Have you ever heard this quote before? It is an proverb about a basic fundamental way of dieting. I think I heard it once in college, but never paid much attention to it. I was in the middle of my dieting struggle when a former colleague and friend, Dan Shook said it to me in the break room at work one morning.
Perhaps it was the way in which he said it to me that made it stick or perhaps I was grasping at some constructive way to complete the diet to end all diets. Regardless, something clicked that day with me and it changed the way I think and diet. However, before we begin on our royal affair I feel I should introduce myself:
Hear, ye, hear ye! I am Mary E. Gober and I have had a diet problem all my life. From an early age I was chubby and I loved to eat. My body seemed to absorb the calories in all foods and pack it in as if I were storing it for winter hibernation. My parents tried to instill good eating habits in me, smart ways to stay fit, but how many children do you know that ACTUALLY listen to their parents? I know I didn't. On top of which I am one of the pickiest eaters I know. I have been quoted saying, “I eat like a five year old.” Most vegetables trigger my gag reflex like a juicy horror film and for 31 years I refused to eat broccoli, but a change was about to happen.
Perhaps it was my cousin's daughter Ana who set up the challenge for me as she ate her steamed-broccoli as I would devour Pirate's Treasure from Fresh & Easy. Perhaps the turning point came when awful photos of me from a Las Vegas trip were published online, or it was the physical I had taken just shortly before it. Nevertheless something got the ball rolling and this is my story, my struggles and how I eventually lost the weight.
I have been on a diet for at least 23 years and sometimes my weight was up, sometimes it was down and sometimes I just didn't care. Sometimes I used a plan, sometimes I didn't. At roughly 205 lbs. in 2002, I got serious about my weight and joined Jenny Craig. It is a good program, but very expensive and only helped me with half the battle of the bulge. After a year of their plan with only a net loss of 50 lbs., a steadily disappearing checking account and very stagnant plateau, I decided I had had enough of Jenny Craig and her tasty lasagna. For about 6 months I managed to keep most of the weight off and maintain my new healthier weight of 155 lbs, but it steadily snuck-up on me. By the summer of 2004, when I auditioned for American Idol, I was starting to take a turn for the worse and I didn't know it. Stress and several life changing events would start to help me pack on what I took off and then some, and in a matter of 5 years, I was the heaviest I had ever been, 235 lbs.
However, it wasn't for a lack of trying. I tried everything I could think of and could afford to get my health in-line, and I even went back to Jenny Craig for my last failed attempt. However, I couldn't afford to stay in their program and went back to fattening up. For reasons I can't recall, my Dr. wanted me to get a physical, and I agreed to it. When I received the results of my physical and found that I was fat, unhealthy and crossing the epic borderline of diabetes –– not good. He recommended me to a Life Coach and told me that my insurance would cover it. My insurance only covered 3 visits, so I stopped going when I couldn't afford to see him. However, the Life Coach had gotten me thinking about how I ate and how I ate my food. I used the basic plan he set up for me as best I could, no major changes. Then Ana looked at me at my Aunt's house with a “oh, really, aren't you a grown-up” face when I said I didn't like broccoli. It was a challenge. So I took a brave step and ate some of my Aunt's steamed broccoli, and suddenly I found it was rather tasty.
I thought that maybe my phobia about broccoli had ended, and I liked it. Well, this was half-true, because I found out I don't like it raw, but I do like it steamed. So I introduced it into my life, and ate broccoli every night for two weeks. I felt good, but the weight still remained, because I hadn't changed other things. Then came Halloween and I went to my friend's Halloween Party dressed as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. WOW! With the advent of the internet, digital camera phones and Facebook, I saw a picture that would change my life: Me, in my Dorothy costume, fat as I had ever been.
So I decided around November 2009 that I would work out a plan. I would take my chubby butt and do what I could, with what I had learned, and get rid of the weight. When I look at the big picture, I had actually lost a great deal of weight from the beginning of November to the end of December, but I wasn't doing a good job of tracking it and I think I wasn't taking care of my body the way I should. I used meal replacing shakes for breakfast followed by a light lunch and then a big dinner, because I was starving by the time I got home. I reached a small plateau of 206 lbs. around the end of 2009. I had made a pack with myself to go on “the diet to end all diets,” as a New Year's Resolution. A week later, Dan Shook recited that proverb “Eat like a king for breakfast, a prince for lunch, and pauper for dinner,” and it changed my life. Something clicked that day and I changed the way I eat. I told myself I would do it for two weeks and if I saw no significant progress I would try something else. It didn't happen overnight of course, but it happened over the weekend. Within 3 days of starting the Royale Diet™, I lost 3 lbs! WOW! But how long would this last, I wondered.
