FAT SHAMING!
WAR ON FAT PHASE TWO: PART 4: JUNE 2021
I usually highlight my own Herculean dieting/exercising struggles on this page. And I’m happy to report that I’ve lost 3kg since last month.
But I won’t go into details about this modest triumph because I think that it will be interesting to focus on someone else’s struggle for a change, especially when the someone else is male.
Most guys, in my experience, are so peacockishly vain that (unlike women, who tend to be self-flagellating) they never regard their bodies as hideous, even when their bodies are extremely imperfect!
I was therefore pleasantly surprised when Olusoji Owoeye, aged 40 and Head of the Finance Business Advisory Technical and External Relations Division at Nigeria LNG Ltd, reached out to me to share his weight loss journey…which, frankly, is a lot more inspiring than mine!
I’ve often stood still or gone backwards; and I’m still, after many months of sharing my dreams of revived slenderness with ThisDay readers, embarrassingly close to my original obese shape.
Whereas, Olusoji, who has maintained a disciplined downward trajectory, has lost 25kg in recent months and is already looking much better and doggedly and steadily heading towards the ideal weight, medically speaking, for a man of his height (6 feet 4 inches).
OK, so please find his story and advice below. You can contact him on sojitek@yahoo.com if you want to communicate with him directly.
Every year for the past 5 years; one of my personal goals had been to reduce weight and get fit; but achieving these objectives proved very elusive as I moved from one diet programme to another. At best, I’d lose a little then quickly regain what I’d lost; and it seemed that my romance with the 155kg I was carrying was like a Catholic marriage.
As the Covid 19 pandemic gained ground last year, organisations encouraged staff to work from home and ‘enhanced immobility’ (EI) became the new norm.
I was averaging 500 steps a day and spending almost every waking hour sitting at a workstation in my bedroom. During the first two weeks of working from home, I gained 5kg, thereby hitting 160kg.
I remember sitting down and having a conversation with myself, along the lines that if I continued on that path, it would be hard to get into my work clothes when the lockdown ended.
It will be wrong to say that I was able to achieve this all alone, given that I received a lot of help from family, pastors (yeah not getting all spiritual on you now; but trust me there was a significant light bulb moment in here) and work colleagues (yes, despite we all being virtual there was support from the NLNG team as well).
Owning the Problem: - This is really the first step towards any meaningful change; quit the blame game. I had to move away from blaming Mr Covid-19 that kept me locked indoors; to blaming the authorities who had shut down all the sporting facilities; to blaming colleagues for endless back-to-back online meetings; and get to a point at which had to ask myself: In this seemingly dark cloud, where is the ladder hidden? Truth is that in every ‘negative’ situation there is always a hidden opportunity to find the silver lining in the cloud.
I had to real get to the point in which it was no longer a case of what was going on externally; I had to come to a realisation that what mattered was my response to these situations.“No one wey despair dey help o”. Feeling sorry for yourself does not change anything.
Realistic Goal: I listened to pastors who urged congregants to take their health seriously, to improve their chances of surviving the pandemic. In April 2020, Dr Sola Fola-Alade of Liberty Church said that “it is now time to make your one goal for the year 2020 to lose 20kg”. This became a light bulb moment for me.
Immediately I accepted this realistic goal, I started to get results and to lose roughly 2.5kg every month.
Simple Routine Changes: - Changing all routines overnight is very challenging and almost impossible. I found out that making gradual changes was really the way to go. It is not so much about perfection but rather progress. I first decided to find a new hobby that would be engaging and help me burn some of the excess calories. A quick solution was walking.
I discovered that I enjoyed walking; and walking for 40 minutes most days gave me the space to indulge in a lot of positive introspection.
If you are not staying in a conducive residential area, you can comfortably walk a mile in the comfort of your home. There are some nice Youtube videos that I found very handy on rainy days.
I also found it useful to compete with my office team at weekends when we would push each other to walk longer distances.
Reduced Calorie Consumption:
There can really be no significant change in weight without controlling what you eat.
I invested a good chunk of funds in various diet plans; from the green diet; to blue diet, to liquid only to all sort of variants. The real key here is finding out what works for you. You should choose a plan that you can stick to most of the time for the rest of your life because quick fixes need to be combined with lifestyle modification.
I discovered that if you add psyllium fibre to liquified cucumbers or egg plant, you wind up with a dish that resembles garri or yam flour but contains far fewer calories than the real thing; and I must say that this substitute combined with traditional vegetable soup was an great delicacy for me.
I was not on any starvation diet. I just made small changes that helped the needle on my scales move in the right direction.
It’s also important to mention a nugget of wisdom I received from one of NLNG’s excellent medical experts during a staff briefing session: “There are no overweight persons in camps for Internally Displaced People (IDP). So stories about being naturally fat or having big bones etc are largely figments of our imagination”.
Also please note that no matter whatever food addiction you have, if you go on a three day no food fast, you will see a significant reduction craving levels; this helps to break the habit and you can now make the change to a preferred diet plan.
Improved Sleep: - This is one of the most overlooked causes of obesity, which without doubt is a killer and an invitation to various sicknesses. I found out that most of my sugar cravings during the day was because of a need to keep the brain alert and fully functional; but the root cause was a poor sleep pattern.
Minimal sleep creates a heightened level of stress that in turn leads to increase sugar cravings, and excessive snacking.
Smart devices (watches, phones, fitbits, etc) that enable you to monitor your activity level and sleep patterns can also add so much value. And don’t forget to consult your doctor for advice!
So I currently weight 136kg, which is still far from my destination. But I am determined to get there this year. I hope you have been inspired to modify your lifestyle and become a healthier version of yourself.
Please feel free to share your progress with me. In the meantime: Stay focused; Stay Hungry and Stay Motivated!!!
DONU KOGBARA IS A VANGUARD NEWSPAPER COLUMNIST.
Please feel free to share your thoughts about her weight loss journey on 0805 404 6887 or donzol2002@yahoo.co.uk