Restricting calories may restrict happiness

There are many different strategies for losing weight, but almost all of them, unfortunately, involve backing away from the buffet.

- Melvin Durai

You can’t eat as many calories as you want and still lose weight, unless you are a world-class athlete or spend so much time at the gym that FedEx delivers your packages there.

Legendary swimmer Michael Phelps, while training for the Olympics, woke up each day and consumed three fried egg sandwiches and three chocolate-chip pancakes. And that was just his breakfast appetizer!

After that, he wolfed down a five-egg omelette, three sugar-coated slices of French toast and a bowl of grits. Then he drank two cups of coffee, looked at his watch and said, “It’s almost time for lunch.”

His lunch and dinner included massive amounts of pasta and pizza, pushing his daily consumption above 10,000 calories. Phelps’ diet gave him lots of energy, helping him win 28 Olympic medals, but it also resulted in severe food shortages around the world.

Well, Phelps alone wasn’t responsible for those food shortages. It was all those aspiring Olympians trying to emulate him, consuming 10,000 calories, jumping into a pool and struggling to stay afloat. At least the life guards got lots of practice.