Sullinger facing heavy burden

One of the things that has always intrigued me about basketball is that it's something to which we can all relate personally.  For many of us, that's never more true than when it comes to the need for weight loss.

The problem is, in weight loss, one size doesn't fit all (in both a literal and figurative sense).  Most people who have had some success in shedding poundage have methods that they recommend to others; but the methods usually work better for some people rather than others.  Just look at the number of published diets out there.

In my case, none of the prescribed diets seemed to work on a long-term basis.  Even when a given diet helped me to lose weight, it failed to help me retain or expand (so to speak) on the weight loss.  My "secret" was serendipity.  Over a couple of years, I have systematically lose a couple of pounds-or-so every month—a total of 30 pounds and counting.

But, a couple of years ago, a routine blood test showed an excess of potassium.  Most people have to watch out for low potassium.  It turns out I have to watch out for high potassium.  So while a lot of people were deliberately heaving up (again, so to speak) on bananas, avocados, potatoes, low-fat yogurt, dried apricots, salmon, etc. in order to increase their potassium levels, I was going in the opposite direction.  I've always been a milk-lover; and, for 25 years, I've never had any milk except non-fat. Now, however, I find that milk is high in potassium, and skim milk is the worst of the worst.  So now I drink fake milk (aka soy or something of the type).

After a couple of months of focus on low potassium, I checked in with the doctor and found that I had dropped so much potassium that my reading was now too low.  So I was told to "cheat" once a day.  Naturally, I found cheating to be a natural course of events, especially since I did it mostly with skim milk.

Concurrently with my potassium loss, my weight registered something like a five-pound drop in those two months.  It turned out that certain foods I limited because of their potassium levels were also high in fats or calories.  So I found myself sneaking in the back door to weight loss.  And it's been working every since.

Moreover, I discovered that, over time, losing weight also shrank my stomach.  So I wasn't so hungry so quickly.  When my wife cooks, I usually eat it all (because it's good and she's really heavily into nutritional food preparation).  But, when we go out to eat, I regularly leave at least half my food on the plate and take the leftovers home to provide another healthy meal.

The reason I wrote about this is to emphasize that, although it's often very difficult—especially for some people—to find both the right process and the right mentality to lose weight, it's highly likely that, for nearly every individual, there's some approach that can work.  And, in Sully's case, a vast array of assistance is readily available and affordable.  I'm sure that, in his mind, he has rationalized with all the usual suspects (the problem is genetic, muscle is heavier than fat, the dog ate my resolve, etc.).  But, for most people, even less than exercise in my opinion, weight loss is a matter of shutting up and eating less volume and fewer bad things.

C'mon Sully,  Be grateful for your talent, and display that gratitude by working your butt off to lose weight.  That way, maybe you won't be so "butt-ugly."  Oh wait.  Maybe you should keep your butt as so as to retain your "basketball weaponry" while losing elsewhere.

Sam

Even if Sullenger has an 'eating disorder' and is not just a lazy eater, it is still his responsibility to do something about his weight if he wants to use professional basketball as the means to feed (pun intended), clothe and house his family for the next couple of generations. I would guess that he is not going to support himself with only his freshman year of education at Ohio State like he can as an NBA player for the next ten years.

What Sully is dealing with is no different than any ADDICT. He has an eating disorder than cannot be taken lightly or dismissed as "his own doing". It iis easy for some to that he just has to stop sugar, pasta, alcohol, whatever. Remember, this is a young guy who will have to come to grips with this problem in his own way. I am sure he is getting advice from all sorts of "experts", but it is a very hard thing for him to deal with.

My heart goes out to him, he kind of sounds like a lost soul right now.
Here is hoping that the right person steps forward with the right diet and exercise program for him that will make his life easier as he moves forward.

I just am commenting because this problem is not just happening to a kid like Sully, it is everywhere.
Rosalie

gyso,

If the "underlying health issue" is related to blood sugar, you're wise to nip it in the bud.  I can testify that it can only lead to bad things.  I'm now blind in the right side of my right eye.  I have enough peripheral vision to drive in Boston traffic, but I may never throw another behind-the-back pass with my left hand to my right side.  Oh wait, I never did that before anyway.

Kidding aside, medication has kept my count in the normal range when I take it every morning.  But there's nothing that can stop one's blood sugar from "spiking" after even the blandest meal.  So it really pays to keep it as normal as possible in the non-eating periods.

The hidden danger is that, in an effort to eat the right foods along with the medication, one can get LOW blood sugar.  For example, my blood sugar plummets overnight, so I have to make sure it's a bit above normal when I go to bed.  I've had three episodes of night time hypoglycemia in my life, including two overseas where I didn't have a kitchen full of immediate antidotes available.

The first was in Athens, Greece, where I had a dream that I was fighting a bunch of hoods, and it turned out I was actually fighting my wife.  Yet still, I didn't wake up.  She called the EMTs. They came, and I kicked one of them in an unfortunate place, and they refused to treat me and left.  She finally called a private doctor, and between them, they got some juice into me, and we wound up taking a long tour that day.

The second was in Paris, where they called the Fire Department, and I wasn't so far gone and fortunately responded quickly to some non-diet Coca Cola.

The third was in our home, where I wound up writhing on the living room floor and kicking a hole in our bedroom door.  The paramedics had to come twice that time.

It turned out that I was OVER-medicated for diabetes.  My doctor cut out 75% of my medication, and things have been great for about four years.  Always in the normal range when I test myself every morning.  No hypoglycemic fits although I've caught myself a couple of times headed in that direction and have eaten protein bars immediately.  (Ingesting sugar is only a quick fix, as you spike up and then way down again.  Protein is the best long-term fix for low blood sugar.)

Regarding weight, my doctor says that exercise is fine, but the number one problem with me was that I was over-eating—especially since I have a bad back and have mobility problems.  n my case, it was the volume of food rather than the types of food.  He convinced me to try eating less at each meal; and, after a few very hungry nights, my body adjusted, my stomach shrank somewhat, and I started losing weight regularly without becoming hypoglycemic.  I generally lose a couple of pounds a month.  I've now lost 30 pounds in about 2.5 years; and, when one loses that gradually, the likelihood is greater that it won't be gained back.  I recall going through a period where I had to convince Sally that I didn't dislike her food just because I wanted less of it, and she's now really into it, inventing meals that are geared to my dietary needs.  She has even become extremely interested in the chemistry of cooking.

Everyone's different, and it sounds as though you've got the right recipe (pun intended) for success in the weight/eating department.  Good luck with it.

Sam