On January 1st, we had our good-luck, good-health, good-wealth traditional New Year dinner of pork, cabbage, and hoppin’ John. So that means I’m going to get lucky, skinny, and rich in 2010, right?
God, I hope so. I’ve got my calendars all ready to do their organizing and tracking:
And we’ve taken down decorations, whining and dragging our feet the whole way.
So we’re on track, right? I’m trying to get started out on the right foot! I’ve been going through old clothes to give away, packing up Christmas stuff, sorting through emails and photos and documents on my computer, gathering old magazines to recycle and tearing out important pages to keep. I’m making a little bit of progress, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg as far as de-cluttering and organizing go. I’ll keep chipping away at it…
Yesterday I met up with one of my BFFs, Lofton, for lunch and coffee before she had to go back up north. We went to Miyo’s for sushi and Asian cuisine, and I got an amazing tempura roll…
…and steamed veggies + chicken + sauce that I picked at. I would’ve just gotten the sushi, but I wanted to bring home my leftovers for Mom. I’m a giver. 
Then we proceeded to Starbucks where I got a pumpkin spice latte. Yesterday (Sunday) was supposed to be my first 100% Crap-Free day, but plans like this throw a wrench in my gears. I could’ve gotten just chicken + veggies at Miyo’s and plain tea or coffee at Starbucks, but I’m not good at “being good” in those situations. I don’t go to Miyo’s that often and I had been craving sushi, so I went with it. Also, who knows how much longer they’ll have pumpkin spice syrup at Starbucks? I also had a bit of that that “well, I’ll start tomorrow” mentality which is pretty dangerous. I should’ve stuck with my plan regardless of the situations instead of rationalizing splurges. However, I’m proud to say that I DID start today. I weigh in on Wednesday and have only lost a couple of pounds since my last weigh-in on December 23rd, so I’m planning on doing shakes-only today and tomorrow. Stupid? Maybe, but it’ll kick-start my butt into gear again, which is definitely what I need.
Speaking of kick-starting my butt into gear, I have yet to work out in 2010. UNACCEPTABLE!!! I’m about to have a shake and then dabble in some Wii Fit, I believe.
How do you do when eating out at restaurants? Do you make an exception and splurge, or do you stick to your healthy eating guidelines, whatever those may be?
Thanks for following my blog! I get that mentality i'll start tomorrow quite offen and that's something i gotta shake this year. You got off track it happens...now just to get back on it! Looking forwards to your progress! peace
ReplyDeleteI normally try to splurge but within reason. I normally don't eat out very often anyway. This year I am even trying to eat out even less. Your sushi looks super yummy!
ReplyDeleteI order whatever it is that I want- whether it is healthy or not healthy. If it isnt's so healthy, I try to savor it and eat until my stomach feels full. I try to remind myself that I can always take it home and eat it tomorrow, so there's no reason to eat it all at once.
ReplyDeleteAll the food looks good, and nothing is better than the trio of Lucky (in love too), rich, and skinny!
ReplyDeleteTake all 3!
Secretia
I hope to get a wii fit soon-we can compare :) Sometimes I do good-sometimes not so much :(
ReplyDeleteI stick to my way of eating when I go out to eat 98% of the time.
ReplyDeleteFor me that means I might get a cheeseburger with no bun (eat with fork and knife) and sub steamed veggies for the fries. I'll ask for real butter for my veggies (none of that margarine crap) if they're not already buttered.
Or a salad with shrimp/salmon/chicken/beef on top, with oil and vinegar dressing (a lot of other dressings have gross oils like soybean oil or canola oil, and hidden sugars - especially the low-fat ones).
Or a steak or piece of grilled salmon or chicken, with veggies on the side. No restaurant has ever refused to replace fries/potatoes with veggies. heh.
At Miyo's for example, I would've done exactly what you said you could have done... get the meat+veggies+sauce , no rice, no sushi. Or if I wanted sushi I'd get sashimi tuna - my favorite-and there's no rice/fried stuff!
If you start classifying everything as a "special occasion," nothing is special anymore. With the gingerbread lattes or pumpkin spice lattes, it's not special... they have it every year. Or if you wanted it in June they sell the flavor syrups at Amazon.com. Totally available all the time.
Going out to eat isn't special either... even if you don't do it often (I don't). It's the company you're with that's special, not the food.
And if you're used to "splurging" every chance you get, then isn't it more special if you resist? Like if you see Starbucks or even go in because someone else wants something but you don't buy something? Or you get water or plain coffee or tea? Wouldn't that be a triumph?
PS there are always seasonal items... soon it will be the St.Patty's day milkshakes at Chick Fil A (don't they do some mint chocolate thing?)... then who knows what. But there is ALWAYS a seasonal treat to tempt you. You just have to get out of the mindset that there is ANYthing "special" about it.
