Eating Mindfully

My group, T.O.P.S. is working on eating Mindfully. Last week, we tried dropping a hundred calories, daily. I had planned on doing this by making 3 small changes to my life style. I didn't do so well.

My three changes were (1) drink more water (2) make half my plate vegetables and fruit (3) more exercise.

I sometimes did # 1. I did do # 2 faithfully. I never did # 3.

My weight remained the same.

At least I didn't gain!

This week, I'm going to eat with my left hand. I'm right handed. Eating with your opposite hand will make you eat slower and give you time to think about what you're eating. Using the opposite hand will also give that part of brain muscle some exercise.

And there # 3--MORE EXERCISE! (See I am smarter than the average bear.)

Dropping Out of the Clean Plate Club

Image via Wikipedia

Company, by its very nature, is a disruption of  schedule.  I just had a visit from my friend, Omega.  Of course, I love having her, but because we're out doing things, meals aren't planned.  We usually eat on the go, while we're out and about.  This is a problem because restaurants are notorious for over-sized portions, and preparing food with "who knows what."

So I brought a tote bag with me when we went out.  In it I put bottled water and fruit.  And I snacked on it, so that when we stopped to eat dinner at a restaurant, I was fairly full.  I ordered something called a "power salad."  This consisted of pieces of chicken mixed in a salad.  It looked so good that I was sure I was going to woof down the entire salad.

I didn't.  I ate about half and was full.  I asked to take home the rest.  I was too satisfied to order dessert, which Omega did.  It was some kind of vanilla ice cream with bananas and hot caramel sauce.  I could see the steam rising up from the sauce.  I took a spoon full of it and that really was enough.  I wasn't tempted in the least.

That's the secret to not overindulging in restaurants .  Eat before you eat.  And make sure you eat healthy before going out to eat.

Another benefit was the fact that I had leftovers for lunch.  Life is good.

My Plate is Full

I've talked about "portion control," before. The United States Department of Agriculture has an excellent web site on portion control.  Their plate, as you see, is a bit different than mine.  Whereas mine has half my plate full of vegetables, the USDA has that half, full of fruit and vegetables.  Yes, I like that.  That's a good idea.

You really should look into the USDA's site.  Their suggestions on balancing nutritions and their tips, and ideas go along with everything my program promotes.  

My problem is peer pressure, maybe my environment.  For example, we're having a meeting at work tomorrow where breakfast will be served.  "Served" is coffee and donuts.  Lunch is provided too--pizza.

What's a girl to do?

Related articles

• "My Plate" replaces USDA's familiar food pyramid (salon.com)
• Will USDA's New 'Plate' Icon Make a Difference in American Diets? (livescience.com)
• Getting Portion Sizes Back Under Control (everydayhealth.com)
• USDA: The Plate is the New Food Pyramid (politics.blogs.foxnews.com)

Portion Control

All food is good.  Don't deny yourself.  Why sacrifice what you love?  Eat it.

No, this isn't Eve talking to Adam.  It's what I learned today at a T.O.P.S. Inspiration Workshop.  T.O.P.S. is a health support group.  Some may call it a weight loss support group, but when I was almost wasting away, I used T.O.P.S. to gain weight, because it's about healthy eating.    Unfortunately, now I can't reverse the trend.  I needed to gain weight then and got in the habit of stuffing myself, so now I'm finding it hard to stop.

Besides, after my experience with Cronkhite Canada Syndrome, I recommend that everyone be ten pounds over weight, because if you ever get sick, you'll need the reserves.

Still, that's ten pounds over weight, not twenty+.

What did I learn today?  "There is no bad food, only bad portion control."

Take your plate.  Divide it in half, now on one of the halves, divide that in half.  Half of your plate should be vegetable.  One quarter of your plate should be meat.  One quarter should be starch.

I think this is doable.  I like vegetables.  I also like meat.  And starch.  And sugar.  And grains.  And fruit.  And  beer.  And dairy.  And new foods.  And old favorites.  And...um...and now I'm hungry.



T.O.P.S.