Dear Friends and Family,
Core is interesting. I am realizing that much of what I ate was core anyway. So, it's really portion control on the bread and snacks that I'm learning. And, that, I think, is a good thing, anyway you look at it.
So, I'll continue on the core, at least for now. And, I'll add Day 3 from 30 Days to a Greener Diet: Eat Like Grandmother. Fortunately, this won't be a hard one. On core, they're going to involve points. And, I've been tracking them under my "NOT FOOD" column for months on end anyways. I'm tempted to skip on ahead to Day 4, but I won't. I'll continue on Days 2 & 3 while I figure out core and get back to goal. I'm guessing May 1-ish may be when I get around to adding another step to this journey.
Cheers!
mouse
Dear Friends and Family,
My organic wine should be in the mail, and hopefully, at my post office box when we go to check the mail today. I'm ready to begin pondering "Day" 2 in the 30 Days to a Greener Diet: Think Food Quality, Not Food Quantity.
Here's the thought starters they provide:- cut back on over-processed foods
- splurge on important substitutions
- reacquaint yourself with your stove
I think I do decently on all three counts. But, there's a couple of things I want to tackle that are linked. How do you tell when you're full? My stomach's a woefully inadequate gauge of my fullness.
I've been trying a trick, somewhat inconsistently. Perhaps now is the time to perfect it. When I eat, I'm woefully efficient. While I'm chewing, my hands are busy queuing up the next bite. So, when the mouth is empty, there's more food ready for it. Instead of prepping the next bite while chewing, I could put down the cutlery, focus on the bite at hand and enjoy it. When the mouth is empty, I could decide on what the next bite is and prep it and deliver it to my mouth and put the cutlery back down. Repeat as needed.
The other thing I could do is after each bite assess, still hungry? full? somewhere in between? Honestly, this one is one I'm not sure I have the patience to tackle. For me, it's just flat out easier to portion it out before hand and not think about it during the meal. You know: 6 oz rice, 2 oz chicken, etc. Ultimately, I think it's important to learn portion control. Maybe, that comes next after learning slow eating.
And, last but not least is food timing. Is it important to have discipline here? I did it for awhile on Weight Watchers. I think it's a good thing, but it takes discipline. I would have a minimum time, call it two hours, between food. So, if I ate at noon and felt hungry at one, I would force myself to wait until two before snacking. That way you don't become a constant eater, but a grazer. And, tied to it was a "kitchen is closed" time, call it eight o'clock. If I'm hungry after that time, I wait until the next morning.
For now, I think I'll tackle slow eating. I could tackle focused eating (e.g. not reading online while eating, not eating at my desk, etc.) but maybe that's for later. Too much distraction guarantees I lose patience with all of this.
Cheers!
mouse
Dear Friends and Family,
weigh in: 118
Back at goal and it feels good. How can a single pound make such a psychological difference? I guess if it does, it behooves me to make the effort to get there and stay there. This week will be tough, Mr. mouse and I are going on vacation Saturday, Sunday and Monday. And, then, Tuesday is weigh in day. I should be able to manage. It's only Mr. mouse and me.
I think the hardest for me, if I'm going to be honest, is social eating. I don't want to be "that person" - the one who doesn't eat and makes everyone at the table feel bad about eating. I do eat. I eat enough to sustain me. And, I have treats throughout the week. But, I'm come to terms with the fact that every meal isn't a treat meal. Some are only food meals. People at work are okay with it, which I love. And, Mr. mouse is okay with it, for which I'm forever grateful. And, my friends who know I'm on Weight Watchers are totally supportive.
It's the other people. The people who blissfully go day to day, table to table, without really knowing or caring. I don't want to be the one who rains on their parade or denies them their blissful existence. Maybe I'm afraid of the "confrontation" (which, by the way, has NEVER happened, so I know it's in my head) of bread offered at the dinner table and saying no thanks and having the puzzled look or worse the frown or even worse they say something.
What is wrong with me? I've clearly done it before. And, to succeed, maybe, I have to realize, I'll have to do it again. Yes, that's my realization for the day. I can do. I will do it. It will work.
I think I've covered enough ground. Here's a quick update on the "not food" items of the past week of which there are 13 in number: crepes, Hershey's extra dark chocolate, m&m's, Reese's peanut butter pieces, Kashi granola bar, oatmeal raisin cookie, Trader Joe's bread, Ro*Tel, P.F. Chang's Harvest Spring Roll, P.F. Chang's Mu Shu Chicken, P.F. Chang's fortune cookie, Ted's Montana Grill bison meatloaf, Ted's Montana Grill biscuit.
Okay. Sorry. There's more I want to cover. I found a website with a 30 day plan to a healthier diet.
I think I'm going to try it and see how it goes. That being said, it's not enough of a priority to do thirty days straight. I'm going to take each day in order and see how it evolves.
Day 1: Pour a Glass of Organic Wine
Okay. That sounds good. But, since I don't normally drink, I'll be on Day 1 for awhile. I'll add it to my shopping list. And, the next time we pour a glass, it'll be organic. But, it might be awhile. If it's more than April 1, which is three weeks away, I may move onto Day 2 without really stressing over Day 1.
Okay. That's definitely enough ground to cover for one day.
Cheers!
mouse
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