One Month Check In

It's been ANOTHER month.


It wasn't the craziest month but I did get thru a major hurdle.

HOUSEGUESTS.


I don't know why but sometimes I find it hard to eat how I eat around other people.  It's not that I feel tempted to eat something that I shouldn't, but sometimes I find that I have to actually DEFEND myself.  I've oft found myself in situations with food pushers and food preachers.  Food pushers are people who think you need something else on your plate.  And it's usually something fatty, sugary, or fried.  Food preachers are people who like to tell you what is wrong with what you're eating and that if you just eat what they tell you, then all your problems will be solved.

Seriously folks, I really just want to eat my food in peace.  I KNOW sometimes I don't eat the most exciting things.  And in all honesty, sometimes I even get BORED with some of my food.  But I'm eating it because it's helping me become healthier.  That's all.  It's not a competition.  A co-worker said to me the other day in the lunch room that every time he looks at my meals it makes him feel bad about what he eats.  I told him to not feel that way because for all he knows he just caught me on a "good day".  And then I went back to my desk and thought about how food makes people feel LOTS of things.  I wasn't having a "good day" with my lunch, I was having a NORMAL day with my lunch.  But I didn't want him to feel bad.  And then here was someone who actually felt bad about himself just by looking at what I was eating.   Crazy right?

Food is powerful stuff.  But I have gone astray.  My point was that I was having houseguests and so for the first time since my lifestyle change, I had to plan for someone else's meals.  I really don't like that.  I'm not a food pusher.  I know I eat healthy and that I should want the rest of my family to follow suit but I don't want to make anyone feel bad about themselves.  Change has to come from within.  And I believe that the changes I've made in my life have been radical and they've only stuck thus far because I was ready.  And many of you may disagree with me but I am firmly aware that dishes that I make and LOVE do NOT taste good to others.  Don't get me wrong, it's not that I think the FOOD doesn't taste good.  I just believe that my taste buds went through a major overhaul when I started eating clean.  Things taste differently to me.  Fruit is sweeter, salt is saltier, and broccoli now tastes like ice cream.  Ok, maybe not that broccoli thing but you get where I'm going.  So I didn't really want to try to cook much.  And while eating "paleo" at restaurants isn't that big of a deal for most people, my pesky gluten intolerance does NOT allow for me to be willy nilly about just any old meat and vegetables.

Well, long story short.  I was successful AND unsuccessful.
First my successes:
1.  I managed to sneak our favorite (and very safe) restaurant into the mix TWICE
2.  On a laid back night my guests ordered pizza and while they were waiting on delivery I whipped up my favorite pizza so I could enjoy pizza with them.
3.  SNACKS.  I ate small snacks throughout the day so if they wanted to eat something special that I couldn't have I was covered.
4.  HONESTY.  I would check out the menu to places that were suggested and if I could find ABSOLUTELY NOTHING that seemed safe I was honest and asked for another suggestion.  And you know what?  They really didn't mind.

My FAILS:
1.  GETTING TOO COMFORTABLE.  At one restaurant I ordered my meal without asking any questions and when the food came, my gut was telling me to ask before I ate.  I ignored my gut and I ate.  I got SICK.


Actually the GETTING TOO COMFORTABLE reared it's ugly head one other time but I was lucky in that the questionable food ended up being safe.

You see, when it's just me, I'll research and ask questions and if I doubt anything, I'll pass on it.  But when I'm in front of people, I tend to just go with the flow.  Maybe it's because I wanted to be a good host or maybe I just wanted to feel "normal" again.  Either way, it's something I will work on for the future.


Other than the one sickness, it was a VERY successful time.  Everyone had a really great time.  I also have a big family vacation coming up in September and now I feel way more confident about it.

In other updates ....

I ended the month of May with a bit of a plateau weight wise.  I didn't gain and I didn't lose.  And on June 1st, I revisited my Drop 2 Sizes workout.  I guess I just felt like I was ready to give it another go.  Today is the start of Phase 1 Week 2.

Until next time ...