In a country where some two-thirds of residents are overweight, Qatar has been searching for ways to combat its obesity epidemic. Medical experts and athletes are constantly weighing in on the fight, but one voice that’s rarely heard is that of an overweight person trying to get a handle on his/her health. In this weekly series, one Qatar resident gets personal about her struggle to lose weight. Read N.A. Rashid’s previous entries here.

I recently heard a beautiful saying that goes: “I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.”

I am still trying hard to be successful in achieving my goal of weight loss. Week three has passed and I find myself in the middle of a line, with the end being either success or failure. My determination to lose weight is still alive. I have searched and tried different ways that were helpful or unhelpful for the last two weeks.

My confession for week three is that we have celebrated the first birthday of my son Saad by holding a party at a restaurant. I ate all my favorite foods there, and possibly overate because I thought that I would not get this chance again.

My position in the middle of the line indicates that I have a 50-50 chance of succeeding (or failing). I discussed last week that despite the various weight-loss techniques I’ve used such as exercise and determination, my biggest problem was food. I can’t escape from food and I am emotionally connected to it.

This week, I identified that it is crucial I plan my diet carefully. My original diet plan of eating only 500 to 800 calories a day was wrong – it pushed me more toward food.

I attended a university lecture last week in which my professor mentioned the importance of eating small frequent meals in order to keep one’s metabolism going. She said that fast metabolism helps you lose weight.

Small plates

This has made me think that weaning myself from food for long periods of time slows down my metabolism. Small frequent meals could also satisfy my taste buds and reduce cravings.

So this week, I am going to try changing my diet plan. Along with consuming healthy food, if unhealthy food makes an appearance, I may take it in small portions to satisfy my taste buds. I am not going to wean myself off of anything completely.

Weight loss is not about numbers. I believe it is about changing lifestyles. One can never successfully be weaned off of food for a lifetime. It is about making the right choice to consume a healthy and balanced diet to not overeat.

I am thankful to my husband who has been my motivator, supporter and advisor during this hard time. He has made for me a new balanced diet plan that looks very helpful.

Thoughts?

Credit: Top photo by Gideon; second photo courtesy of N.A. Rashid