Food to Die For

I love food.  There are very few things I don't like.  One of my successful Take Shape for Life friends has challenged herself to only say "love" when referring to God or people and talks about "enjoying" food instead of "loving" it.  I think that's a great attitude and I aspire to truly think that way, but when I'm honest with myself, there are a lot of foods that I love to eat.  There have been times when something is so over-the-top delicious that I've said, or I've heard someone else say, "that is to DIE for!"  What we mean, of course, is that the food is beyond-description yummy.  

Because I've described food as "to die for" on numerous occasions in my life, I was interested to see an article posted on the internet a while back with the title "7 Foods to Die For."  Naturally I had to check them out!  The seven foods were an assortment of some of the latest menu offerings at national chain restaurants, including a milkshake that is over 2,000 calories!  The foods listed weren't in the article because they were delicious beyond description "to die for," they were listed because these are the types of foods that are literally killing us.  Another menu option on the list of "to die for" foods was a huge hamburger with all of the fixings nestled between TWO grilled cheese sandwiches (the sandwiches took the place of the bun).  The food industry seems intent on finding new ways to help us put on weight, clog our arteries, and raise our blood pressure and blood sugar, and far too many people are lining up and shelling out money to do just that.  

At a time when more people are obese than at any other time in history - HISTORY!! - and when excess is celebrated in so many circles, those of us on Take Shape for Life are truly doing something counter-cultural.  We are lowering calories, temporarily limiting options, and learning the difference between full and satisfied.  We are also learning what it means to make new and better choices by staying focused on what we want - a healthy, thin body.

There are a number of things I would die for - my faith and my family are at the top of that list.   There are also things I'm not willing to die for, and food is at the top of THAT list!  After losing 126 pounds on this program and maintaining my weight loss for over six years (thank you, Jesus!), I know that I am no longer digging my grave with my fork.  I enjoy food, and I may even kind of sort of love it (sometimes), but die for it?  Never!

There are so many food choices out there, and some are literally to die for.  It's up to each of us to decide for ourselves what we'll choose, and the choices we make are based on what we decide is most important to us.  Choose wisely :-)

It All Adds Up!

Do you ever get tired of staying on plan?  I know I did!  Does it ever feel pointless to open up yet another Medifast meal?  Especially for those who have a lot of weight to lose like I did, getting to goal will require months and months of opening a Medifast meal five times a day, weighing our lean, measuring out our veggies.  There may be times when it becomes boring, or at least not very much fun anymore, and you may wonder if it's worth it.

I remember reading a story about a freshman named Mike at the University of Illinois who, in 1987, found a unique way to finance his education.  He convinced a popular columnist at one of the Chicago newspapers to ask his readers to "send in a penny for Mike."  Mike just asked for a penny because he reasoned that a penny doesn't mean anything to anyone.  He guessed that every reader would find loose pennies in their house, under couch cushions, in their car - forgotten and not valued.

To everyone's surprise, people began sending in their pennies, and in less than a month the fund was up to 2.3 million cents, with donations coming in from all over the United States as well as Mexico, Canada and the Bahamas.  Mike eventually ended up with $28,000 - those pennies added up!

The little things we do today add up! Each Medifast meal in and of itself may seem of little value - but put together, day after day, it adds up!  It's hard for us to have the big picture sometimes when we face what feels like the monotony of yet another day on plan, but there IS a big picture - and it's you at goal :-).

And you'll get there, one day, one meal and one choice at a time.  Choose wisely :-)