Thursday, April 19, 2018

Eating

Over the last couple of weeks, I've made some substantial changes to my food intake. I despise the word diet which has evolved into a word defining restriction with ephemeral weight loss the outcome.

I struggle with eating cold veggies - salads,etc. I don't know why that is. I was brought up in a reasonably healthy house, very healthy for its time and place, my mother had taken classes in nutrition and that was over 60 years ago, but I've always rebelled against salads. The cold mutinous lettuce in a bowl with tomatoes eyes and cucumber faces. Ironically, my children became salad lovers as a result of my repugnance.

I've struggled with weight much of my life and am familiar with every aspect of food addiction, anorexia, weight gains, substantial weight losses, yo-yo dieting, black beauties amphetamines, sketchy doctors with horse urine shots, medically supervised fasts, weight loss programmes with their business model based on failure, etc.

My recent restricted movement and physicality has forced me to go look at my food intake, to reevaluate my ingestion so to speak, as the weight has crept on since my diagnoses of PVD. I am a foodie, an overall addict of much and often, so I put on my big girl knickers, and toured some blogs who have taken the year of 2018 to focus on health and simplicity and planning. Thanks you guys, you are too numerous to mention but you all inspire me.

I bought ready made salads - I worked out the costs and with the disgraceful amount of veggies I throw out regularly, it is actually cheaper for me to buy a large salad, full of variety with free dressing on the side, that creates 4 meals for me for $10. For some reason I don't question, this is palatable. I also picked up some healthy pre-made meals. With an aging population here, these are becoming more readily available and I often find that one (recently a gorgeous turkey meat loaf with tiny potatoes and zucchini) does me for 2 dinners at a cost of $4.00 each. That plus salad is a great meal.

I also got myself back into a support group which helps me immeasurably in taking stock and working on the inner issues of "it's not what I'm eating, it's what's eating me". The "comfort eating" which is but a moment in time and results in enormous physical discomfort for me. My running and training days are over and I'm truly back to basics which can be a very good thing. For anybody. I (mostly) accept my new limits, my new state of having so many losses which linger in spite of stones thrown in water and candles lit and meditative practices.

I'm still easing into the persona of healthy, moderate eater but I'm getting there.

More on this as I forge this new pathway.


23 comments:

  1. I can relate. Unlike you however, I can subsist entirely on salads and fruits but don't. I have been on a 6/18 discipline that has helped me shed some weight and since I am in no hurry, that will do fine for me.

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    1. Fruits I have no trouble with and interestingly kale is one of my favourite veggies of all time. Go figure. So many despise it. I like a lot of veggies just not the cold kind but I am eating to live now not living to eat as I've done much of my life.

      XO
      WWW

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  2. I find it really hard to change my eating habits. Weight loss is not my goal, but I wish I was more flexible about changing how I eat. I'm supposed to get some blood work done that involves fasting, I've had the requisition on my desk for 4 months now because I just can't do the required 8/10 hour fast. First thing in the morning I inhale coffee before even thinking about fasting...

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    1. Yeah it's a complete surrender to new ways of thinking and a challenge Annie. I do love my grub so but it doesn't love me back. Bring a flask of coffee with you, that's what I do, I am so cranky when I get to the clinic that they move quickly to get me out, lol.

      Decaffeinated we're not so nice, lol.

      XO
      WWW

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  3. I’ve been thinking along these lines — again — so i’ll be interested in your updates. Having had chronic illness for years, changing how I eat is the one thing I have the most trouble complying with. Thanks for this post!

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    1. P. S.Great graphic!

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    2. Carolyn the thing is we all know what to do but it's so challenging to actually do it. My weakness lies in "Just a bite" which then blossoms into more, more, more. Note to self: So just dealing with the first bite is all I have to do.

      XO
      WWW

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  4. I am a foodie as well. Went many years without eating a raw veggie, but lately I've been also buying the pre-packaged salad mixes, adding a chopped up boiled egg or some bean salad for protein, and topping it with my own homemade dressing. I suffer from fibro and osteoarthritis and have been taking Qigong classes. They really have been helping.

