Things I've Learned So Far in Week One
Posted: Wed May 23, 2018 11:12 pm
I can really pile food onto a plate!
Reinhard is correct: There is such a thing as good shame, and it works. This morning, I was packing cereal to the top of my bowl when I looked at it and thought, "This is ridiculous." And I took several handfuls back out.
Except when I was weighing and tracking and measuring, I truly had no idea how much I was eating. I'm sure during the mornings when I would have "a little more" and then "a little more" after finishing my first bowl of cereal, I was eating more than that topped-off bowl I decided not to keep.
I also had no idea how much I snacked. Every time I open the refrigerator to get some seltzer, I have to stop myself from taking a piece of cheese or a few grapes.
I think it's fine to give myself permission to pile a small mountain of salad on the salad portion of the single plate.
A few grapes in a sushi-set soy sauce dish can be a lovely addition to a dinner plate.
Almost all food tastes so much better when there are limits.
But I'm done tracking or weighing or measuring or counting. That's such a grim way to live.
I need to readjust my relationship with the scale. It's not healthy to check the next morning whether I've been "punished" for eating something I enjoy. Or to slavishly expect an instant "reward" every morning after a day I've stayed on my plan.
It's much easier to power through an hour or two of being hungry when I laugh a little at myself, and remind myself that what I'm experiencing isn't some kind of tragedy. I'm so fortunate that's not my normal way to feel.
I enjoy life a lot more when I'm in control of my eating on a sensible plan.
Reinhard is correct: There is such a thing as good shame, and it works. This morning, I was packing cereal to the top of my bowl when I looked at it and thought, "This is ridiculous." And I took several handfuls back out.
Except when I was weighing and tracking and measuring, I truly had no idea how much I was eating. I'm sure during the mornings when I would have "a little more" and then "a little more" after finishing my first bowl of cereal, I was eating more than that topped-off bowl I decided not to keep.
I also had no idea how much I snacked. Every time I open the refrigerator to get some seltzer, I have to stop myself from taking a piece of cheese or a few grapes.
I think it's fine to give myself permission to pile a small mountain of salad on the salad portion of the single plate.
A few grapes in a sushi-set soy sauce dish can be a lovely addition to a dinner plate.
Almost all food tastes so much better when there are limits.
But I'm done tracking or weighing or measuring or counting. That's such a grim way to live.
I need to readjust my relationship with the scale. It's not healthy to check the next morning whether I've been "punished" for eating something I enjoy. Or to slavishly expect an instant "reward" every morning after a day I've stayed on my plan.
It's much easier to power through an hour or two of being hungry when I laugh a little at myself, and remind myself that what I'm experiencing isn't some kind of tragedy. I'm so fortunate that's not my normal way to feel.
I enjoy life a lot more when I'm in control of my eating on a sensible plan.
