Whatever It Takes

When I moved to Las Vegas in 1994, I was 47 years of age and weighed 210 pounds — which was the heaviest ever for me. My exercise and weight management attempts fluctuated over the years and by 2010 I was up to 260 pounds. The combination of all the free food I wanted from casinos and a relatively sedentary life added up to obesity.

At that point I “got religion” and decided to get back in shape, although I was 63 years old and had no illusions that I was ever go look like I did when I was half that age. Somewhat arbitrarily I chose the Paleo diet, partly because a friend lent me a book on it. I read the book, became inspired, and began trying to live according to those rules. (There are dozens of different diets that work if you stick to them—some healthier than others. In no way am I an expert on which one would work best for me, let alone anybody else.)

I was compliant with perhaps 90% of the Paleo recommendations (lots of exercise and lean protein, leafy vegetables, healthy oils, and basically no starches) for six months and got down to a low of 215 pounds. Six months later, I was still operating at 80% of Paleo recommendations and was up to 220. Six months later, 70% and 225. Etc.

In early August of 2015, I was at 50% and 245 and disgusted with myself. Time to do something again.

For extra motivation, I asked a friend who also struggled with his weight if he would entertain a weight loss bet. He wanted to lose weight but was leery of betting with a professional gambler. So I proposed the following: Each of us would set our own weight goal to achieve by Thanksgiving. If we met the goal, great. If we didn’t, we would each pay $200 to a specific charity. (My goal is 225 pounds by Thanksgiving – 220 would be better — and to maintain that until at least January 2. Late November to early January includes some major holidays and Bonnie and I are going on a two week all-you-can-eat cruise to Hawaii. Keeping my weight steady under those conditions will be a major accomplishment). Weight loss surgery was specifically prohibited in the bet and both of us know from experience that starvation diets to meet a short term goal can be very harmful.

Although the specifics of my personal story with weight are unique, probably two thirds of my readers have their own version of this Sisyphean struggle. As I write this, I’m in Lake Tahoe for a Seven Stars weekend in late August. Even at my current weight of 240 pounds, I am probably slimmer than average among the men. Many women have problems of their own in this area.

The reason I’m bringing this up is that I believe there are parallels between weight loss struggles and playing video poker at a high level.

Many players actually studied video poker at some time in the past. At the end of their study, they played as well as possible for them. Some players could reach 100% accuracy; some 99%; some 98%. Whatever. But for most of them, their personal high point in terms of accuracy was reached at some time in the past.

Over time, our memories dim and we become a little less accurate. Perhaps we begin to play lesser games. Possibly we don’t analyze promotions as completely as we used to. If this describes you, possibly it’s time to “get religion” again.

Whether it’s attending classes, rereading the Winner’s Guides you purchased seven years ago and haven’t looked at recently, taking the time to test yourself on the computer to discover and fix your current mistakes, or whatever. If you improve your game, you will get better results.

(For reasons I don’t completely understand, I’ve been able to keep my video poker play at a high level but I’m not that disciplined with my weight. I have some friends who can still wear the clothes they wore 25 years ago, but have no discipline when it comes to gambling. We are all a little different).

Some people are “heavy” and they are content with/resigned to their weight. Fine with me. I’m not intending to body-shame anybody. But for me, losing weight is within my power and losing weight will decrease my chances of having a heart attack, diabetes, or needing knee replacements. I’m also optimistic that my energy level will increase when I shave some pounds off. I recently read that being heavy in middle age increases the chances for Alzheimer’s in later years. I certainly don’t want that, although I’m somewhat past middle age now.

Perhaps similarly for recreational gamblers, many don’t want to do what it takes to become and stay proficient at video poker. They have other priorities that they believe add to the quality of their lives. That’s all fine. Periodically, however, refreshing your knowledge can be beneficial. Studying for a relatively short amount of time can buy you a few more years of play at an “acceptable” level, according to your standards.

You might have to trick yourself into undergoing that study. (I used a pseudo bet with a friend for meeting my weight-loss goals). I don’t know what tricks you should use to get yourself to study more. But whatever it takes, the results will pay off for you.