An Update for Transparency's Sake

Well, I did not make it a week without coffee. For the last two mornings I have made and drank 1-2 cups of coffee. I definitely benefited from my diet this last week - I have been eating much healthier and I don't feel the need to drink an entire pot of coffee in the morning before even getting moving.

I wonder why I rebel so hard against setting a "diet" for myself? Being overweight has been a life-long problem, and the mantra that "diet's don't work" was a common statement in my family growing up. Funny thing is - for some people, diets do seem to work. I have friends who have lost incredible amounts of weight on the Atkins diet (which is not a diet that I want to do, it seems too unbalanced to me). I seem to do better with sort of "sneaking up" on healthier eating.

So for now, my diet is an adaptation of "The Fat Flush Plan" diet, by Louise Gittleman. This diet is more congruent with the principles of healthy eating that I have been heading towards in the last few years. I am attempting to buy mostly organic produce, and eating lot's of veggies, fruit and some protein. I am trying to only have "starchy carbs" once or twice a day, and avoid eating much flour, sugar or sodas. I drink very diluted unsweetened cranberry and lime juices (about 1 part each to 10 parts water), which is very cleansing, and has enough flavor to help satisfy the need that diet sodas used to fill.

I have lost about 10 pounds in the last two months this way, and I hope to keep it up. I get frustrated that I don't seem to be able to commit more seriously to a rigorous plan, yet I also hope to just develop a lifestyle of eating that I will be able to continue - and I like these foods. I'm trying not to set such rigorous expectations that I am bound to fail, and thus pile on more shame in my life. These are not rules, and an occasional french fry is not a sin.