Monday, June 6, 2011

No More Dating My Food

254.2 (6 lbs & 17 days from Vacation milestone goal)


What I've done these past two months is redefine my relationship with food. I used to date my food. Nothing serious, just fun get-togethers. It was always a party. Like a hot date, I was always excited to spend time with food. I actually looked forward to my alone time with food. There were nights when I'd have the house to myself and I'd pick up a meal from somewhere and have dessert too. I'd select the perfect thing to watch on TV, get comfy on the couch, and the date would begin. I'd be in heaven. It was my perfect escape. Food was the key to what I thought was happiness.


Like many hot dates though, the excitement would wear off and I'd have to deal with the consequences. My stomach would hurt from overfilling. I'd have heartburn every day and take 2-4 antacids (no joke), and at night, well, we all know that nighttime is the worst when a hot date has broken your heart. The food would come back to haunt me. I'd fall asleep and shortly after wake up coughing and choking because I had aspirated food into my lungs. The sheer overload of food and the weight that pressed down on my stomach created a potential deadly threat. Dating food was going to kill me, directly or indirectly.

It was time to stop dating food. I had to look at the relationship and get serious about what I wanted from food. I had been looking at immediate gratification but decided to look at the long term. I didn't want to have heartburn, stomachaches or suffer late-night aspirations. I didn't want to miss out of fun times because I couldn't fit into the seats. What I did want was to feel energetic and free to choose whatever fun activity sounded good. I recreated my relationship and made a long-term commitment with it. I got serious with food and it got serious with me. No more quick fix, no more picking up the first cute thing that caught my eye. Instead I went for cleaner items, food that had matured over time in a field rather than mass produced in a few minutes, brainy food over drug-filled food.


Just two month later I feel better. I'm happier, less stressed and sleep better. The aches and pains of dating are gone and in their place is a relationship based on mutual respect--what I do with food and what food does for me.

LL xoxo

1 comment:

  1. I feel like I could have written the first paragraph. Only difference is that I eat because I am lonely, I eat because I am bored, I eat because I am upset, or I eat because it's there. Breaking myself of that habit has not been easy! I am starting to realize what sets me off & makes me eat. It's been a big help in controlling myself.

    Now that I've learned to stop eating so mindlessly, it's even more difficult to remember to eat something healthy every few hours. So frustrating!

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