I know I am not alone, and neither are you if you have asked this same question. America is getting fatter and fatter, ironically it seems, at the same rate the fat fighting "industry" grows. It would seem implausible that as our knowledge, scientific advancement, access to healthier foods and public awareness increases, that our waistline would too. Now, I don't blame any of those things as the reason I am still fat, I merely point out...there must be a critical step missing.
Some would say that step is an actual step, as in action. I would tend to agree, but why can't so many of us take it? We know what's at stake to our own personal bodies, yet there seems to be such a wall of inertia to break through, that more often than not, we give up without really trying.
A week or so ago, by chance, I happened upon a show called "The Brain Fitness Program" on PBS. For the most part it was pretty dry and boring, but there was one very interesting thing that caught my attention..."plasticity". This is a term neurologists are giving to the ruts we literally create on our brains by taking the same action, over and over again. This rut, or plasticity, gets so used to these actions, that as soon as they begin they fire neurons to complete the action. For example, if a person reaches out to a boiling pot, the neurons would fire off pain signals and we recoil our hand immediately. The same is true for bad habits as well, if we think Twinkie, we eat Twinkie. This is why it is so hard to maintain a weight-loss diet, we are literally stuck in a rut, and it is all in our heads.
It all makes perfect sense when you really think about it. Eating certain things, at certain times, gives most of us pleasure, instant pleasure at that. If I am bored, I walk to the pantry. If I feel anxious, I walk to the fridge. If I am happy, I want to celebrate with food. If I am lonely, I seek solace in the loving embrace of Ben and Jerry. And I do all these things in auto-mode, a reflex of emotion, thought and over the years, practice and pleasure. Why would a subconscious give that kind of instant gratification up with out a fight? If it did, it wouldn't be doing it's job of nurturing your inner self. Of course, all this inner self nurturing comes with a price, outer self deterioration, and ultimately, self loathing.
Impossible to fix? No. But very, very, very hard. Anyway, the point is, the repeated failures you experience, the wall you hit when the sun goes down, the guilt, the hopelessness you feel...there normal, and you are not alone.
I don't know if it's genetic, but we are definitely creatures of habit--and those habits can be good and very BAD.
Posted by: Margaret | March 27, 2008 at 22:05