Talking to Tim

Who I am and who I want to be:

 

Heard back from Tim the guy at http://tiniertim.com/

What a guy... I copied my response to him here for you to read...  So you know what I said... his words are in red, mine in black...

After reading some of your blog over the weekend, watching “Searching for the Perfect Human Diet”, and reading about different Paleo types of diets, I woke up on Monday and decided to renounce the following:

-          Milk

-          Cheese

-          Really any Dairy

-          Pizza

-          Potatoes

-          Bread of any form

-          Flour

-          Wheat

-          Fried Foods

I figured with a whole foods local to me, and a few other things, I could wing it the first week and just give it the ole college try.  On day four and it has been ok. I am probably doing more of a modified atkins than paleo right now, but working towards the paleo way :D

Let me start by just saying thanks!  This has been a lifelong battle for me and over the last year, I have dealt with a lot of mental issues about how I feel about myself and why.  I am ready for the next step. 

Let’s answer your questions: 

 

* Can you cook for yourself?

A – Yes, I can.  I love to grill, and use my George Forman.  Other than that, I am not a great cook, but am not afraid to try.  Also, sometimes, I get a little lazy at nights, b/c my job is a grind, and I am exhausted when I get home.  So, yes, I can cook, do I always no, but I want to cook more and know what I am eating. 

* Do you have the time and willingness to do food prep or do you need/want to rely on prepared food?

A – Yes, honestly, I have the time.  I spend lots of time on my couch watching TV, that is time that could be spent on me and getting better.  I think to start I should say I “want” to do 50/50, but slowly phase out prepared food. 

* What other issues do you have with food? Any allergies or foods you want to avoid?

A – No food allergies.  I will be honestly, I don’t like fish. Unless it is sushi, which I know is a hurdle for most people trying to get healthy.  The truth is I just don’t enjoy the taste.  Well unless it is breaded and deep fat fried.  Otherwise, I don’t think there is anything else I don’t eat.  I will think about this more just in case.

 

* Do you feel confident in eliminating certain types of foods 100% or do you need some flexibility?

A – I can do it, and I will tell you why.  When I quit smoking and chewing (at different points in my life) I took the cold turkey approach.  I have been a smoker on and off my whole life.  I was always able to stop cold turkey when I wanted to.  Haven’t smoked in over a year now and I don’t plan on it anytime soon. 

Chew was hard.  I stopped chewing at 22 or 23, 15 or 16 years ago.  It was the worse two weeks of my life, but I got over it.

I am a person who does well with on or off.  That being said, I do have a tendency to cut out fast food for 6 months, then eat it every night for a week.  I am not saying I want to eat fast food, but I should probably plan a homemade pizza night, or some sweet tator fries at some point, to at least try and control that want/need. I would rather be strict with like once a month flexibility, I think.   

 

* How do you feel about choosing a low carb or low fat diet?

A – Low carb fine, Potatoes, bread, and pizza are bane of my existence.  Low fat is fine too..  I mean after all as long as I get to eat meat I can be pretty happy.  Doesn’t matter if it is lean or fatty, Meat is Meat and I am carnivore. 

* Do you live alone?

No, I do have a roommate who has a dog.  She the roommate is very into the paleo move.  She has her own dietary issues, has pushed paleo for a while, and is excited in trying to do a paleo movement with me. 

* Will you please send me an average or typical day's meal plan?

A – Day  I am at my worst 50% of the time:

Breakfast: two egg McMuffins

Lunch: BBQ pork with sauce, BBQ Brisket w sauce, French fries, onion rings

Snack: Specialties cookies

Dinner: McDonalds – double QPC w/ cheese, two large fries, large coke, and a double cheeseburger

Day when I am at my best”

Breakfast – smoothie green, w/ oats, almond milk, kale, spinach, berries

Lunch – three pork tacos

Snack: fruit or dried nuts

Dinner – two burger on forman, baked fries, lots of BBQ sauce and may

The last few days:

Breakfast – egg and ham ommie

Lunch – burger patty w/ veggie fixins 0r gyro meat w veggies – side salad or butternut squash

Snack – cashews

Dinner – pork and quacamole bowl

 

* Have you signed up for MyFitnessPal? Will you do it and send me a friend request @TinierTim?

No, I have no idea what MyFitnessPal is but I will look it up and sign up. 