ReplyDelete@JoyfulAbode - I didn't know those oils were "gross." And I've done the substitute-veggies-for-french-fries thing plenty of times - it's a good tip! I have to kind of bump heads with you here, though. I'm not classifying EVERYTHING as a "special occasion." I got caught up in doing that last year and wised the eff up. You're right - when too many indulgences get blamed on "special occasions," nothing's special anymore. I don't go out to eat very often, and when I do, it's rare that I go off-plan (like I did with this sushi roll...I haven't been out to eat at a real restaurant in months!). "Special" to me IS once a year, and during this window of time, I haven't gone to Starbucks every day or even every week, for that matter. I do have sugar-free pumpkin spice syrup (and several other flavors) that I use in coffee sometimes, but it's nothing like the good shit they sell at Starbucks, and I'm certainly not about to buy a giant industrial bucket of it to have at my fingertips all year. Besides a salad last month, I don't remember the last time I had fast food, so I've never had any other seasonal crap out there like that milkshake. Christmas is over. I don't see myself going to Starbucks again any time soon. I've had my last seasonal item, I went back to my plan today, and I'm ok with the "splurges" I've had during Christmas. If I had passed them up and missed my chance, I would've felt deprived, not triumphant. And I've even lost weight over Christmas, so THAT'S the real triumph! :D
ReplyDelete@June - thanks for the comment! I've been good about getting away from that "I'll start tomorrow" mentality, so I'm so over that little setback!
ReplyDelete@Amanda - I'm with you - I don't eat out a lot, and it's not like I'm going to get a giant greasy cheesesteak and fries, but if I go somewhere I don't ever go, I'm more likely to fudge a little bit.
@Secretia - I wish good things for you in the new year, too!
@Candace - when you do get one, let's be Wii friends!!
@JoyfulAbode - I forgot to say thanks for commenting :)
When I go out to a restaurant I usually try to look at the menu and plan out what I am going to order and see if I can make any substitutions. Sometimes I splurge, sometimes I don't it really depends on my mood.
ReplyDeleteAbout the veggie/soybean/canola oils...yeah, they're really processed (compared with things like olive oil or butter) and I've mostly cut them out, so now when I eat something that was cooked in them I get a killer headache. Just shows me how bad they were in the first place, you know? If they don't bother you I guess it's not a problem.
ReplyDeleteAnd sorry if I made you "prickle." Everything I was saying was from my own experience... I know I used to treat a lot of things as "special" occasions even if they really weren't. Girl nights, having people over for dinner, going out to eat (anytime), going to someone's house for dinner, visitng family, etc. Took me a while to get over that.
And about resisting splurges... I know it makes ME feel better afterward when I resist. If you feel better splurging that's fine for you! I love going to Panera here with girl friends and usually get that chicken apple salad thing or broccoli cheddar soup - with an apple as my side. But you know when you're standing in line, you go right past the bakery stuff... I hardly ever eat any baked goods/breads anymore, but they do still tempt me sometimes when I'm staring at them.
I've managed to avoid them every time so far and that makes me feel amazing... and every time I go into Panera it makes me feel a little stronger.
Again, not trying to lecture you or anything. I'm just sharing my experiences and what I've learned works - FOR ME. You are a different person and I can't get into your psyche so... you have to make all those calls for yourself. Sorry if I agitated you!
@JoyfulAbode - I took your comment as more "preachy" than you meant it, but I'm glad we cleared it up! And I think we're miscommunicating about what we consider "splurges," and I think there are several types, but I won't begin to try to explain, because it'll probably only make sense to me, but that'd be ok anyway. I digress.
ReplyDeleteAt Panera (which I love, too!), I always get a salad. Back in the day (before I started trying to lose weight), I'd usually get an awesomely nasty panini and would probably grab a cookie + coffee drink on the way out, rationalizing to myself, "I don't at at Panera every day, so this is ok for me to have," even if I ate there once every week. Nowadays if I go there (which is maybe twice a month, and I don't consider it a "real" restaurant), I might look at the bakery case and drool a little, but I never indulge. And if I did, you're right - I'd feel really bad about my lack of willpower afterward. It takes guts and conviction to go into a tempting situation like that having made your mind up ahead of time, and total balls of steel to actually stick to your plan. I'm proud to announce that I have balls of steel (95% of the time).
Tonight I went out to eat with Kaycee, Kate, and Lofton because the latter two are going back to their respective "homes" later this week. I was worried at first because they said they were going to a Mexican restaurant, and even if you order just a fajita and only eat the meat + veg, you still don't know what kind of scary things they cook it with (even if you ask...something tells me places like that aren't guaranteed to honor special requests). I was relieved when the plans changed to McAlister's. I had a salad with grilled chicken, dressing on the side, and extras left off. I enjoyed the company, tried one bite of the other girls' dinners, and felt great about my choices. I had my one "I'm never at Miyo's" sushi roll (and I didn't get an alcoholic drink which I ALWAYS did at Miyo's!) and "last of the season" latte splurge yesterday, so consuming something off-plan AGAIN today would've been stupid, dangerous, counterproductive, etc.
However, if I had gone into the situation saying SALAD SALAD SALAD and caved at the last minute and had a supremely gooey cheesey sandwich and said "oh it's a special occasion, I can do it this once," I would've felt like shit afterward, both figuratively and gastrointestinally. It's all those "I can do it this once"es that put me in the position I'm in now, and I'm proud to say I've pretty well got it figured out (for myself)!
PS - Damn the lack of emotion/inflection/verbal cues in plain black and white text...I'm sorry if I misread your intentions with your comment, but I took it as a semi-attack. Buddies? :)
@Randi - my friends make fun of me usually because I nerd out and look up the menu ahead of time online, too! Usually when I'm able to pick out my meal from the menu on the website, I'll stick with it unless there's some outrageously awesome special that sounds like a better choice.
ReplyDeleteyeah the internet is rough. buddies of course.
ReplyDelete