Rewarding myself

Ana and Christy both expressed concern on my tendency to 'reward eat.' When I was talking to Christy, I wondered aloud what I could use as a reward. For her, a trip to the gym or just vegging in front of TV fora few minutes is a treat for her. Honestly, I lead a pretty selfish life. I have few responsibilities and pretty much can do as I please. A trip to the gym is basically a daily occurrence, I watch TV based on my schedule. Since I'm so cheap, I don't want to buy unnecessary things as a reward. Plus my weight loss is much less drastic now do it would be hard to choose a threshold. I've been thinking about this all week. How to encourage myself to make good choices? I decided a points system is best. For every good choice, temptation I don't give into to - I will reward myself a point. Then I'll accumulate points. Not sure what the threshold will be but when I hit like 50 or 100 then I'll allow something frivolous. This way it's like linking the cheap, saver in me with my need to make good choices in my eating!

Travel

This week was tough! Good food and no control of my schedule. I give myself a 7 out of 10. I stayed away from the empty calories for the most part but the desserts got to me. Oh sweets why do I love you so? I had several small victories, no fries with Chick-Fil-A, skipping the potato chips at lunch. However I didn't resist the cookies with lunch and had dessert with dinner. How often will I get a peanut butter mousse?!? I was good and worked out so that slightly offset it but it just reminds me why I'm glad I don't travel often for work. It's a landmine! I'll take my normal hours that allow me to control my food and hit my favorite classes at the gym. Occasionally it is fun & a treat. :)

I regress

So I celebrated my birthday for two weeks with totally off the wagon eating. Cake, Olive Garden, vacation... I had no self-control. It was really hard to stop. Today I talked to Ana who brought me back to earth. I worked hard for my deadline of 2/23 and without a goal I've floundered. My "reward" eating is back. "I've earned it", "it's vacation so it's allowed". Slippery little slope and I was back in my old (size 18) mindset. Amazing how easily it was to return to my old ways. So starting tomorrow I am back. It'll be tough this week as I'm traveling for work but small victories and control will dictate my life again. I go to my physical in a few weeks. Last year I told the doctor I was "working on" getting my weight under control. I have and I don't want a couple weeks to undo some of my hard work. March 29 is the new goal, I want to remain in the low 170's so my achievement is properly reflected. It's a hard road but I just must remember how fleeting the enjoyment is. "A moment on the lips, forever on the hips!"

It's a fake!

I have become quite the connoisseur of apples in the last 6 months. When fruit became more expensive in the fall I needed to replace my strawberries or grapes with something and apples were in season. So apples it was! Ana suggested adding peanut butter for some healthy fat and a new obsession was born. I tried out various types of apples (I like Pink Ladys, not so much for Galas) but settled on good ole Granny Smiths. Crispy and slightly tart they are a great match for the peanut butter. Now apples can be expensive. I started buying at Fairway (paying by the pound) until Trader Joes (henceforth known as TJs) started to stock Granny Smiths. They charge by the apple so it's much cheaper. I'm the crazy girl that stands examining apple after apple until I get the best deal, the holy grail - big and bruise free. I strive to get the most for my dollar at TJs. Now don't misunderstand me here. I LOVE TJs. There food is great, made in a healthy way and such a good deal. Typically I don't notice a difference in quality based on the price. Inexplicably, TJs can just make things cheaper without me noticing. However, that is not generally true in their produce. There is a noticeable difference in produce from Fairway or West Side Market and TJs. It's a real splurge for me to get Fairway or West Side because it's more money but I usually tell which grapes are from TJs. Apples sadly are no different. At times my Granny Smith is not a Granny Smith. It's a runt of the litter. Usually, the problem is the apple is not as crisp as it should be. It's just a huge mid-afternoon disappointment to bite into the apple and have it be a counterfeit Granny Smith. Today was one of those disappointing apples so I thought I'd share. Bring on the real Granny Smiths please - no compromises for me!