Rick The Stick – The Webcomic

Good morning!

Ideally, you’re having a good week and you’re looking for RTS to give you a little shot of something to help you over the hump – RIGHT?

Regardless, I’m gonna roll right now into the Rick the Stick Diet talk. Why? Because it’s cool – everyone’s doing it! Personally, I’ve lost nearly 40 pounds in under 4 months.

What’s that you say? You don’t know anyone on the Rick the Stick Diet? Hmmmm… Well that makes me think of two things. First, I wonder what circles you run in. You don’t look like the troll type, so I’ll rule out the underworld. I’ll have to give this more thought – so we’ll get back to that. Second, if no one you know is on it – be the first! WOOOHOOO! “Let’s face it. You’re a tub of goo and you need to shape up!” Don’t get offended – see the quotation marks? I was talking to myself right there and basically that was the phrase that kicked the diet into motion. Well, that breathing heavy to bend over to tie my shoes – WHILE SITTING DOWN. And my over-sized clothes becoming increasingly tighter. Be the first and tell EVERYONE. Your family, your friends, your co-workers, the homeless guy that follows you, the grocery store cashier – everyone. If not about the diet, how about a little love for the comic?

Enough pandering – moving on.

To recap last week’s post: Water. Drink plenty of it. You’re most likely not hungry all the time, you’re thirsty. Learn to tell the difference. Oh and kick diet sodas (all soda) to the curb (as a former “addict”, I’ll get more into soda in the future).

Today, we’ll look at eating. I know what you’re thinking “well duh”! And you’re right. Some people just do it better than others – and it shows. You see, I was to the point where a large pizza and 10 wings was a good meal. And I would demolish that in no time. I actually ate a three pound burger in twenty minutes once – after a side salad. That’s a THREE pound burger. Not the world’s biggest, but you shouldn’t be able to cram that much beef into your pie-hole in less time than it takes to cook it.

So what am I talking about? Well, it’s portions. More so, smaller portions. Now I may be dumb, but I’m not stoopid and I’m not suggesting someone goes from a three pound burger to a 180 calorie Lean Cuisine Fart Knocker starting tomorrow. If you’ve tried that, you know it won’t last very long – both the diet and the “meal”. You’ll be looking at the cardboard box it came in as something tasty after a couple of days. Ease into it. Start with giving yourself a little less at each meal. Instead of ordering a meatball sub, get a chicken sandwich. Instead of getting it on a white bun, ask for whole wheat. Instead of slapping on the mayonnaise, use only a little.

It eventually leads to you realizing – you don’t need it. Don’t get me wrong – in your “mind” you’ll miss it – and it’s hard (REALLY hard) to fight the cravings – but your body won’t. Your body isn’t asking for all that food – your mind is. One way I’ve found to beat my “hungry brain” is that when you’re eating – slow down. Let your body catch up. Your mind will be occupied with the food you have in your hands but your body will eventually let you know you’ve had enough.

There’s a HUGE difference between my sane brain and my hungry brain. I’ve discovered that I am EXTREMELY weak when I have food in front of me. I will consume whatever is there. Can’t stop – hungry brain beat out sane brane every time. BUT…overall I have an advantage. My hungry brain wins the battles – SANE BRAIN WINS THE WAR. I’ve learned that I can control hungry brain by portioning my food when I’m not hungry (or “sane”). It’s hard to do in a restaurant – very hard. But it can be done.

For instance, my wife is literally half my size. She’s been eating healthy for as long as I can remember – and she’s tiny. Me? Not so much, but hey we’ve already established that and I’m working on it! Anywho – my wife and I get Asian food. I was chowing down a very tasty General Tsao’s Chinese Chicken platter while she was eating some Thai Panang Tofu Curry – with brown rice. Mine was rife with sweet and sour and something that resembled deep fried chicken. She portioned half her order into a container for lunch later during the week. I scarfed down everything.

Curious, one day I ordered the Panang Tofu Curry with brown rice. It was great and I scarfed it down. The next time, I ordered it, I put half in a container, but left it on the counter (where I could see it) in case I didn’t have enough. Now, I’m to the point where I can eat half an order and not even think about scarfing down the rest. It’s a great, great feeling.

That all being said – I’m no angel. I’m not perfect – and I know this. That’s why I’ve allowed myself and escape day. Friday’s I reward myself by getting whatever I want to eat. It’s been great and I’m slowly even reducing what I eat on those days – UNINTENTIONALLY!!! About six weeks ago, I had a full meatball sub AND a stromboli. The next two Friday’s I ate at the world’s greatest burger joint “Five Guys Burgers and Fries” – having two double burgers and fries. * Double burgers are actually called just burgers there – regular burgers are called Jr. Burgers – and I don’t think I can bring myself to order a Jr. Burger). I also split the fries with someone. So you see – sometimes you have to let hungry brain win out. That will help sane brain win the war and your waistline get smaller.

That’s a helluva lot – hopefully you’ve made it this far. As a side note, I’ve withheld using or referring to “insane in the membrane” intentionally.

Thanks for dropping by!
Ken