At the start of the Royale Diet™, I was only counting calories, fiber and protein. I decided to add sodium, sugar and eventually fat. The Royale Diet™ approach led me to ask the right questions about my body and health:
- How does one burn fat?
- How many calories should I have?
- How much fiber and protein should I be getting?
- Am I eating too much salt?
- What does salt do to my body?
- Should I be eating more potassium?
- What does green tea do for me?
- How much fructose and glucose sugar should I be eating?
I laugh most of the time when I read food lables, because most foods are LOADED WITH SODIUM! Sure the calories, carbs and trans-fats are “low” when compared to non-diet foods, but the sodium is almost just as high or even higher than non-diet foods. Most of these products have 440-900 mgs of sodium in one meal. Sure that is less then say a pasta dinner from a Italian restaurant, but you should be keeping your sodium intake between 1500-2300 mgs a day, the sodium amounts in these “diet meals” can quickly add up to more of this.
The thing these companies don't factor in is the other things you are going to eat in addition to this meal. Everyone should eat three meals and three snacks a day, eating every 3 hours. If you were to eat 6 items from the “diet entrees” found in your frozen food section of your local grocer, with an average of 400 mg of sodium in them you would ingest over 2400 mg a day.
Did you know to balance 2400 mg of sodium a day, you need to ingest 4800 mg of potassium a day? Chances are you didn't, because most of these “diet food”companies don't tell you this. They don't have to and most of them don't even list potassium on their products because they don't want you to see how imbalanced their “diet foods” really are.
Here's a tip: if you reduce your sodium to 1500 mgs a day, you will no longer have to fear calories. Your big challenge will be getting enough calories to keep your metabolism moving, but keeping your sodium low. So next time when you are selecting that “diet” frozen dinner, look at the back and see how much sodium is in there. Chances are you will be surprised and mortified at the same time.
The solution is to go as organic as possible. Vegetables, fruits and foods that are not processed are your best bet, but chances are you are like me and you don't like most vegetables and fruits. Chances are you have a day job, loads of responsibilities, little free time to work out, and sleep. The last thing you want to think about is preparing 6 healthy meals loaded with vegetables and fruits. You just want to select a frozen “diet” meal from your grocer’s freezer, pop it in the microwave and eat it in peace without thinking about how much sodium is in it, because after all it is only 1 point from Weight Watchers, so that means it's good, right? Well, that is not the whole truth.
If Weight Watchers and other programs are working for you, then good for you, but remember to stick with them. But if they're not, you might want to rethink the way you eat. You might want to start to balance your frozen “diet” dinners with a few more fruits and vegetables. Cut back on the salt whenever you can and drink plenty of water. I can't stress this enough: DRINK PLENTY OF WATER!!!!
What about Diet Royale™?
Now
you are wondering about my diet plan. How
much sodium am I allowed to ingest to eat like a King at breakfast, like a
Prince at lunch, and like a Pauper for dinner? Answer: 1500-2300 mg a day. When
you are giving yourself the royal treatment and start organizing your foods,
you will want to weigh in every factor: DON'T
JUST COUNT THE CALORIES. You need to be looking at the big picture. It is okay to have your calories, sodium and fats heavier at breakfast then you do at dinner time. They say breakfast is the most
important meal of the day, then why skimp on it.Breakfast should be a crowning affair and it should be filled with proteins, fibers, potassium and good fats! However, on all accounts keep your salt, sugars and bad fats as low as you can, without too much worry because breakfast is where you are setting up your day. Breakfast should wake you up, fill you up, and get your brain moving. Treat your snacks the same way Large, Medium, Small, or as I came to call them: eat like a Queen for the first snack, a Princess for the second snack and like a Peasant for the third snack. Now I can preach all I want but if you don't see the ideal day, you won't understand:
QUEEN
MARY'S DAY – The Royale Menu Planner
|
||
Time
|
Event
|
Calories/Sodium/Fiber/Protein/Potassium
|
4:30 a.m.
|
Waking:
|
I am not hungry
for 2 hours, so I eat at work.
|
6:30 a.m.
|
KING BREAKFAST
|
0/0/0/0/0
|
8:30 a.m.
|
QUEEN SNACK
|
0/0/0/0/0
|
10:30 a.m.
