Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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Mind Over Body Weight

The subconscious mind operates literally, so...
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I may have accidentally "psyched" myself into losing weight. I don't know for sure, and therefore this will definitely qualify as Half Baked.

I've never been significantly overweight, and have spent most of my life qualifying as "slim". In the last decade or two, though, I did acquire a few extra pounds. My height is about 187cm and my weight got up to about 97kg, maybe 5-10kg more than ideal.

In the past year or so my weight has dropped by about 15kg, and folks are starting to claim I'm skin-and-bones. I **feel** fine, though. I haven't been doing lots of exercise. When I'm hungry I eat, and I generally don't think about limiting quantity. I do think about quality, though, so my diet includes lots of veggies, and relatively smallish amounts of "junk food".

Anyway, what happened? I think it started with a joke....

Before getting to that, I need to mention that in the Imperial system of measuring units, still used in the USA where I live, we think about "pounds" of weight more than kilograms of mass. 5 pounds is about 2- and-a-quarter kilograms. For your own dieting purposes, if you are most comfortable with the metric system, you might consider thinking in terms of 2kg (maybe 3 if you are significantly overweight).

One day, after a session in the restroom, which had involved some elimination of solid body waste, I happened to notice I felt a bit more sprightly than before that session. It occurred to me to think of that session as a "quick 5-pound weight-reduction course".

The joking notion recurred, just about every such session thereafter.

Well, it is known that the subconscious mind pays attention to the things you think about, especially when you repeatedly think them. It tends to respond slowly, but surely. What if I had "programmed" myself to actually lose 5 pounds in such restroom sessions? If I didn't **eat** 5 pounds in-between those sessions, weight loss would be inevitable, as the subconscious mind, **fully** in control of what the body can accomplish, scoured it to find mass that could be eliminated!

If I'm right, I need to change my "program", and soon.

But if I'm right, others can do this, too! It might take months of thinking about losing 2 or 3 kilograms at a time, in the restroom, before anything measurable happens. The subconscious mind operates slowly, but surely.

And it costs almost nothing to try. See above? No extra exercise, and no significant restrictions on eating. Just a particular repeated **thought**.

If it works, then eventually others, like myself, will also need a way to turn off the weight loss. Obviously a replacement thought would be appropriate. What thought, exactly? I can't say for sure, since only today did I realize this possible explanation for my weight loss. I have no data regarding whether or not some particular replacement thought will work. But here is what I intend to be thinking, during future restroom sessions:

"This is the way to maintain a perfect body weight."

Vernon, Jun 22 2014

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       The fact that you "feek" too gives me great comfort. I thought I was the only one :-)
blissmiss, Jun 22 2014
  

       typo fixed (thanks!)
Vernon, Jun 22 2014
  

       What the feek?
not_morrison_rm, Jun 22 2014
  

       Brilliant shitting idea, who would have feeked?
blissmiss, Jun 22 2014
  

       //What if I had "programmed" myself to actually lose 5 pounds in such restroom sessions?//   

       If you can crap 5 pounds, at least 70% is probably intestine.
MaxwellBuchanan, Jun 22 2014
  

       As [MB] said. Human feces is only slightly denser than water (on average). A 16 oz bottle, filled with water, is a pound (close enough). If you're putting out five bottles worth during a bathroom visit on a regular basis, I urge you to please see your doctor. Something is seriously wrong.
MechE, Jun 22 2014
  

       Without any easy 2-way form of communications between oneself and one's subconscious mind, it is not always easy to be certain of exactly how the subconscious mind has interpreted something. It is **known** that if you say that something-or-other is 'a pain in the neck' often enough, you can eventually begin to experience real pain in the neck when interacting with that 'something-or-other'.   

       In this case, if 5 pounds of weight reduction is physically impractical, that doesn't mean "weight reduction", independent of some particular quantity, is also impractical. You absolutely **can** call body-waste elimination a "quick weight-reduction course" without being particular about the magnitude.
Vernon, Jun 23 2014
  

       There are a number of causes of unexplained weight loss. Sadly, the majority of them are not good news. Consider a checkup.
MaxwellBuchanan, Jun 23 2014
  

       The problem is that it is possible that the mind can convince the body to do something, but that something still needs a physical explanation. The only possible thing that would result in an increase in waste without a corresponding increase in intake would be a decrease in the efficiency of the digestive system. And while your subconscious could, possibly, be responsible for that, there are many explained causes for it, very few of them good.   

       On the other hand, you mention that you are eating a lot of vegetables, they represent a high bulk item, of which a lot is non-digestible dietary fiber. This material will show up as an increased amount of waste, without a corresponding increase in intake volume (less of the intake can be digested). Also, If this represents a recent change, and the amount is significant, it's not unusual for a sudden increase in fiber to result in a bloated feeling, which would go away when the fiber does, explaining the "sprightly" feeling.
MechE, Jun 23 2014
  

       Vernon, seriously, what Max said. Visit the doctor. Most things today have some kind of treatment, usually one that helps you live and even thrive to an old age.   

       I had the same idea about my great diet, until someone asked me if it's a health issue or a diet. I said "Diet" and he said: "Diet, diet, you don't have to look like the holocaust". Slightly later, I found out at 35 (that's about when the HB started) that I was diabetic.
pashute, Jun 23 2014
  

       I am with Max and pashute 100% on this Vernon. 15 kg in a year is too much if you are over 40 and you are. Don't cash in your whole rainy day fund before you try to figure out why it is so wet.
bungston, Jun 23 2014
  
      
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