Diets, Diets Everywhere!

There are a plethora of diet plans out there.  I think you could spend 1 month on each diet plan and "diet" for a lifetime...never settling on just one.   So how do you know what's right?

The more I research the more I decide there is no right or wrong for everyone.  It's what YOU can stick to and what makes YOU feel good.  For some that's the ready made meals a plan like Jenny Craig offers.  For others is the calorie counting and measuring of a plan like Weight Watchers.  For others it's no carbs.  You get the idea.  What concerns me is many of these plans encourage low fat, no fat, sugar free foods.  These are exactly the kinds of foods that contain MORE artificial ingredients.  Especially sugar free foods.  I am convinced there is nothing healthy about sugar substitutes.  They are chemically created (except things like Truvia), have no nutritional value, and our bodies don't know what to do with them.

I am looking for an eating plan that doesn't require measuring and counting and weighing and charting.  I'm too lazy to do all of that.  I don't like to cook as it is, let alone have the act of making dinner take twice as long while I'm surrounded by measuring cups, kitchen scales and point counter books.  I want something that encourages less artificial and more natural.  More like "living off the land" as well as we can in society today.  Obviously we can't all live on farms and raise our own vegetables and cattle.

I have been reading up on the Paleo diet.  It's something my sister and I have been discussing off and on.  For those who may not know, it's basically going way back to our roots and eating more like our "hunter-gatherer" ancestors did.  Primarily protein, vegetables, some fruits.  It's very limiting on grains and dairy - which admittedly, as a carb and cheese lover, that will be difficult for me.  But what I like about it is it emphasizes "clean" foods.  NO artificial anything.  NO low fat anything.  NO sugar substitutes.  For me that's logical.  Our bodies are not wired for processing artificial anything.  It's a big reason why food today lacks nutrition.  They process the good stuff right out and then try to add it back in.  Next time you're at the grocery store, try picking up anything you can get in both organic and non-organic forms.  Then compare the labels side by side.  I guarantee you will be surprised at how much longer the list of ingredients is on the non-organic label.  Scary, right?

I saw a posting on Facebook the other day that demonstrated what a food label would look like if food distributors were required to list all the pesticides, insecticides, fertilizers, etc used on crops.  An organic strawberry was listed with one ingredient.  Strawberry.  A strawberry from a non-organic farm must have had 20 chemicals it was exposed to before it was picked and sent off to your grocery store.

Why are human beings getting sicker every year?  I can't help but think it's partially due to the chemicals in our foods.  Maybe I'm wrong, but I think it's working for me.

When You Fall Off the Horse, You've Got to Get Back On

I'm an emotional eater.  There's no denying it.  I eat when I'm stressed.  I eat when I'm depressed.  I eat when I'm bored.  Food is my comfort.

My other problem is that I hate to cook.  And I REALLY hate to cook when it's just for one.  My husband had done quite a bit of traveling for a few weeks and that's when I really fell off the wagon.  I found myself going for convenient foods (read processed foods) before I even really realized I was doing it.

I had been doing really well for a while with my healthy changes and better choices.  Then one thing led to another and life happened.   It's not an excuse, or at least not a valid one, but I think it shows how easy it is to slip back into bad habits.  I'm still soda free since January 8, so that's one positive.  But sweets and carbs and processed foods have crept back into my diet.  And I can tell.  I'm more lethargic.  I have more cravings again.  I'm getting headaches more often - which I equate directly to my sugar intake.   And naturally a few pounds have crept back on.

I haven't been blogging either, as I'm sure you've noticed.  And I think even that helps me stay on track.  It keeps me thinking about my choices because I want to share my successes (and failures) in hopes that I will inspire others.  So, now I am admitting that we all have our failures.  It's what we do with them that counts.

So, I'm getting back on track.  Out with the processed and in with the organic, raw and natural.  And I've decided something else I'm going to do is journal every night before I go to bed.  Even if it has nothing at all to do with food choices.  I think writing down how I'm feeling physically and mentally can only help me see how my diet, exercise and lifestyle help or hurt my overall feeling of well-being.

I'm dusting myself off and climbing back on the horse.