I am writing this blog today with a satisfied feeling in my stomach for the first time since enjoying 3 Reese's Peanut Butter Cups Friday night (Oct. 31), after trick-or-treating through my kids stash, (I have a thing for chocolate and peanut butter!). I had been thinking I needed a change in some of my lifestyle habits for a while now and I guess Halloween was the last reminder I needed that there was a time when I didn't give in to such cheap indulgences. The new list of indulgences includes; coffee, oatmeal and tea loaded with honey, chips by the bag full, and a lot of gluten-free bread with "natural" jams and peanut butter.
(I originally had a picture of some chocolate and peanut butter combinations,
but I salivated, got hungry and decided I'd save you the temptation!)
I think the main things I felt these habits were affecting were my long distance running, my stagnant weight, and a combination of lethargy and restless sleep. So, I made my commitment to myself and my children that after (Halloween) I was going to have no sugar all of November.
The Game Plan
You have to have a game plan if you want to succeed in any endeavor, especially when it's something as personal as changing the habits you've become comfortable with. My thought was I could go 2 weeks with nothing remotely related to sugar or that reacts like sugar in my body. (Here is an article I found that loosely explains what I mean) The following 2 weeks I would re-introduce the sugar from low-glycemic fruits and vegetables, as well as from sweet potatoes and brown rice, at a lower frequency than I had recently become accustomed to.
Why So Strict
This may seem extreme to some, but to me, it's closer to a "natural" way of eating, and anything less is me being permissive with my eating habits. I think it's one thing to not know what is healthy and struggle with choosing what works best nutritionally, versus knowing and making excuses. We've all heard the saying "excuses are like a-holes…", I like to think in terms of habits, and when you are in the habit of making excuses your probably also in the habit of settling for mediocrity or average.
“though each habit means relatively little on its own, over time, the meals we order, what we say to our kids each night, whether we save or spend, how often we exercise, and the way we organize our thoughts and our work routines have enormous impacts on our health, productivity, financial security, and happiness.” The Power of Habit
Not that anything is "wrong" with that, I'm just striving toward the most healthy life I could imagine, and I know first-hand how good can truly be the enemy of great, and in my opinion; nutrition is more important to health than exercise, and the mindset you make your choices from is of even greater import.
2 weeks with no sugar will allow my body to break the physical addiction, and the next two weeks will allow me to break the emotional/habitual addiction to sugar in all of its forms.
Friday Nov. 7,
Today I felt even more in tune with this shift of habits as I broke through an old way of shopping and eating and ventured into unfamiliar but deliciously successful territory with my Nori wraps.
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