Originally Posted on June 17, 2011 by Karri
A good friend of mine and personal trainer at Taiso Fitness surprised me yesterday with a conversation about what she eats. We were talking about an upcoming competition she is participating in and the strict diet she was on. So, she would not be able to eat the foods she loves during the last week of preparation—foods like salad, fruit and oatmeal.
Now, when most of us think about the foods we absolutely love, it’s something indulgent like a hot fudge sundae, homemade macaroni and cheese, or (my personal favorite) oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. So, we are in love with foods that, let’s be honest, are bad for us. But Jen started talking about the foods she loves because of what they give her body.
This sounds more like the relationship couples counselors smile about.
It really got me thinking. What if I could incorporate that mode of thinking? Could I break up with doughnuts, and start going after broccoli instead? It’s a difficult transition to make, and most of us are content not to make it. Even when we diet, we dream about the little cheats we give ourselves to keep us going on the tough road. If we could bring ourselves to get that same kind of satisfaction out of healthy, beneficial foods, we would never feel like we are sacrificing something to make ourselves healthier.
I for one am going to try and grow up a bit, and wrap my mind around learning to love the kinds of foods I can bring home to mom, and stop running around with the junk food crowd.