This space normally features conservative political commentary. But something major happened in my life that has nothing to do with politics and I wanted to share it.
On Jan. 16 of this year, I went out to dinner with some friends. And, that night, I found rock bottom under a pile of shrimp and grits, and an enormous slab of carrot cake.
Before dinner, my suit barely fit. After, those buttons deserved a medal. I felt awful — physically, and emotionally. My health was off the rails and I knew it. And I resolved to make a change.
Oh, I had tried to lose weight before. I was a fat kid and a fatter adult, hovering in the 250–275-pound range for years. Once, I drove my weight down to 220 pounds and told people the secret was “run farther, eat less.”
But the weight came back. It always does. You can’t exercise your way out of this. In my experience it’s 95% about your diet, although I did start walking at least 45 minutes a day this year (if you haven’t looked into the concept of a “Shultz Hour,” I highly recommend it).
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I had tried other diets with some short-lived success. I moved down to 194 pounds in 2017, and then watched the scale steadily tick up to 233 pounds the morning after this January’s dinner. Stress, anxiety, social pressures and boredom (more than actual hunger) caused me to eat all the time and I could feel myself heading right back where I started.
But then I began devouring something else — nutritional information. At age 43, I didn’t know squat about food, insulin, sugar, ketones, glycogen, carbohydrates, etc. But I resolved to finally learn, and my research led to several articles and books about intermittent fasting.
The idea seemed crazy at first. How many times had I gone eight hours without eating, let alone 16, 24 or 36? I could probably count them on two hands. But I learned that fasting is no fad — humans have been fasting for millennia.
Today, we are bombarded with advice to eat. Eat more meals to keep up your metabolism. Eat this style or that and watch the pounds fall off. Eat bars. Drink shakes. The common thread in all dieting advice is to eat. Eat all the time!
Our ancient ancestors didn’t eat constantly. They feasted and fasted, not because a book told them to but because food scarcity mandated it. I began to wonder: Did they have it right?
I’ve now read several books on the topic by Dr. Jason Fung and others who calmly and clinically presented the case for intermittent fasting and eating whole, unprocessed foods.
That was 55 pounds ago. I’ve lost weight every single week since Jan. 18 (water weight comes off first and fast), and my body fat went from 26.5% to 16.2%. I hit plateaus from time to time, but I just kept going, always trusting that the schedule would work.
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And it did. I’ve never been lighter, healthier or more in control of my body than at this very moment.
I started by abstaining from food for 16 hours and eating during an eight-hour window. Basically, I skipped breakfast and then ate lunch and dinner. This wasn’t too hard, although the first few days my brain screamed: “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”
Over time I dropped to a six, then four, and now, on most days, a one-hour eating window (the One Meal a Day method). Think of it like weightlifting — you must build up capacity.
When my eating window is closed, I drink water (regular and sparkling), coffee and tea. No artificial flavors and sweeteners. You get used to it, trust me. Seltzer water with lime wedges has become my go-to. I try to eat between 1 and 5 p.m. each day, separating my meals at least three hours from bedtime.
As I took control of my clock, I also finally and fully admitted something that I’ve known for a while but was ashamed to say: I am addicted to sugar. I mostly stopped eating it a couple of years ago, but I routinely fell off the wagon. Carrot cake is a hell of a drug, let me tell you.
That wagon became a runaway murder cart on a steep hill, mowing down every attempt to lose weight and keep it off. I now understand addiction; some researchers think sugar is as bad as illegal drugs.
It is hard to admit ignorance, and even harder to admit addiction. I learned a valuable lesson: It does not make you weak to admit these things. On the contrary, it is a sign of strength to learn about yourself, to grow, and to overcome challenges.
I am addicted to sugar. I don’t want a cookie; I want 10 cookies. But I finally took a stand against the bombardment of sugar and processed foods we face daily, and it has been nothing short of a personal miracle (this is exponentially harder for parents, as having kids puts you in greater contact with a whole bunch of garbage food that nobody needs).
For good measure, I killed off sugar substitutes, too, because they made my cravings worse. When I had moderated my sugar intake before, I just replaced it with artificial sweeteners. But that caused me to want more sweets. Everyone breaks eventually, and I was no exception.
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I don’t skimp on food during my eating window, but I don’t binge. Hunger isn’t a problem; I eat until I’m full. My backyard chickens lay plenty of eggs, and I prepare them with meat, cheese, veggies and anything else I can think of. Make sure you get enough fat and salt, as both are vital to good health.
Fasting methods abound, and my advice is to experiment and find the one that best fits your life. Do your homework. And, like our ancestors, take the feasting part as seriously as you take the fasting. Truly enjoy your meals instead of mindlessly eating.
A good friend joined me on this journey and having a partner helped immensely. He’s lost 35 pounds since January. We share everything about our diets, our eating windows, our hurdles, and even our bathroom schedules. Like most journeys, this one is more fun with a partner along for the ride.
There are benefits beyond weight loss, like enhanced mental clarity, improved gut health, reduced inflammation and improved skin complexion. Your energy levels will spike, contrary to what you might think.
And you will receive the gift of time. Fasting has added productive hours to my day that I would’ve otherwise spent eating, planning to eat or breezing through the kitchen for a handful of this or that. Seriously, count the number of times you eat anything during a day. You will be stunned.
If you read this space regularly, you know I often challenge narratives. Intermittent fasting appealed to the contrarian in me because it challenges the conventional wisdom about eating and nutrition. I like zigging when everyone else is zagging.
It also appeals to my belief in old, country wisdom. I remember being told by my grandmother that “snacks will ruin your dinner!” How right she was.
I’m not a doctor and you should call yours before doing anything. But I think we have a health care crisis because of our diets. Obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease — all can be traced in some part to our western diet.
Earlier this month, after I tweeted about my intermittent fasting regimen to a CNN viewer who asked me about my weight loss, The Courier Journal suggested I share my experience here. I know I’m not alone in this challenge and I hope you will share your thoughts and experiences. Shoot me an email or a tweet and I will gladly respond.
I like hearing the fasting stories of others. Despite our disparate walks of life, you begin to recognize yourself in others and realize we are all fighting similar battles.
If you’ve been looking for answers for years — like I was — I implore you to research intermittent fasting. You will be no worse for the wear, and you just may rediscover something old that could make a huge difference in your life today.
Scott Jennings is a Republican adviser, CNN political contributor and partner at RunSwitch Public Relations. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @ScottJenningsKY.
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