"diet: (noun) a way of living, or thinking, a day's journey; This was the definition of diet when it entered the English language in the mid-1600s. So simple! So sane! How did this cute little word become synonymous with deprivation, suffering, and---let's be honest---total hell? With the Kind Diet, we are returning the word it its original definitions, for this journey is about changing how you think and live, one day at a time." The Kind Diet
Ask anyone in the U.S. and I bet you they don't know the true definition of "diet". We have become such a diet-crazed society when the real formula is simply eating healthy foods - crappy foods + exercise = weight loss and good health.
I've been lucky enough to be "one of those people" that never really had to diet. Yes, I gained weight in college (thanks to beer and living across the street from a pizza place) and when I look back at the pictures I think to myself "uhhhhh". But, I also ate french fries for lunch everyday freshman year in high school and didn't gain a pound. (Sorry Mom, you didn't know that. And no, I don't recommend trying them as an every day lunch choice.) In a way, people like me are at a disadvantage because we don't have much of a reason to educate ourselves early on about health and nutrition. We can eat whatever we want (pretty much) and don't put on significant amounts of weight (that easily), thus leading to eating crap more often than we should and not doing much about it.
Back in January 2010 when I weighed the most I've ever weighed (including my college years) I realized I ate way too much junk. I hated the way my clothes fit, how my face looked and I started to feel guilty about my eating habits. That hadn't happened before---I knew I had to make some serious changes. I started reading about the food industry, what's really in our food, how animals are treated and so on. I started out by eating "less crap" and exercising...that's it...and I lost 10 pounds that year. And more importantly, I felt better about myself.
In 2011 I started doing yoga...yoga changed my life. My mom and dad told me to give yoga a try a few years ago and I didn't take their advice until January of last year. I found myself saying "you really should have started sooner." Yoga helped me calm my mind, gave me strength and somehow my clothes started fitting better. My mom always said "you lose inches!" Yup, you do. I don't know how it happens, but after a few months of yoga you really do "lose inches." You feel better. You're more focused, more alive and stronger. It's pretty amazing. If you've been wondering about yoga, give it a try. You won't be disappointed!
I think society and the media put way too much emphasis on weight and not enough on health. We have young girls going through their teenage years with serious eating disorders because we aren't learning enough about food and nutrition at a young age. Most of us have a love/hate relationship with food. The above quote, about learning the true definition of "diet" and taking it one day at a time really struck me. We can make little improvements, one day at a time. Baby steps. It's all so overwhelming. My advice is to try changing one thing, do that for a while, then change another. You'll get there, we'll all get there eventually.
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| Why do we have a "dieting" problem in this country? Perhaps it's because critics were saying this girl is "too curvy"? Seriously... |
Today was Day 2 of my green juice experiment. Today I used a whole cucumber, broccoli stems, an apple and kale. I've been using kale from BJ's that's already washed & cut---it seems like I get no juice from it. Not sure if I'm not using the right kind or what, but I'm thinking the kale is kind of a waste. Anyway...the juice was much better today. I wouldn't say I loved it, but it was definitely better than yesterday. I'll keep working at it. I also put a scoop of Vega in my juice today; it's a supplement that I've asked several vegans about and they swear by it. It provides 50% of your daily vitamins and minerals and is 100% natural and vegan. It's a little pricey but I've decided I'm worth it and you are too. Check it out here!
Tonight my sister Kelly came to visit. We went to a great yoga class at Ryah Yoga and then came back to my house for dinner. I made potato soup and set up a buffet style salad bar with lots of veggies, sunflower seeds and candied walnuts. The soup was great! I usually like to put bacon on top but since that was a no-no this time we opted for Tastefully Simple Bacon Bacon. (For those of you that don't know I sell Tastefully Simple and love their products. Their spice mixes are some of the best I've ever cooked with!) Bacon Bacon is a soy product with no actual bacon so it was a nice alternative and gave the soup that bacon flavor you'd love in potato soup. It's amazing when you start to realize how little you need. After a cup of the soup, a piece of to-die-for Italian bread from Dolce & Clemente, and a huge salad I was satisfied and full. I've been so used to habitually incorporating meat into my meals that I never realized I didn't really need it at all. Grilled chicken is the go to addition to whatever I'm making; pasta with veggies, stir-fry and so on...now I just make them without the chicken, and I feel no less satisfied.
That's all for today, tomorrow is Day 10 and I'm still going strong.
What I ate today:
1/3 cup granola
leftover rice and stir-fry from yesterday
iced tea
1 1/2 cups potato soup
1 large salad w/lots of veggies and walnuts
My weight: 115
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