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Dealing with slip-ups on a diet

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Can you have fried chicken while you’re on a diet?

Well, the answer is not as black and white as you might think.

In between the "no" and "definitely not" theories, there are dozens of layers of grey — and it appears Mayor Rob Ford got caught in one of those layers last week, after being filmed buying a bucket of KFC fried chicken.

As someone with weight issues since age 12, I — and I’m sure thousands of others are in the same boat — can certainly sympathize with Rob Ford. Not that I’m an apologist for the portly mayor by any stretch of the imagination. But seriously folks, that silly spectacle of out-and-out crass bullying hiding behind a news story only managed to highlight the absolute pain, stress and anxiety those who have weight issues face on a daily basis.

It doesn’t matter if the fried chicken was for his worship or for his family, but how mortifying - not for the mayor but for the classless, callous individual who thought it of world importance to film Rob Ford buying something considered illicit. Imagine living with this individual.

It may come as a surprise, but, yes, you can accommodate a guilty pleasure when you are on a weight loss regimen. You can have chocolate cake, wine, beer — just about any so-called sin food — while getting yourself into shape.

The key is in moderation and dumping the word "diet" from your vocabulary.

Many will tell you dieting really doesn’t work, but what does is making a life-long commitment that includes sensible eating and exercise. There are no magic bullets, contrary to what you might think.

Sure, there's stomach stapling, diet pills, fat removal, therapy, and tons of professional cheerleaders.

There are also tears, regrets, humiliation, being the brunt of bad jokes, loneliness, clothes that never fit well, and now, with the acceleration of social media, public humiliation. Unbelievable.

I suspect Rob Ford has an emotional eating disorder and there are many who can relate to this — otherwise, why are we so bombarded with commercials in which tubs of ice cream are used to appease everything from broken hearts to hockey playoff losses?

There are literally thousands of reasons why some people drink, smoke or abuse drugs — and you can quit all these vices for a better quality of life.

But you can’t quit eating. You just have to learn to eat properly for the sake of your health.

I recently met a friend I had not seen in a year. I kept staring at her until I finally blurted out, “You look great! How much weight did you lose?”

“Fifty pounds,” she told me. “How?” came the inevitable question.

“It’s taken me a year and I’m happy I did it this way. I took my time, started eating properly, exercising properly and not punishing myself whenever I ate something ‘illegal’ — I just made sure it was part of my whole meal plan.”

Well, makes sense to me. Hope Mayor Ford heard that, too.

One word of advice to the mayor: Get rid of that stupid scale and I guarantee you’ll get rid of the grief and get back on your healthy eating plan.

And don’t sweat it when you fall off the wagon on occasion.

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