So there’s a misconception (and assumption) that some people have made about me and what I do that’s kind of annoying and honestly rather infuriating. Some people seem to have the need to lecture me about what I eat and my weight.
First off, it’s not appreciated. Comments like ‘you’re going to die,’ ‘this bad thing is going to happen to you’ and the most recent (and rather inane) ‘I don’t like your shirt.’
First, I don’t eat every single bowl of noodles you see in it’s entirety. In the last couple of months, I’ve gone down to eating about one instant noodle every two weeks and sometimes not even that. Moreover, I get exercise and am on a healthy diet. I’m losing weight and feeling healthier by the day.
It’s tough changing everything you do as far as eating when you’re overweight (or underweight I’m sure). I’ve worked on it for years with little success, and generally instant noodles haven’t been at the center of it. I ate a lot of pizza, ice cream, pasta and white sauce – you know, the easily accessed American super-sized things that are almost inescapable here in the states. When my doctor said I had high cholesterol on top of my weight, I decided to listen to him and do something about it. I take vitamins, track literally everything I eat, and most recently am able to get good regular exercise (being a stay at home dad with two small children and being legally blind makes that very hard). At the end of this post I’ll let you know exactly what I do.
Granted, the folks who comment in a negative manner are far and few between; I’ve gotten some of the nicest, most uplifting comments from people over the past few years – and really appreciate them. I didn’t expect the whole ‘I’m going to try some instant noodles and give my opinion on how they taste’ thing to take off the way it has, but it’s been a lot of fun and the community surrounding it has been a major part of why I do what I do and frankly, how I do it, so thank you.
Unfortunately, some comments aren’t as nice. At the beginning, they did hurt a lot. I would read them and doubt what I did, feel poorly about myself and get depressed. But I learned rather quickly how to take them in, laugh about them and chuck them in the mental trash can. Garbage in, garbage out as they say.
I also get comments about shirts I wear on Instant Noodle Recipe Time or other videos here and there. I’m not a fan of the current administration and you’ll see me wearing an impeach shirt here and there. If you don’t like it, that’s totally fine. But telling me not to talk about politics or wear a different shirt – it’s NOT going to happen. I can talk about whatever I like! So can you! But I’m just going to delete your comments from here on out – they’re not necessary. I should note I love talking politics – especially with people with different viewpoints than mine. I don’t know when it became a ‘don’t talk about things others don’t agree with’ kind of world, but if you disagree with me, I don’t hate you; and I’m not going to try to change your mind. I’m not an angry or hateful person. However, I’m not a big fan of those who try to assert their insecurity about what they believe in upon me and demand I change who I am for them. Not going to happen.
I guess what I’m saying is don’t try to give me negative or lecture-style comment about my weight; it just make me look at you as an insecure individual who doesn’t have the wherewithal to deal with the world without having to step on others dreams as some kind of perverse self-therapy.
Anyways, so what am I doing to lose weight you might be wondering. Well, first I have an app on my phone called myfitnesspal. You can track everything you take in for the day and that’s what I do. it has goals and limits and it just makes you accountable for what you take in. It’s kind of fun actually; like a video game or a bank account where you have so much money (calories) every day, and you want to have some leftover every day.
While my son is at preschool, I take my daughter out for a walk every morning – about a mile and a half to two miles of walking. It’s nice.
I take vitamins – a regular vitamin with extra folic acid, fish oil with omega-3, and fiber capsules.
So yeah – I’m making progress and happy about it. I feel good about myself. I really love reviewing instant noodles too and still can, just making a few adjustments outside of this. I was enjoying the toppings and a bite of noodle and a slurp of broth. Now I’m down to the slurp and a bite. Some may ask ‘how can you rate something without eating it all?’ I don’t think those who rate fine wines guzzle down a full bottle every review they push out. I mean, after a couple of glasses, they’d probably absolutely love everything since they’d be nice and buzzed! Same goes with instant noodles.
You won’t see any changes to my reviews at all – in fact, I’ve been making adjustments all along actually. Aside from the spicy noodle videos I do, those are about the only instant noodles I take in their entirety. When I do, I adjust what I have the rest of the day and before I have them as well.
Anyways, I had to write this because it’s finally just gotten so irritating reading these silly comments people put out. They’re really unwarranted and pointless. While I’ve tried over 3,000 varieties, no – I haven’t eaten everything you’ve seen me make in a long time. Again, I’d like to thank the majority of commenters who have nothing but the nicest things to say. I really appreciate you and love to answer your questions and talk about noodles. Keep asking and I’ll keep answering. Those with negative comments will just get blocked and deleted from here on out. I don’t have time for it and you can’t bring me down.
Hans Lienesch
The Ramen Rater
November 2018
