Monday, August 6, 2012

Still Rockin' This Lifestyle!

I'm learning all kinds of new stuff as I wade through the waters of my new lifestyle. I researched the difference between wheat and gluten because I thought they were the same thing. Wrong....sorta. Wheat is found in anything made with wheat flour: bread, pasta, cookies, cakes..... *sigh*  Gluten is in wheat, but also in other grains: rye, barley, pumpernickel...... also a *sigh* but not as much as the wheat stuff. I haven't been diagnosed with Celiac's disease or wheat/gluten intolerance, but I've certainly had some symptoms (bloating, gas, diarrhea, and other yuckiness) which I have not had since I began to eliminate wheat from my diet (yay!). I allow myself a treat on special occasions or a bite here and there (off The Husband's plate, of course), but I know I'm better off without these things in my system.


There is one thing I know about me, however, and maybe you deal with this too. I love, love, love my chocolate, ice cream, and anything with buttercream icing. If I had to picture the rest of my life without these things, I know I'd feel shortchanged and deprived. I'd eat 'em anyway (rebel here, remember!) and probably way more than is healthy or necessary. But if I have a little taste here and there, I don't binge. But I also don't compromise. I went to a birthday party this past week and they had cake, a fan fave (I'm the fan). But it had that whipped shit for icing instead of buttercream. No thanks! If I'm gonna treat myself, I want the goooooood stuff!


I think The Husband gave me a compliment this week. He told me that my butt was smaller. Frankly, I don't see any difference so I said, "Really??" His answer: Ohmigod YES! So if my butt still looks big to me, but he says it's smaller, how fucking BIG was my ass??? And he was soooo emphatic I was a little shocked. When he saw my reaction, he tried to make it all sound better, but it just got worse. I guess the good news is that it's getting smaller....apparently. And, let's be honest, spouses are usually in a no-win conversation when it has to do with weight issues. So I've decided that, YES, it was a compliment.


We had family in for the weekend, so my eating wasn't quite as pristine as it has been. I made my famous chocolate cake because they adore it (everyone does!) and had a couple of small pieces, but sent most of it back home with them. There is one piece left for The Husband....and I'm not touching it! We had a great visit and I even got some laps in while they floated in the pool. Best news: I'm down two pounds today.


I'm still listening to my Slimpod, and I still love it!!


How's your battle of the bulge gone this week? How do you handle company and your eating style when the two collide?


Have you been there?

5 comments:

  1. Congrats on the small butt appearance. Woo-Hooo!  And hubbies don’t lie when it comes to compliments, right? Suddenly I hear the echo of female snickering.  Wonder what that’s about…
     
    Congrats, again, on your successful lifestyle changes. More Woo-Hooos!
     
    Congrats on the 2 pound loss, Woo-Hoooo!
     
    As for denying one certain foods….well, I have a philosophy in my pre-golden years.  This mindset comes from “dieting” since I was 14 years old, and denying myself all those delicious FUN foods; like cake, cookies, ice cream, even guacamole dip (it’s sacrilegious I tell you!).
     
    EVERY THING IN MODERATION
     
    Yep, I eat 1 cup of ice cream after spending the day mowing the lawn. It’s no different than drinking a beer. I savor that 1 ounce slice of cheese cake 2-3 times a year. Oh! Every six months I enjoy 2 cups of Chicken Alfredo. Where this is heading quite apparent… *LOL*
     
    When eating those fun foods in moderation, I no longer crave them to the point of binging. Also, TOTALLY denying one’s self of certain foods, I believe, sets a person up for failure. Over and over again. So in my lifestyle there are no taboo foods, just foods I cannot have A LOT of, even barely a little bit…
     
    Dear Claire, I encourage you to find that faultless lifestyle foundation, foothold, ideology, etc. As long as it leads toward YOUR level of success, then fully live it.
     

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  2. Hi Claire, I too have been through this journey. After a lot of research and finally deciding to try a gluten free diet, I've never felt better. After taking it completely out of my system for two weeks, I cheated and  ended up feeling sick within 30 min. of eating. I love me some chocolate, pizza and beer. These were very hard to give up, but I feel so much better now, it's really not even worth it anymore. It's depressing and very overwhelming at first, but I promise it gets better.  There are so many more options out there for us gf intolerant. You just have to do a little more planning ahead than what you are used to. It will eventually become a habit and you will be able to look back and remember how tired you always were, or how much the bathroom was a part of your day. I'm presently on a program recommended to me called Unique Healing. I strongly recommend the book! It was like, finally someone understood what I was going through. Good luck girl! Don't let anyone make you feel crazy for listening to your body...there's a lot of doubters out there.

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  3. I agree -- treats are ok in moderation. I'm still experimenting with the wheat and will see how it goes, but I *do* feel better without it.

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  4. Thanks, Kari! It'll be interesting to see exactly where I end up with all of it. I feel better too and am not missing it (wheat stuff esp) like I thought I would. I'll check out the book. Thanks for the recommendation!

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  5. Hi Claire,

    I have been there.  When my angel was a itty bitty she went collicy and the doc's said it was normal but I knew better!  I cut out dairy and gluten, and immediately the crying slowed and then stopped after a few days.  She became a perfect baby unless I ate gluten or dairy.  My favourite treats that I still go back and eat are: Pamela's brownie mix, Pamela's cake mix, Gluten Free Pancake mix baked in a cake pan and topped with fruit and drizzeled chocolate, and on occasion I will pick up a pack of gluten free frozen pizza crusts (the only kind I found that taste good) and make some pizza!  I found the pancake mix can be made into blueberry muffins pretty easily too (just have to make sure they are dried blueberrys otherwise the muffins will be all gooey).  It can be very very yummy to be gluten free once you get the hang of it!

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Yes! I've been there, Claire!