I ponder. The few times that I’ve written about food got more attention than the life tweaks I spend hours composing. Head scratch. How did food get to be so important? Oh, there’s no doubt that good food is divine. The trouble is it’s not the healthy stuff that’s “in our face” every time we turn around. It’s the stuff that works against our body’s best interest.You might think a thin person has no right talking about this. After all, what would she know about the calorie fight? Here’s the thing: the reason I’m thin is that food isn’t a high priority in my life, and that’s the important part. I do have my weaknesses, but try hard to save those for once-in-a-whiles. I keep them out of my kitchen, and outta my face. Ice cream cones are for lollygagging through town, potato chips for occasional burgers on the grill, and pasta for Sunday night dinners. Saving them for treats makes them taste even better. I used to save popcorn for the movies and hate that my favorite all around hardware store installed a popcorn machine last year… AT THE ENTRANCE. I guess people munching popcorn linger longer? I’m hoping they’ll eventually get tired of sweeping errant kernels off the floor, cleaning that machine, and wiping greasy fingerprints off the merchandise. But until then, I’ll fight the good fight and wrestle with myself every time I go through the door. It’s just not fair.
Food is good comfort when anxiety or depression set in. And with the collective state of waistlines I worry about why we all need this much comforting. Maybe it’s why my writing mission is helping others reduce that stress. Experience tells me that striving to alleviate stress is worth all the trouble because life with less stress is just easier.
Demoting food from a top priority is a challenge, but achieving this means minds won’t automatically jump there when they need comforting, get bored, or want to celebrate. Suggestion: Instead of trying to STOP something, it’s easier to START something that will eventually replace it. That way you avoid feeling deprived, which never works long term. Besides, concentrating on a positive keeps the ball moving forward.
So here’s a place to start: keep weaknesses out of the kitchen, and save them for once-in-a-whiles. The other strategy is to buy those foods in smaller packages so when they’re gone, they’re gone. Not hiding away in the cupboard, tempting you over and over. I have much experience with this concept and now only buy the little packages of chips. My husband tried hiding the half-eaten bag but, Eureka, I found it, gobbled it and recognized my problem! What on earth would I weigh if I could see BBQ potato chips every day. Lordy, lordy.
When good health is a top priority, the importance of food automatically drops down on the list. Above all, it feels good to feel good. My body’s done a lot for me over the years and deserves respect, not to mention that good health allows me to do what I want to do. Dancing, of course.