholesterol meds. It happened slowly and I just chalked it up to age. I still ate like a pig and exercised...some.
Then, at the ripe young age of 49, a few things happened. One, I got on a scale after binging over Christmas, and the number on the scale was higher than it had ever been, and higher than I ever thought it would be. I had visions of my dad, who could serve Christmas dinner on his stomach. No offense intended, pop, but you know it's true. Then, brushing my teeth, something dripped from my mouth....onto my belly. My freakin' belly, dammit! That was one gross wake up call. Something had to be done and buying bigger pants wasn't the answer.
That started my current two and a half year run of more exercise than I've done in any other period in my life, including 100 mile bike rides. To be honest, though, as much as I thought it would, the original issue hasn't gone away completely. I thought...if I could get myself in good enough shape to ride 50 miles at a shot, I'd be burning enough calories to make the gut disappear. Well, I'm past doing 50 mile rides and....the needle on the scale and the amount of me I see when I look down aren't changing much. Sure, initially there was a weight drop and an encouraging reduction in waist size, but it's leveled off.
I still weigh more than I want to. My stomach isn't catching anything that seeps from my mouth any more, and I can see my feet, but still...the abs aren't quite the six pack variety. In fact, they're still the one keg kind and not very flattering. If you look back through bike pictures in this blog, you'll see what I'm talking about. Those clothes don't hide anything, and the gut is still pretty prominent. I benefit from the fact that not many people get a good look at me in bike clothes. Most people are driving by in cars, or they're on a bike and have enough to worry about besides what I look like in a bike jersey. It's not like laying out at the beach....which I just don't do anymore.
The only answer I have left is to...eat less. I love food, and I know I love food too much. The concept of portion control isn't one I espouse. I'm always the guy finishing everything on his plate, which is something drilled into my head at an early age with visions of starving kids in Africa. If food's going in the trash, I feel guilty..and I need to get over that...and the fact that whatever could go in the trash tastes too damn good.
I haven't got there, yet, but I need to learn to...just let it go.
It came to me that the same thing happens to men, more or less, except we don't have near the excuses..as in children running around the house. While children will affect the grey hair count, or hair at all count, of the average male, we don't have the weight issues that come with bringing them into the world. All we have is age, but it's still there.
When I was twelve, we had a boat and went water skiing almost every weekend. The trip home almost always included a stop and Ronald's House of Fine Meats. I remember my dad telling me, "I'll buy you three Big Macs if you'll really eat them." He did, and I did...many times (and I wonder why I'm on cholesterol meds, but that's another related issue). Yet I wouldn't gain an ounce.
Through my 20's I ate everything and anything I wanted. Yes, I was fairly active, but I never made a concerted effort to exercise for the sake of exercise. Weight was never an issue. I could suck down a bazilion milk shakes and not gain a pound.
Then I hit my 30s...pretty much the same story, until my later 30s...when I noticed the weight starting to creep up...so I started exercising more.
Then I hit my 40s...and the metabolism slowed to a crawl. About then I also quit smoking...and anyone who has knows what that means. I noticed my pants getting tighter and knew I had to take action. I bought bigger pants. Mr. "My Doctor" started lecturing me as the weight increased, then inched up some more, and some more. Along came the blood pressure and cholesterol meds. It happened slowly and I just chalked it up to age. I still ate like a pig and exercised...some.
Then, at the ripe young age of 49, a few things happened. One, I got on a scale after binging over Christmas, and the number on the scale was higher than it had ever been, and higher than I ever thought it would be. I had visions of my dad, who could serve Christmas dinner on his stomach. No offense intended, pop, but you know it's true. Then, brushing my teeth, something dripped from my mouth....onto my belly. My freakin' belly, dammit! That was one gross wake up call. Something had to be done and buying bigger pants wasn't the answer.
That started my current two and a half year run of more exercise than I've done in any other period in my life, including 100 mile bike rides. To be honest, though, as much as I thought it would, the original issue hasn't gone away completely. I thought...if I could get myself in good enough shape to ride 50 miles at a shot, I'd be burning enough calories to make the gut disappear. Well, I'm past doing 50 mile rides and....the needle on the scale and the amount of me I see when I look down aren't changing much. Sure, initially there was a weight drop and an encouraging reduction in waist size, but it's leveled off.
I still weigh more than I want to. My stomach isn't catching anything that seeps from my mouth any more, and I can see my feet, but still...the abs aren't quite the six pack variety. In fact, they're still the one keg kind and not very flattering. If you look back through bike pictures in this blog, you'll see what I'm talking about. Those clothes don't hide anything, and the gut is still pretty prominent. I benefit from the fact that not many people get a good look at me in bike clothes. Most people are driving by in cars, or they're on a bike and have enough to worry about besides what I look like in a bike jersey. It's not like laying out at the beach....which I just don't do anymore.
The only answer I have left is to...eat less. I love food, and I know I love food too much. The concept of portion control isn't one I espouse. I'm always the guy finishing everything on his plate, which is something drilled into my head at an early age with visions of starving kids in Africa. If food's going in the trash, I feel guilty..and I need to get over that...and the fact that whatever could go in the trash tastes too damn good.
I haven't got there, yet, but I need to learn to...just let it go.
Labels: It's all about me
John put this out here at 8:31 AM
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