I have described myself in this blog as "a fat old man with palsy".
With drugs for the Lyme Disease, the palsy has much reduced, and my hands are much more steady.
And, since being on drugs for the Lyme Disease, I have lost a little over 50 pounds. Twenty of that was likely inflammation and just fell off easily, but more than 30 pounds of that was the result of a serious effort to lose weight. It was a priority, that I planned, and I executed. Today, 50 pounds lighter, I feel 20 years younger. I like it.
However, while the Lyme Disease is stable, it is not gone, and I have another 30 pounds to lose. Losing that extra weight will make it much easier to get rid of the Lyme Disease in a shorter period of time. From here, I am very sure it is worth the effort.
The best system/diet that I know of for losing a lot of weight rapidly is that devised by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. (http://www.drfuhrman.com/default.aspx )
Other systems work, but Fuhrman's program gets more results with much less effort. And, the weight loss is more likely to be permanent.
I see a lot of fat spinners. They will die "young", and the un-deserving will acquire their stash! And, if you are fat, you will be less fit, and less fit spinners spin more slowly, meaning that more of your stash will land in the hands of the un-deserving. If you intend to spin all of your stash, then get fit! If you have stash beyond normal life expectancy, then you need to be exceptionally fit so you can live longer than normal.
Most fat folk will say that Dr. Fuhrman's program required too many sacrifices. It is not really that bad. My wife really likes her meat and fat, and for years and years, she had bee trying all kinds of diets to lose weight. With minimal effort, hunger, and discomfort, she has lost 20 pounds since July on the Fuhrman program, and now has a closet full of clothes that must be altered to fit. That is this afternoon's program - go in for fittings to get things taken in. On the other hand, the Aran sweater that she bought in Scotland 30 years ago fits better than it has since we got back from that trek across Nepal in 1991. In those days, she was very fit.
Folks like Dr. Weil will deny the health advantages that Fuhrman claims for very low BMIs. Fuhrman provides all the citations, and I encourage you to read them with care, and with a copy of a good text on statistics, sampling, and study design at your side. Many of the studies accepted by Dr. Weil are biased by the loss of weight common in fatal diseases near end of life. People who (get and) stay fit live much longer. Fat people do not live as long as fit people.
Some folks will say that Fuhrman is too much effort to prepare. I say that as you become accustomed to the program, and plan for it, it is no more effort to prepare than the Standard American Diet (SAD). When traveling, you can get food compliant with the Fuhrman program at places like Tender Greens and The Cheese Cake Factory. The "free continental breakfast" offered at many motels takes some picking and choosing.
While I had uncontrolled Lyme Disease, my lipid panel numbers were as high as one would expect for someone a hundred pounds over weight. Within 90 days of starting the Fuhrman program, my lipid numbers were at the low end of normal without any medication. Likewise, my blood pressure has come back down to normal without medication. Given all the side-effects of prescription medicine, this is a real advantage.
The real advantage is that I like the freedom that being thinner gives. It lets me move more easily. That alone is worth the effort.
There are a few errors and in inaccuracies in Fuhrman's books, but the program as described, is scientifically correct and it works for losing significant amounts of body weight. It has fewer side effects than the surgery often used for obesity. Unlike the surgery, it is easily reversible. If you decided that you want to be fat again, you can always go back to SAD.
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