Sunday, May 6, 2012

Why Play?


The following are direct quotes from the book.

Krista Vernoff; Az Ferguson. The Game On! Diet: Kick Your Friend's Butt While Shrinking Your Own. HarperCollins.
The game empowered me to begin to replace those habits with happier, healthier habits (and still let me have candy sometimes). I played because I’m a workaholic and I needed desperately to do something different—something that prioritized me and my health for once. I’m not gonna lie—the game takes time and energy and at first I thought I didn’t have it to give. But in the end—actually, after only a few days—it was so worth it.

I have a very sneaky mind. I can justify almost any behavior and convince myself it has health benefits. The game teaches and reinforces the body basics you need to make healthy, life-sustaining, weight-dropping, self-esteem-building choices. I played because I have been thin my whole life until this past year when I gained so much weight that I laughed every time I looked in the mirror…I truly did not recognize myself! None of my clothes fit. I tried many diets and only got fatter. The game looked like a lifestyle change not just a fad diet and I was willing to try anything. I lost ten pounds and it has stayed off. In fact I have stayed with the diet and I have lost an additional five pounds. The best thing that came from the game is the fact that my blood pressure has continually gone down. I have cut my medication in half and it is still going down. I look forward to eventually doing away with the medication altogether. The game wasn’t just the answer to my weight problem but it has turned out to be the answer to my health as well. Thanks!
I had become complacent and complacency had led to laziness. I was unable to even imagine a world in which exercise was a daily possibility. The game motivates you to come up with exercise time every day and teaches you how to maximize the time you have.
I had spent years lying to myself about my actual weight. The game asks you to dust off the scale and give yourself all the information. Having all the information is empowering. I play because I am a vain gay man. No, seriously, I play because in my twenties, my body played cruel tricks on me and allowed me to eat whatever donut, fat burger, or fried piece of goodness that my heart desired. But as I entered my thirties and my habits remained the same, I suddenly realized that every extra calorie made an appearance around my once-tiny little waist. So I had to train my body to actually work for me instead of against me. It was extremely tough at first, but let me tell you, I am loving my new thirty-year-old healthy body.
I find dieting boring. The game is fun! I play because left to my own devices I am a lazy, cookie-eating, chip-craving madman with a bicycle tire around my midsection.

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