Accidental Dieting

Today I’m reminded of one of my favorite movie lines, from Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion:

Michele: Remember the prom? You got so thin by then.

Romy: Oh, I know. I was so lucky getting mono. That was like the best diet ever.

Last night I noticed an slight ache in my teeth and this morning I woke up with a full-on toothache.  I managed to eat some yogurt for breakfast and pasta for lunch but in addition to wanting to chew less, thankfully I’m not particularly hungry today.

I think back on all the times I lost noticeable amounts of weight and none of them were achieved by dieting per se.  I can drop about 15 or 20 pounds with a great deal of effort, but when I got to my lowest weight, that was thanks to gallstones and the subsequent removal of my gallbladder.  I relate very much to this adorable cartoon by The Awkward Yeti:

The other two times I managed a dramatic weight loss had less to do with any major effort on my part and more to do with being a poor college student and an upsetting romantic loss.  A really good break up, not just one that bruises the ego but one that really feels like the loss of a limb or something, can really kill the appetite.  If you’re just sad, you might eat to cheer yourself up.  When you’re devastated, well that starts sapping your will to live… and thus eat since that is a crucial component of survival.

It’s taken a couple of decades to realize it but I’d much rather be fat and happy than thin and miserable.  And it seems the only way available to thinness for me involves much misery, so I think I’ll pass.  I believe stress is a much bigger health risk than a few extra pounds.  The science is starting to see the truth in that too.  If you feel the need to argue this point, don’t bother.  I’ve already done the research, read the studies and unless you fall into either of the extremes of thin or fat, you can be relatively healthy if you take care of yourself.  That’s the only objective I have these days.

This blog has really opened my eyes.  I encourage you to put your knee jerk reaction to the concept aside and listen to what she has to say.  Peace feels better than thinness ever could.  http://danceswithfat.wordpress.com/