Happy Wednesday to you! The bathroom scale says I've lost four pounds. Some weeks' worth of eating, my purse feels a loss,
too - especially when I buy all of the convenient diet and low-fat foods I
think I need in order to keep me on track. But, here's a thought: there
are plenty of nutritious foods that can be bought for under a dollar.
Let me give you a few examples: chicken breasts, canned salmon, canned tuna,
yogurt, cottage cheese, brown rice, whole-grain pasta, Quinoa, grapes, apples,
bananas, kiwi, kale, Winter squash, sweet potatoes, canned tomatoes (diced),
onions, broccoli, beets, spinach, carrots, coffee, tea ... and yes, water. So
there you have it, plenty of healthy foods from which to choose when planning
your meals for the week. Knowing that I'm not going to break the bank on
grocery expenses, coupled with losing four pounds over the last two weeks,
makes me happier today than on most Wednesdays!
Some would say I've been a
"good girl." Others, not so much. But the fact of the
matter is that I am an improved girl. On Sunday, I took the time
to make a complete inventory of the contents of my kitchen cupboards, and
what low-cost and healthy meals could be made from their offerings. And,
before I went to the grocery store, I made a big pot of three-bean
vegetarian chili - complete with chickpeas, cannellini (no, chickpeas and
cannellini are not the same), kidney and black beans, so
maybe I should call it four-bean. Nonetheless,
it's packed with plenty of protein, and you may know that, in the northeast
some chili recipes are eaten year-round. Yes, I can credit my taste for chili
in July to living there for almost 15 years. I can also credit Sunday's
meal prep to being surrounded by hot dogs, potato chips, deviled eggs, potato
salad, baked beans, hamburgers, etc., all day on Saturday, the 4th of July - in
other words, a table spread with every single food item that made me want to
eat everything in sight. And, yes, just typing this has me salivating.
I love my country, but there are other ways for us to celebrate it
with our families than literally eating our hearts out. I know three families
who take turns on Memorial, 4th of July, and Veterans' holidays of going to the
cemeteries and placing small American flags on soldiers' graves. One of
them has a young mother with three stair-step children, as she is a widow and
wants to instill the knowledge of keeps our country safe in them. Yes,
you're right, she's a war widow. But that's a story all unto
it's own.
As a writer, I'm trying to maintain healthy eating habits as much
as I can. We writers sit for long periods at our desks or behind our
laptops. But, let me tell you a secret.
When I'm writing scenes of violence, murder and mayhem my adrenaline pumps
as strongly as if I'd just psyched myself up to run the world's fastest
marathon. There's an old writer's adage that when you can't think of
anything else to heat up your scene, have two guys come blasting through the
doors with their guns blazing. Similes to that happen in every story you
read or witness. And what sensation do you think I feel after I finish typing and all is quiet on the western front? That's right, hunger. And it's that
panic-triggered hunger that will make me binge-eat, over-eat, or
night-eat every time.
That's where protein comes in. In the past, I've turned to
sugar. Now, my mantra for new and improved healthier eating dictates that I ply
my emotions with ... protein. And, guess what? It's working. After
all, don't forget that your body needs protein to covert food/calories to
energy. I can live with that - and, probably a lot longer than I was once
expected to.
So, this is what I'm saying: I'm living everything I'm
saying to you. Yes, although I dislike it immensely, I'm drinking water -
and lots of it, every day. I'm cutting out the sugars that I've used in
the past to fuel my body, and replacing them with protein. I'm limiting
the amount of food I eat per meal. Yes, there are times I eat something
in between meals that, when you read the list of RDA nutrient ingredients, it's
highest number is - you guessed it - protein. To avoid binge-eating has
become my number one mission in life. It's a struggle, and that's the
understatement. But television ads, support groups, friends, family and blogs like this
one tell me I'm not the only one fighting this war; and, for that, I'm
grateful.
Copyright © 1/1/2015 - , CB, Bed Warrior
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