 

Generally speaking, I recommend the following cursory advice to start and I can also give you ideas for meal plans based on your answers to the previous questions:

 

* Get rid of the bad food from your house.

A - Done, we don’t have a lot there.  We don’t keep junk food in the house.

* Drink a lot of water. The conventional wisdom is 8 glasses a day is healthy but the truth is that there is 0 scientific evidence supporting this factually. The truth is that I drank a TON of water because it made me feel full so I could eat less and drop weight.

A – I drink two liters of water before, I ever leave the house.  First thing I do when I get up, drink two liters.  Then drink at least two more during the day.  I have drank as many as 7, but at 6 and 7 liters I just felt bloated all day. 

* Eat raw veggies when you feel snack and keep them pre-cut to avoid laziness making you reach for something else. If Baby carrots cost an extra $0.50 a pound and that keeps you from reaching for Tortilla Chips, spend the money. Take the money you’re saving from not eating out anymore.

A – This can be done.  I am getting a new office at work soon and get my own fridge to keep things in… the fridges are work are disgusting and I can’t eat anything out of them.

* Stay busy. Many of us eat out of boredom. Cut TV and take up some hobbies to get your mind off of eating time. Make it a physical hobby and you’re killing two birds with one stone.

A- Guilty here.  I would say of my extra 260 lbs, 100 is boredom.  The other is stress.  I have a stressful job, it has gotten better, I recently changed roles, and I love my job for the first time in 8 years.  My issue is my number 1 hobby is writing.  So that is a sitting thing. However, I also love to walk and find myself the most creative when I am walking.  Give me some AC/Dc and a walk and I will create lots of things in my mind. 

* Pack a lunch and avoid having to decide what to eat on the fly. I packed my lunch for Thanksgivings and Christmases. It kept me from binging. Call ahead to your host and they’ll understand.

A – I am spending Xmas and Thanksgiving alone this year.  I did that on purpose.    I can’t go back to Indiana right now b/c of my new job, plus I feel too fat to travel, and two I need to focus on me right now.  My plan is to get food for both days from WF and make sure it is stuff that is good for me. I will avoid stuffing, mash, pies, candies, cakes, etc…  

Packing lunch is my least favorite thing to do.  I am not saying I won’t do it and or can’t.  I have a buddy at work who is very supportive of me and we go to places where we can get paleo type stuff.  However, I know that in the long run I have to do less eating out. So, ideally, I would slowly but surely cut the eating out down and pack more lunch. 

I love  Weight Watchers. I’m a huge fan of their practical approach to eating, although I didn’t use their program to lose weight. I loved studying nutrition and getting into biohacking on myself to learn what worked best for me. A program like Weight Watchers eliminates the need to make decisions because you are dealing with their budget point system, which is cool. I love that you’re a triathlete, very cool. Running the Wildflower triathlon was one of the best experiences of my life.

A – the truth.  The real truth is I go to WW b/c it is the only place that I can get weighed b/c of how fat I am.  I like the idea of a lifestyle change, but I am not married to WW.  Honestly, I would rather not count anything.  Have a list of things I can and can’t eat and work from there. 

Wildflower you are a better man than I, I wouldn’t do it just b/c of the camping aspect, my roommate is going to try and do the 70.3 there next year.  I will do a 70.3 someday, but it won’t be after camping out :D  I have done several tri’s, I want to believe I was the worlds fattest triathlon.  I should try to get into the book of world records.  I have done Pacific Grove at least five times… 08, 09, 10, 11, 12.  Sprint in 08, Sprint in 09, Sprint in 10, Double downed in 2011 and did the Olympic on Saturday, and Sprint on Sunday, and then did the swim and walk on the oly in 12 and did the sprint tri in 12.  I did a swim/walk also at lavaman in 2013, but I was 460 by that point and my body couldn’t take it anymore.

I love to swim.  I am a fish.  I feel more comfortable in the water than anywhere else.  90,350 meters is what I swam Q4 of last year, I want to get back to that and then eat to back it up. 

Someday I will do what no one ever thought I could… someday I will do 140.6 and be an ironman… I know it is in my destiny… I want to do it b/c everyone who looks at me and thinks I am lost.  I am not lost, I am found.  I am awesome… I can will do this… My path was just different… plus the Game o Triathlon is a drug that I love taking. 

Yes my new friend let’s do this together!