I don't know about you but I grew up in a home where we were "compelled" to clean our plates.
Steve v0.8: "May I be excused"
Mom: "You haven't finished your pork renderings and chicken fat"
Steve v0.8: "Ah Mom. Do I hafta?"
Mom: "There are children starving in (insert fictitious country prefix here)-opia and they would love to have even the crumbs from your plate."
Steve v0.8: "Can I mail them the whole thing?"
Mom (scowling): "Hurry and finish or you won't get any dessert!"
Steve v0.8: "Yes Mom."

Even at the age of eight I was aware of starving children in other countries and I would have given them my portion had it been within my means. Hey, I encourage everyone to help in those efforts even to this day. Sally Struthers was one effective pitch-woman for starving children and really curbed my appetite for late-night infomercial-laden television.

The thing is that I was conditioned to clean my plate and whether it was reverence to starving children or for a slab of double-fudge wacky cake, it is a habit I carry with me now. I have to clean my plate. It's just how I was raised and it's something I continue to do unconsciously. Thanks, Mom!

As I grew so did my appetite and cleaning my plate really wasn't a problem so much. Rarely did I miss dessert and I saved a ton of money on postage to (insert fictitious country prefix here)-opia. Turns out that type of conditioning doesn't work so well when you're trying to lose weight.

How about using smaller plates? The idea struck when I was shopping for a camping trip. Paper plates come in a variety of sizes and the smaller ones are cheaper. Easy choice for a tightwad like me, right? We used the smaller plates. I still cleaned my plate (thanks again, Mom! I'm kidding about this; not Mom's fault.) but I ate less. Why not do that at home as well? I'm not talking about commandeering my daughter's tea set but rather switching out our daily-use, American-excess, feeding-trough-sized platters for something a little smaller.

I was at a local restaurant for their lunch buffet (certainly not as economical for me as it once was) and notice that their plates are quite a bit smaller than the ones we have at home. Hmm. Interesting, thought I. The restaurant was probably trying to limit portions at their all-you-can-eat buffet. Hmm. (gears are turning now) Smaller plates equal smaller portions. (porch light is on and brain is pulling into the driveway) Smaller portions equal less calories and fewer calories equal fewer pounds on my tuckus. (lights are on and brain walks in the door) So, smaller plates equal smaller fanny (brain is tired and now distracted by something shiny)!

Is it worth the trip to a restaurant supply store to do something like that? I'm tempted.

I spent my workout pumping iron in the midst of a mental spank-fest. The scale, you see, is my friend. Not the kind of sycophantic friend that tells me look great even when I have a booger on my chin and spinach in my teeth but the kind of friend that smacks me upside the head when I mix prints with plaid and flat out tells me, "No, it's not the jeans that makes your ass look fat- it's your ass."

This morning my friend the scale reminded me that slacking-off doesn't shed pounds and brownies aren't health food. I'm grateful for the scale no matter how grim the news- it's an early warning device, letting me know what's happening before something a little less friendly chides in... the mirror.

#29 - Weigh In Regularly

Not necessarily every day but often enough to change course if what I'm doing isn't working.

#30 - I Ask Again, "Do These Pants Make My Ass Look Fat?"

No, eating too many brownies makes my ass look fat. True-dat! Note to Steve: "Cut back on the brownies."

#31 - Fast Food? Fuhgeddaboudit!

We Americans have the best fast food in the world- and that ain't just my patriotism showing. Empires and an obesity epidemic have been built on it and testify to its' world supremacy. Salute foreigners, we rock! Now I'm not saying that fast food barons of capitalism are to blame for making my ass measurable in axe handles (we all know that fast food doesn't make people fat; eating too much fast food makes people fat), what I'm saying is that for me, I'm better off staying away from it entirely.

#32 - Speed Kills Weight Loss

We all know that fast food is generally jammed full of fat, carbs, and Sodium. Wolfing it down like some kind of Velociraptor adds insult to the dietary injury. Eating slowly lets the body convince the brain that it's being fed. The result- I feel full even though I've eaten less. Who knows, it could have saved the dinosaurs.

#33 - Reducing Intake Is More Effective Than Increasing Activity In The Short Term

OK, decision time. I'm at the order counter of my favorite fast food place deciding whether or not to spring for the 59-cent super-size upgrade. What do I do? WHAT DO I DO?

Walk away! There's no way I going to do enough reps at the gym to balance out the equation. It's exponentially easier to exercise freedom of choice and avoid a 1,000 calorie mistake than try to work it off in the gym.

It's not my fun day.

I actually like Mondays. It's the day I get back to the gym after two days off. I get to check my progress on the scale. I get back to the challenges and opportunities of work. I, well, you know the drill.

I stepped on the scale today and discovered I had lost a little over half a pound since Friday. That is definitely not a bad thing considering that our garden is really starting to put out now and I went a nuts with the figs and salsa over the weekend.

Since I started down this road, I've come to appreciate a number of different foods and flavors. Peanut butter has become one of my favorites treats now- whereas before, I really couldn't stand it- not even in a Reese's cup. Celery too has become a favorite, and the two together? Forget about it! Brocolli? Superfood! Plain yogurt? Awesome! The list goes on.

I believe what has truly helped are the associations I've come to make with certains foods. I think about all the misery being fat has caused me over the years and how it truly has made me feel. Then I mentally and emotionally make the connection between overeating- and especially overeating things like sweets, pizza, fast food, and the like- really acknowledge the pain.

No more will I pig out on pizza or fast food; never again will I ask for that second enormous hunk of cake or bowl of ice cream, never a second pile of spaghetti or lasagne, and never, ever, will I agree to a super-sized anything. It's just too painful.

On the other side of the coin are the rewards of a healthy lifestyle; the pointer on the scale moving counter-clockwize, fitting into a pair of pants I haven't worn in years, climbing a set of stairs without feeling winded, seeing the difference in the mirror, and just feeling BETTER. The road to health is fantastic.