Let the Dieting Begin!

Earlier this month a friend came over to visit.  She told me that normally she would have brought a baked good, but that, “after all, it is January.”

The Season of the Diet.

Losing weight is surely one of the most common New Year’s Resolutions.  Every year in the weeks after Christmas, TV commercials and newspaper advertising shift from the gifts you were supposed to want to buy to the weight you’re supposed to want to lose: pills to take, programs to follow, gyms to join.

For Bodybuilder Hubby and many other bodybuilding and figure competitors in our area, January is the beginning of contest training season.

I’ve always thought the local contest timing was the best possible.  The biggest contest in our area is usually in April or May.   Competitors can enjoy the holidays like fairly normal people and then start their diets in earnest in January (again, like normal people – only more serious and probably with more success.)

So the competitors get to be in their best physical shape by mid-spring and then spend the entire summer looking hot in a swimsuit.   Then in the fall, they can eat more (as most of us do when the weather gets cooler) and enjoy the holiday meals and treats again.  Perfect.

Except that I know that their diet is pretty extreme.  I’ve seen what my hubby eats.  Lots of real, natural foods – huge salads, chicken, ground turkey, oatmeal.  Very little sugar, salt, fat or other things with flavor.

I don’t think I’ve ever heard Bodybuilder Hubby complain about being hungry when he’s dieting down.  Usually, in fact, he complains because he’s “behind on a meal” and hasn’t had time to eat as much as he’s intended to on any given day. 

What I do notice are the low-carb days.  Bodybuilder Hubby has this pattern of a certain number of low, medium and high-carb days.  On high-carb days it seems as though he could polish off the contents of the fridge.  Low-carb days often mean lower energy, and, on occasion, a Grumpy Hubby.

Last year I overheard a conversation between two female competitors.  One of them was complaining about how no one at her work understood how hard it was to be on her diet, how they just complained about how grouchy she was all the time.

Of course they don’t understand. How could they?

Really, no one knows how you feel except you, and it’s unfair to everyone around you (family, friends, coworkers, etc.) if you expect them be sympathetic because of a diet you’ve chosen to put yourself on.  Give them a break.  You might feel like you’re suffering, but that doesn’t mean everyone around you should too.  Really.

That’s what I wanted to say.  If I had said anything.

It’s hard to be on a diet, hard to get to the gym all the time.  That’s why it’s worth celebrating and cheering for the people who are successful.  When you get up on the stage – or take pictures from the contest to show your coworkers – you can be extremely proud of what you’ve been able to do.

So, to all of you who are competing, here are my two pieces of advice, from the outside looking in:

1) Connect with other people who are competing and who do understand what you’re doing.   You need to be able to gripe and complain on occasion with people who know why it’s all worth it.

2) Keep in mind that every person – every competitor – is different and unique.  Following the exact same diet as someone else does not necessarily mean that you’ll get the exact same results.  Talk with people who know – former competitors, trainers with an understanding of nutrition.  The more information you have, the better you’ll be able to pick out what you think will work best for you.

Good luck!