|
PRINCE LUNCH
|
0/0/0/0/0
|
1:30 a.m.
|
PRINCESS SNACK
|
0/0/0/0/0
|
4:30 a.m.
|
PAUPER DINNER
|
0/0/0/0/0
|
6:30 a.m.
|
PEASENT SNACK
|
0/0/0/0/0
|
8:30 a.m.
|
8 hours of Royal Beauty Sleep
|
A minimum of 8
hours of sleep
for healthy weight loss. |
The Royale Menu™ of the Royale Diet™ is a great starting point. With each meal you reduce the calories, sodium, fiber, protein and potassium as you go throughout your day – but making sure the amounts add up to what you need, don’t skimp. The greatest aspect about the Royale Diet™ is flexibility. Eat what you want; so long as you stay within the parameters you set up for yourself. Food is like a drug and your body will develop a tolerance to it if you eat the same exact things every day, and your body will stop making the progress you are trying to make. It is a good idea to have a week's worth of varied menus which you can mix and match at any time. Be sure to allow yourself at least one cheat day a week or on a bi-weekly basis. All work and no play, makes for a mean ruler! This should be fun! The foods you are eating should give you happiness and energy. Remember you are Royalty, and there is no reason to flog yourself for slipping up or making mistakes along the way, because Kings and Queens do not make mistakes, everything they do is right, because you rule!
So what if your lunch has higher sodium than your breakfast. That’s okay for a day, but don’t make it a habit. As long as your totals: total calories, total sodium, total fiber, total protein and total potassium, all meet your daily requirements, then you will do well. Depending on what you eat, your totals are going to fluctuate. However, try to maintain that Breakfast is the heaviest in calories and sodium then the rest of your meals for that day. The best way to think about it is a pyramid. You start your day at the bottom with the largest base, and as you work towards the top, the levels get smaller and smaller. In order to be ruler of all you want to reach the top of the pyramid. If the pyramid was heavier at the top than the bottom or middle, it would be lopsided. We don’t want that. So now you understand the basics of the diet or as I like to think of it, a new way of eating and looking at food.
Mind Over Fatter
Now, it is time to look at what is going to keep your crown on? When it comes
to successful and healthy weight loss, you're mind has to be in it to win
it too! If your mind isn't ready or treated fairly you are not going to be
able to lose or keep the weight off. Mind
is King, Fatter is the Opposition. Since you rule, then it is clearly Mind
Over Fatter. I found that whenever my diet challenges got rough, and I
thought of this title, all I had to say to myself to get my mind and body
beyond the challenge was, “Remember
Mary, it's mind over fatter, and you rule!”This simple thought was enough for me to hold my imaginary scepter with stature and vigilance, and readjust my crown so that I was back on the path to success without fear or worry. It became a way to empower my will power like I never dreamed possible. In the next few chapters I will bestow upon you, the tools and techniques I used to obtain my regal stature as Ruler of my mind and body! I will share with you the truths and the lies I have uncovered and provide you with ways for you to make your healthy reign supreme!
Disclaimer Time
I am not a licensed Doctor of any kind,
nor am I a trained dietician. I am not a spokesperson for any product I
personally endorse, or condone. I have no medical training or experience. I am
a graphic designer with a weight problem, and this, the Royale Diet™, is
what I did to take charge of my life and my health. I will be as honest with
you about my weight, practices, tools and techniques as possible. As of the day
this was composed, April 24, 2010, I had lost 52 lbs. since early November 1, 2009,
and I was only half-way to my goal.
I highly recommend that before you start this and any diet regiment, that you
speak to a licensed and train health care professional, to make sure this or
any other plan is right for you. I
am not out to condemn, attack or discredit any “diet” product or company except
to say this: they need to be telling you
more, and you have the right to know what you are eating and drinking. It is my
wish that maybe, just maybe the diet companies will take it upon themselves to
educate their consumers with accurate and truthful information to help everyone
maintain a healthy life filled with vitality. If they can't educate you, please educate yourself. Ask them
questions. Most of the diet food companies have websites to promote their
products. If potassium isn't listed on
their product, ask them. If they don't know or are able to tell you,
complain and demand to know. Blog, Facebook or Twitter about it. Be your own
revolution! Your nobility is yours to have if you are willing and wanting to
take it and make it your own.
“How did the nobles become noble in the first place? They took it! At a tip of the sword!”
— William
Thatcher, from the movie 2001 "A Knight's Tale."
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