That paired with the dietary stuff, it just makes sense. I love me some terrible carbs and lately the internal dialogue has gone like this...
"but... but... it's whole wheat."
"No. How about you go back to spelt bread/pasta/tortillas?"
"Expensive. And plus there are only like 4 ingredients in these crackers, the fat is low, they're whole grain and a serving size is 9 crackers... NINE!"
"They would be good with hummus."
And wham! Put into the grocery cart. When I eat more grain, I eat fewer vegetables. Fact. It's my pattern. I don't know if that applies to any of you out there... but that's something I see in myself.
A blog I follow... The candid RD asked this...
Question: How will you celebrate nutrition this month? How will you get your plate in "better shape"? Have you re-evaluated your nutrition-related goals this year (or your fitness or other goals)? How have you been doing?
I am celebrating nutrition by remembering my vegetables and using more of them. I bought steamer bags in efforts to encourage myself (since I hate cold food in winter). I want to give myself weekly vegetables... Like a tomato a day for a week. Broccoli every day for a week. Things like that in addition to my normal consumption. It allows me to actually eat all the veggies I buy without them going to waste. It will also allow me to get at least one more serving of veg in every day.
Less beige. MORE GREEN.
I'm leaning out of good habits lately (the last two weeks). But I'm ready to correct that and take control of my diet. Diet is so much harder for me than exercise. But I will commit to being better. I will commit to stop telling myself it's hard.
MANTRA
A friend once told me... kids accomplish amazing feats. But they don't know it's hard because no one has told them it is yet.
So dieting and exercise aren't hard. We tell ourselves they're hard. Dieting and Exercise require focus and dedication. Just like memorizing an aria, or reading an entire book, or being a mother, or keeping track of our friend's soap opera lives. It's only hard when we tell ourselves it is... otherwise... it could actually be {gasp} FUN!
Big Fat NOT HARD Love,
Nanette
P.S. Still rockin' the water and calorie Allan Challenge.
Haha! I like that "Kids don't know it's hard because noone has told them it is yet."
ReplyDeleteYou are doing really well!
I think there is a lot of benefit to the Paleo plan but it is hard to stick to. It is difficult to completely give up wheat. I'm reading Wheat Belly right now though and finding it very enlightening. It supports a low carb plan like Paleo
ReplyDeleteI liked this post! Especially your last paragraph, it's only hard if we tell ourselves it's hard. I couldn't agree more. People shake their head at me when I tell them I look forward to exercising and I love my healthy food now. It's not rocket science. It makes me feel good, so why wouldn't I like it? Ask me that question a few months ago and I would've had a different answer, but things have changed so much for me.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the challenge, I'm a participant too! :) Have a great weekend!
Ah, I like the part about the kids. No one has told them about it being hard.. That's really such a true thing!
ReplyDeleteLess beige and more color (although beige mushrooms and cauliflower are good for ya) is a great way to view it. A good goal. We still have hummus, but we use carrot sticks or celery sticks or cucumbers to dip into it. Occasionally ,we use Beanitos (made from black beans, and I emailed them to make sure they are processed to reduce antinutrients. They said, yes.) You can buy brown rice tortillas for wraps and sprouted corn tortillas for tacos at Whole Foods (Food For Life, the people who make Ezekiel bread, make these gluten free items, and they are GOOD, even finicky hubby likes them, though the texture ain't like wheat, natch.)
ReplyDeleteOn we go..COLORFULLY.
I tell anyone who asks that it IS hard, cause radical change IS hard. Focus is hard. And at first, that's when it's hardest, until new habits set in. Then easier. But at times, it will get harder, then easier, then auto-pilot. Sometimes, it feels like great fun. Sometimes, hugely empowering to say NO to that and YES to this.
ReplyDeleteBut I never say it's easy. I think that from my experience (and that of folks who can't keep it off, the legendary 95%, or those who work to keep it off, the legendary 5%), it's not easy. Easy would mean it's not work. It's work.
Less beige and more GREEN, RED, ORANGE AND YELLOW. A colorful plate is more enticing than a plain beige one, isn't it? I don't believe exercise is fun at.all. but it makes you feel so good afterwards that, ultimately, it's worth getting off your butt to get a workout done ... maybe that's why some people say they enjoy exercising?
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, when I add grains to my plate, I tend to eat less vegetables because the grains/whole wheat is taking up the space that another veggie would have been in.
The focusing is hard. :-)
ReplyDelete