Food Sheet 101

I've been keeping my Food Sheets (Journals) for a week now. The first couple of days, they weren't so accurate. After all, it's been a while since I've recorded what I ate, and remembering what I consumed and getting it logged in was not a habit anymore. It's an unsettling feeling to know that you ate something maybe an hour or so ago, and not remember what it is that you put in your mouth. If I couldn't remember what - exactly - it was, I certainly wasn't able to accurately record it.

But old habits seem to be coming back to me. I've kept good records since last Saturday, and kept them without any tinge of guilt about what I was eating. That's not to say that they did not influence my choices. I can't say that they kept me from consuming anything I felt I really needed, but they did make me more mindful of my choices.

I don't think it was an accident that I fell into an old habit and went to the Farmer's Market on Sunday, then came home and pre-prepared foods (spaghetti sauces and various salads) and also chopped/peeled/cubed vegetables to be used later in my meals. It helped to do that, too. There's nothing like coming home from an exercise class hungry as all get-out, only to remember when I poke my head into the fridge to go foraging, that there is already a salad in there waiting just for me. A much healthier choice than the sandwich (or maybe just the bread) that I would have gone for if nothing was ready.

By the same token, I looked at what I am doing last night. Bread is still my nemesis. There's no question that I am a volume eater, and probably will always be one. Most of what I am consuming is fine in my book, but over the last five days, I've eaten maybe 2000 calories in foods that weren't efficient choices. I highlighted them in purple on my food sheets just to be sure at what I am looking at. I have a problem.

It's not just the choices themselves, but the reason that I eat them. So many people say that they don't know why they eat certain foods or junk foods. I say to that, "bullshit!" We know why we eat them. There's a pay-off. When I eat bread, there's an instant mood elevation that few other things will give me. When I eat sugar or candy, it's the same. Never mind that the long term implications are not good and after a few minutes, I may regret what I did. It's like being a drug addict. Certain foods just make me feel good, and feel good immediately. Furthermore, some of them have a lingering effect. It isn't until the next morning when I get on the scale that I might really regret my choices.

So now it comes down to this. First, do what I said before. Practice patience. It may take some time to resolve this dilema, but with diligence, everything can be solved. Second, figure out what foods might be substituted for the "quick fix" substances that may work almost as quickly as bread on my mind, but not carry the same calorie impact. I know that they're out there... they have to be. It's just a matter of trial and error - and maybe some more pre-preparation of food - before I figure them out.