Sunday, April 02, 2006

fat facts

fact #1

it's been scientifically proven that women have greater cravings for high-carb food because they have lower serotonin levels than men. serotonin is an opiate neurotransmitter in the brain that relays a "happy feeling" and helps in inducing sleep, calming anxiety and relieving depression. the intake of carbohydrates actually triggers the release of serotonin, which explains why women are more likely than men to turn to comfort food like chips, pastries and doughnuts when they feel in need of a mood-boost.

fact #2

humans seek after and consume fatty foods because we are programmed to do so. when humans first evolved into, erm, humans, they were hunters and gatherers who had to travel extensively and go without food for days. the body's fat stores were therefore essential in the survival of early humans because emergency energy sources were necessary should there be a lack of food available. it is no surprise then that humans have evolved to find fatty foods tasty and desirable.

it is only in recent years (recent in relation to the whole history of the human race) that humans have developed a lifestyle that enables us to acquire food easily and not have to take part in much physical activity to survive. the result is lots of fatty food at our disposal and no necessary exercise that will work it off. and the rest, as they say, is obesity.

fact #3

i've been an absolute pig in the last couple of weeks. the stress hasn't been helping much. i've resorted to having instant noodles for breakfast, snaffling almost an entire box of ferrero rocher, gobbling down tonnes of li'l fried food snacks and picking up the bad bad habit of having supper...just to make myself feel better.

the good news is, i'm not desperate enough to start sticking a toothbrush down my throat everytime i eat something sinful. the bad news is, the reading on the scale is on the constant rise and although i am not one to become depressed because i'm packing on the pounds faster than you can say "haagen daz strawberry icecream rocks!", i am worried that i might not be able to find the willpower to stop eating and start getting active again.

it'd be so so easy to make excuses out of facts #1 and #2. i'm trying hard not to do that, but i need some kind of motivation, fast.

in moments like this, i half wish i were back in jc; 3 periods of pe with a tough pe tutor a week, a napfa test to pass, a weight target to keep in order to avoid the taf club, no money to buy snacks, a 20-minute walk to the supermarket, and a hill to climb up everytime i return from college...situations that force me to get some exercise. situations that i am finally free from now that i'm living in my comfy home, driving to class in my comfy car.

gah. i'm supposed to be svelte for summer!

lishun at 7:47 PM

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