improve my eating habits

I’m trying to get serious about this. My goal is to eat healthy at least 90% of the time. Lately, I’ve been eating nice things like oatmeal, grapes, bananas, brown rice, lean chicken, leaf lettuce, green beans, sweet potatoes and leeks.

I tried shopping in my favorite health food store this past weekend. I have decided to go there more often to help keep me going in the right direction, but even there it’s tempting to eat things that I don’t need to eat. There is so much to choose from.

I am capable of eating well, have done so for weeks on end and felt great, have good knowledge on how to do this -so why is it so hard? I struggle to maintain a great eating habit and fluctuate between doing well anhaving weeks of eating a lot more rubbish than I should. Food diaries have worked really well or me previously -I just eventually give up doing them and all off the wagon.

So my plan is to restart my food diary and focus on making my body feel great! I always feel so good when I eat well. Tomorrow am gonna clean out the cupboards and fridge and do a big shop for the week to get me started. Here goes….

Whoa, it was as though I totally forgot that I was trying to eat more healthy last night. On the way home from work, I stopped by Panera Bread and got one of those tomato and mozzarella paninis and a brownie. I wasn’t supposed to eat that! I’ve been eating salads, soup, and other healthy foods lately, but fell right back into an old habit without thinking. I’ll have to be more careful in the future.

Not sure just how or when my eating habits got so bad, but they are way out of control. I’ve been eating whatever and however much I want lately and for the most part it hasn’t been anything healthy. Things have to change now and I have to start eating better.

If I eat a big meal, my stomach expands like a python with a sheep in its belly. My body shape in the morning is really quite different to my body shape after dinner in the evening.

I think I’m eating the right number of calories in a day (I’m not gaining weight) but perhaps I have too many of them at the wrong times of the day so I feel bloated. If I skip the “bad” snacks and replace with “good” I’ll probably have a much better idea of when I’m full. And I won’t get the sugar crashes that leads me back to the devil’s door.

I know all this. I guess I’m talking myself up to doing something about it.

This is a weird one. I thought I had this nailed, but since I’ve started my job I’m finding it very hard to eat to the same high standards I managed at home. The ironic thing is I’m fitting in my gym sessions and I’m walking to work a couple of times a week – I feel fitter than ever. But my stomach is not getting any smaller and I’m fairly sure it’s my emotional snacking.

Biscuits, bars of chocolate, bags of crisps – I had chocolate in my old routine, but the office biscuit tin and the student shop are very convenient if I’m bored or stressed. And because I’m exercising more I’m eating more – but how much more do I really need?

So there’s stuff to think about here. It’s hard to quantify – what I really want is to fit more comfortably into my clothes, to flatten my stomach again, and to not eat when I’m anxious.

January went well. I only had one soda. I actually lost another 2 lbs since the last post as well!!! Now, I’m focusing on avoiding greasy, unhealthy fast food. Healthier fast food is of course okay. But I really need to think about what I’m going to order before I do. I had a salad the other day instead of a hot dog, for example. So I’m giving up the cheeseburgers, deep fried everything, etc. Cold Cut sandwiches are fine, light or no cheese, as well as salads and other healthier choices. I’m not sure I’m ready to add 5 salads a week since nothing is in season and the point isn’t to hate salads. I think I’ll just work on adding one more fruit or veggie to my day. Solid!

Anyone have suggestion for this challenge?
The challenge:
Add one healthy item to my regular daily eating. (One item each month)
Do not eat one unhealthy item (For one month only)

The hope is that I will break my unhealthy regular eating habits and focus on moderation of the unhealthy items.

Some foods I’d like to gain:
New fruits
New vegetables
Meat alternatives
Yogurt
Green Tea
Fish
Lentils
Cucumbers
Greens
Sweet potatoes

Some foods I’d like to lose:
Meat (for one month at least)
Sugar??? (excess anyway, I know this is an essential, but I’ll just limit it)
Desserts: Brownies, cookies, cakes, pies, ice cream (fruits are fine)
Chips and Fries
Hot Dogs (OH NO!!!)
White bread and white pasta (whole wheat is fine?)
Coffee

I’ve decided that in order to improve my eating habits, I will change them one at a time and work on them for one month at a time. That way I will have smaller goals to work with. I don’t want to just give up soda for the year or give up mcdonald’s or whatever. I want to make smaller changes and work on them one at a time. In addition, I’ll be adding one healthier habit each month, hopefully, those will become more permanent and I’ll find some healthy things I like.

January’s goal: No soda for a month. Add 2 pomegranate/cranberry juices to the grocery list each week.

February’s goal: I might have to bite the bullet on this one and give up McDonald’s for a month, but maybe it won’t be as bad because it’s the shortest month. Hmm…I think adding 5 salads each week would be a good addition.

March???