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    1. Mx: they are amazingly easy to operate aren't they? :D And sometimes I get those roasted chickens too, they last forever, and I toss a bit into the salad too.

      Good to know I'm not alone!

      XO
      WWW

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  5. Sugar is my downfall. I know I shouldn’t ingest so much but oh how I do love sugar!!

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    1. I've had to eliminate it Florence and have done so for years at a time. I eliminated this time too. I have no brakes when it comes to sugar :)

      XO
      WWW

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  6. I like salads myself but Jenny hates them. If she orders something at a restaurant and it comes with a salad, she doesn't touch the salad but leaves it intact. I somehow manage to keep my weight to the norm for my height, which makes some people very envious. I have no idea how I do it, except that eating too much invariably makes me feel ill, which stops me over-indulging.

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    1. Ah you're a greyhound Nick. How truly fortunate you don't have the cravings us foodies do. I've eaten to the point of being ill but I have no brakes.

      Wish me luck this time around.

      XO
      WWW

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  7. I have been reading your posts for years now. I find comfort in your ability to cope with age. I got old suddenly and it scares me. Thank you for writing. ( I am anonymous only because I don’t want to fill whole new set of forms) Alena

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    1. Lovely to hear from you Alena and thanks for the kind words. Yes, aging happens without warning. At least it did for me. A bad fall on the ice and my world fell apart quickly.

      But I am reinventing myself.

      XO
      WWW

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  8. Do pass along any more tips for healthier eating, WWW. We're on that kick also, after my own recent adventure with the medical profession. I'm not "a big eater" and am picky. Having been an overweight child I've tried to discipline myself over many decades. But weight still does go on these days, due to meds and less exercise.

    We've taken to doing a daily walk, in the open air, around the home area if weather is kind, down to the almost deserted mall in town if not. It seems to be a popular thing to do, we pass others doing it every day. I guess it's the elderly version of jogging. ;-)

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    1. Yes I have this rambling building and a gym around the corner from me in it so many take to the halls and walk or treadmill and do those convolutions which make me ill :D just looking.

      My android has a walking app and I do check it every day. I'm nowhere near the optimum but getting there slowly but surely.

      I like the idea of a month's meals planned ahead but I think right now I'll stick to a week ahead.

      Good for you and Himself with the walking, it all makes a difference. And once we're mentally healthy as a result it has a huge impact.

      I've had a bit of a health scare myself recently so am into proactive mode.

      XO
      WWW

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  9. Smart eating is so important. Hard, too, sometimes. I don't watch what I eat but the day may come. I grew up not eating green salads but now I love them. My dad doesn't like salads or many veggies but eats them for his health. I've been working on a "monthly menu" because I'm tired of not knowing what to make for supper; I want a regular routine so I don't have to think much about it, the groceries I need are here, and there is room to be flexible. Week Four starts on Monday. Almost there! - Kate

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    1. Wow another one on monthly meal planning. Brilliant. I really need to do this too but a week right now at a time. I must post my healthy breakfast recipe soon :)

      Well done Kate!

      XO
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  10. We've had an e coli outbreak with romaine lettuce from Arizona with the CDC advising people to throw any out rather than eating it, and a salmonella scare with eggs...so I'm eating cooked only from the pantry or freezer. You would think that with all of the resources in this country we could track our food supply...

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    1. And I'm also wondering if there is any compensation for these poisonous products and their attendant illnesses. It is scandalous, is this due to the loosening of the regulations under current administration? I hope there's an outcry.

      XO
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    2. No, and no...just need to pay head when things are announced, generally after people are sickened.

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  11. We have reached the same stage at the same time. It's taken me 40 years and 50 extra pounds to realize that I'm no longer the calorie-burning sleek and active teen I was eons ago. I'm not a cold salad person either but luckily it's coming on summer and cold food will be more palatable. I will have to try your pictured breakfast!

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