Jackson Free Press

Illlustration by Ken Patterson

"So how is your diet going?" wrote David, my best friend from grade school, who pops up on iChat for a conversation every day or two.

"It's not a diet," I wrote back, "It's a lifestyle change."

"Ah," he replied. "So how is the lifestyle change going?"

I started the Road to Wellness about three weeks ago as I write this, and my commitment was pretty simple—give up all sodas, cut way back on fried junk and start exercising occasionally—not exactly a diet, nor a serious exercise regime.

But, every long journey begins with a first step, and mine had something to do with the seductive glories of a ground-maize tortilla that's been quartered and dropped in a vat of bubbling oil. With those chips behind me—except for on guilt-free Fridays—I feel like a new man.

Actually, I'm the same man, give or take a pound or two. I just drink a lot of unsweet tea and water.

Which is part of the point. Just a little taste of lifestyle change has me thinking that maybe there's a little more change I should be looking into. Not just walking, for instance, but walking with purpose—setting a goal. And not just eating right, but taking a look at some of the science involved in eating, making some lifestyle choices and sticking with them.

So, for the fourth week on the Road to Wellness, I think it's time to amp things up a little bit. One, I'm going to figure out a steady pattern that gets me to the gym every other day if at all possible. Maybe even twice on weekends.

Next, I'm going to set a more specific cardio goal—in fact, I've already got one in mind. It's the 12-minute mile that the Air Force required of me in order to pass a physical during my ROTC days. (Days? Who are we kidding … I lasted weeks in ROTC.) To get to a mile in 12 minutes, according to those high-tech treadmills, you've got to move at an average of five miles per hour for each of those minutes. For me, that's a light jog; a six-footer should be able to fast walk at that pace.

Now, that's my goal, but it isn't the only one—the received wisdom on weight loss, in particular, says that the longer you exercise the more you'll lose weight. In fact, walking for an hour is probably better than running hard for 20 minutes, because you'll metabolize fat instead of just glucose. And varying your speeds and stints can burn fat, too. So a more complete solution for losing some weight is going to be to spend more time moving around and less time thinking about eating.

That, by the way, brings me to another thing these high-tech treadmills can tell you. Spend about 30 minutes on a treadmill going about 4.5 miles per hour, and you'll find you've burned maybe 300 calories. That's a nice bit, but it's all so easy to consume—like … two cans of Coke.
So, even if I burn, say, a holy grail of 1,500 calories a week exercising—and perhaps build some muscle, even lean muscle, which feeds on extra calories even while at rest—then weight loss is going to require a little more attention to what I eat.

This is not a diet. It's a lifestyle change.

The easiest place that I can think of to cut out fat is—fat. If you're eating a lot of fatty meats, for instance, then you're likely adding that former animal's fats right to your own. Butter is another one—just grab a pat and stick it to your belly to get a sense of what it does. And margarine is no better—in fact, you ought to gather up any margarine or shortening in the house and toss it right away.

For me, it means cutting down on the oils I use to cook, the oils and creams I use in salads and the butter I use day-to-day. I'll cut down, not out. One approach is to use smallish amounts of olive oil for frying in the kitchen and incorporating stir-fry techniques—even if you're fryin' taters. (More on that next week.)

There's recently been a lot of press about the benefits of yogurt and milk—particularly the calcium, which is said in some studies to fight fat. I'm going to try and add a little yogurt to my life, then—not overdo it, but have it available for a mid-morning snack.

(Ms. D already swears by non-fat yogurt; "it's a woman thing," she tells me. Then she warns to watch out for hidden chemicals like Nutrasweet lurking in your yogurt tub.)

If you're like me, though, then you need to take one lifestyle change more seriously than nearly all others when it comes to diet. You need to eat more. My biggest problem is my eyes and the portions that those eyes like to seem me indulge in. And that's because I let myself get hungry by spending too much time between meals trying to come up with excuses not to exercise.

The recommendation is five meals a day—breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner—and that none of them comprise more than 25 percent of your total calories. More to the point, if you're eating more frequently, you'll keep your metabolism up. And the less hungry you are as lunch or supper approaches, the less you'll feel that you absolutely need to eat the side of something in order to get full.

Then there's the real kicker—that moment when you don't want to go back, because you've done too much work to get yourself in the shape you are now. Eating five meals a day isn't so bad, and the boost you get from an hour on your bike or 30 minutes on the treadmill is better than spending half an hour trying to figure out if you're really going to be able to stand watching "Joey" for the next decade.

Hmmm … is that the sound of your lifestyle changing?

Week 4: Pump up the Volume

1. Get serious about this trip.

2. Go to gym every other day.

3. Work toward a 12-minute mile.

4. Spend more time moving around.

5. Cut down on fat, oils in particular.

6. Eat more low-fat yogurt.

7. Eat more often, especially healthy snacks.