So I took the advice from Patrick (somewhat) and had a friend cut my bulk load of vegetables. We rotated in shifts, steaming various types of veggies - from carrots to mushrooms to sweet potatoes. Then I placed them all in a large tupperware bin and said, "Wow! I can't believe I'm going to eat all these veggies - EEK!" I packed my food for the next two days and now I feel uubber prepared, and I got back some of my "me time" back.
Last night was a rough sleep. I had a dream filled with anxiety. It involved me baking cookies, followed by torment over if I should eat the cookies and then in the end, I gave in and ate the cookies. I woke up thinking I actually cheated on my PCP and truly ate cookies. But I didn't, not a cookie in my house, not a cookie was baked, no lingering smell of freshly baked goodies. This is ridiculous!
I'm sticking to the diet, I am full but I am not happy with what I'm eating. My tastebuds miss the fat and the awesomeness of chocolate. It's such a paradox being full but not being content. I'll keep trudging through this diet though. It's hard to see any pleasure in the food I eat, and for now, I view it as fuel. It's not like I'm not trying either, I'm trying out different fresh herbs and seasonings but when it comes down to it, it's missing the fat and the salt.
OK enough about food. The jump rope is getting tougher. I find I'm messing up more and more. Maybe just the counting is driving me bonkers, I'd really rather go for time. The exercises are going pretty well, I think I finally got the standing ovation right, but for the rowing it's tough finding the right space in my apartment to get enough resistance. I've noticed that there is not as much pain in my knee joints as of late, and I'm encouraged by that.
Ellen - are you a fan of balsamic vinegar? My new favorite "topping" is made by sautéing/browning onions in the teeniest amount of oil. When they get soft/translucent, add lots of glugs of balsamic vinegar. Let it cook down until thick and syrupy. It's an excellent flavor boost for almost anything - rice, salads, chicken, etc. etc. Maybe that could help get over your unhappiness about what you're eating?
ReplyDeleteAlso try roasting any/all of these veggies - can do w/o any oil, or again, the teeniest smidge of oil. Works great for broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, squash. Roasting, IMHO, brings out the flavor of these guys much better than steaming does.
Hope these ideas help you at least a little bit.
For the rowing, maybe get a stronger resistance band for this and other "easier" activities? Then you won't need to be so far away from the anchor point to get a good work out...
Go Blue!
Those are great tips Sara, the onion/balsamic mixture sounds like a great flavoring.
ReplyDeleteFish - great job on the veggies! And funny about the dream. Amazing the tricks the mind plays!
I read once that you not only 'are what you eat, but you eat what you are'
ReplyDeleteSo if you are like me and you have been eating sweets, chocolate and salty things that is what your body will crave because that is what you are made of.
I keep reminding myself that when my husband did the PCP he reached a point where a banana or pineapple tasted so sweet because he had cleansed his palette of the taste of fat and sugar. And believe me had a huge sweet/salty tooth!
The food will taste better and better the further away you get from your days of salt and sugar overloading.
ReplyDeleteBut keep the mentality of food as fuel. There's nothing wrong with a plain meal. Somewhere along the line we got the idea that every single meal has to be a flavor explosion. Change the story and you won't find yourself dealing with so much mental resistance.
Sara - Thanks for balsamic tip. I added some balsamic fig vinegar to my dinner tonight and it helped alot. I'm ready to change my story ala Patrick.
ReplyDeleteOoooh - balsamic fig? Sounds yummy. Glad it helped. I like Patrick's "food as fuel" theory, but I also figure that we should try make it the best tasting fuel we can!
ReplyDeleteI'm cracking up about the cookie dream. It's ok to be not happy about the diet but keep trucking. it's soooo worth it. it'll be awesome when you taste food again after cutting the salt and fat. it was crazy cause food never tasted that good ever.
ReplyDeleteThe cookie dream--so sad. All of the guilt and failure, with none of the pleasure of eating the darned things.
ReplyDeleteHey - I was just about to write my post when I noticed your frustration about tripping a lot... I tweaked the length of my rope today, to make it slightly shorter, and it made a massive difference! You might play around with that a bit.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ian - I may give that a try. I think my rope is a couple inches too long.
ReplyDelete