Have you been keeping up on my series about using Real Food to lose weight? If you need to catch up, here you go:
It’s diet time, let’s pull out the rice cakes. Yum, yum, yum. Or bland, bland, bland, however you want to look at it. But you’re on a diet, that means that you can’t eat anything that tastes good, right?
Thank goodness this common myth just isn’t true! One of the best things about cutting out processed food is that you suddenly realize just how delicious Real Food can be. The ingredients are higher quality, without lots of yucky additives covering up the real flavor of food. Plus, you are cooking more foods at home, so the ingredients are fresher, too. Delicious food is good for you, and you should enjoy eating!
But how does this help you lose weight? Let’s talk satisfaction, because really, the ultimate goal of eating is to be satisfied, right? If what you are eating is a bunch of fast food French fries, satisfaction will usually come from quantity of food rather than quality. No wonder you are so tempted to super size those fries! On the other hand, if the food tastes amazing, you can be satisfied with quality instead of quantity.
This time I have two challenges for you. First, I want you to examine your shopping habits. What can you do to find higher quality ingredients? You will find produce that is more fresh at local farmer’s markets or co-ops, with the bonus that food bought this way is usually cheaper, too! For the things you can’t get cheaper (high quality, grass fed organic meats and dairy, for example), keep in mind that because it is higher quality, you can buy less. You can find a bunch of money saving ideas right here to keep those good ingredients within budget.
Challenge number two: I want you to get dramatic, overly theatrical about how much you enjoy your food. No more eating in the car or in front of the TV. Set your table, use nice dishes and sit down to focus on food and family. Take time to actually taste each bite. When you set the scene and eat this slowly, it makes each meal a special experience. It also makes for a more satisfying experience because you are using all your senses and really enjoying the moment. You will be surprised how fast you will feel full eating this way, and how much less food you need!
So no more icky rice cakes and crappy “diet” food, go enjoy what you eat!
This post has been added to the Unprocessed Fridays link up party over at Girl Meets Nourishment. Check out the other awesome posts here!