Well, last night was certainly an interesting night in the food department! One of the challenges I face in Maintenance is deciding when I'm going to throw caution to the wind for a meal and when I'm not, and there are often several factors that I have to take into consideration.
On the one hand, I'm diligent about eating healthy and maintaining a healthy weight. I never, NEVER will go back to my former morbidly obese weight of 268 and risk reintroducing diabetes and a host of health issues into my life. As a result, I'm pretty picky about where and how I'll spend my calories. It really needs to be spectacular for me to spend those extra calories!
On the other hand, I don't always want to come across as the person who won't eat anything "fun" because I want other people to know that they can be "normal" once they reach a healthy weight. I want to be a good example of what balanced eating is all about, and sometimes that includes splurging on calories.
Last night was the fall kickoff for the women's ministries at my church. The announcement in the bulletin stated that dinner would be served at this kickoff. Because I am careful about what I eat, I e-mailed our church secretary and asked what was on the menu. She said that the theme was "Back to School" so the dinner menu would be a typical school lunch: sloppy joes, tater tots, jello with fruit cocktail, carrot sticks with ranch dressing, and pudding cups for dessert. YIKES!!! My first thought was, "no wonder our kids are getting fatter and fatter!"
I decided that I would eat at home (lean meat & a veggie!) and go for the fun and fellowship, not the food. I knew that the food would be really deficient in nutrition and frankly not that good - certainly not worth spending lots of calories on! My mom went with me and she also ate dinner at home, so we just sat and chatted while the others ate. Interestingly enough, nobody seemed to pay the least bit of attention to the fact that we weren't eating. Had anyone commented, I planned to simply say that I ate dinner at home and wasn't hungry - I certainly wouldn't have gone into a spiel about healthy versus unhealthy eating :-).
What I did determine before I went to the kickoff last night was that I wasn't going to eat that meal just to "fit in" with everyone else. I also knew that I've reached a point where I don't feel the need to justify or explain my choices to anyone else. Being comfortable with the choices I make is a wonderful - and very freeing - thing! I've learned to ask ahead of time what's on the menu so I know how to plan. Again, sometimes I'll make the decision to eat what's served and other times I'll opt out, as I did last night.
I'm sharing this today to let you know that Maintenance has its share of challenges and choices, and sometimes those choices are easier than others. Establishing healthy eating habits now and becoming confident in the choices you make now will serve you well as you reach your goal and begin the rest of your thin, healthy life. You'll get there one day, one meal, and one choice at a time. Begin now to choose wisely :-)
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