Cake for Dinner - Healthy Diet Take Two
So they say it takes 30 days for you to make a new habit.
Well apparently, for me it only takes 28 days to break it.
I type this as I sit eating a piece of Bulla Cake (shout out to all the Jamaicans) with cream cheese & a slice of hard dough bread ... for dinner.
Yes, cake for dinner.
I can't believe I'm back to my old habits after doing so, so well for so long.
For those of you who don't know, during the month of February I made a temporary change to my diet and completely cut out meat, processed foods, sugar, sweets etc. It was a personal decision for reasons other than health or weight loss but as I went along I was so surprised at how well I was doing that I felt like I could continue the habits I was creating. I was almost certain of it.
I was eating fruits and vegetables which I rarely did unless they were in a burger or the occasional salad. Occasional meaning maybe once a per quarter, to satisfy a craving. I was regularly making dishes with beans, which for me were usually cooked in sugar and pork and covering a hot dog or in a burrito. More over, I was also cooking! Almost, every day! Real cooking not just heating up frozen food.
I was proud of myself. I made the time, I searched for recipes, tried new things, and I created a diet of stuff I would actually eat and enjoy. I felt great too. I had energy despite not having 2 - 4 cups of coffee per day, my joints stopped hurting, my skin was having fewer breakouts and as a bonus healing faster, plus I shed a few pounds without having to exercise or starve myself.
But it didn't last. I've slowly realized that there has been less and less natural food in my meals. The only habit I've kept are my breakfast smoothies which still have fruits, vegetables, whole grain, and nuts. In other meals the beans were the first thing to go, followed by the nuts, and vegetables. Eventually I stopped making dinner and lunch all together and would just bring what whatever was in the house which was usually some form of pasta, meat and white rice, or left over takeout. The takeout wasn't so bad at first because I had been buying healthier options but even that winded back down to frozen pizza.
And here I am with my little piece of cake and cream cheese for dinner.
I let time and poor planning get the best of me. I lost this battle way before tonight. I had stopped planning my meals for the week, going shopping for fresh foods, and preparing my meals ahead of time so that when I was in a rush or came home late I would have better options.
I didn't prepare the tools that I knew I needed to succeed. I used to blame the lack of time for my diet but in February I proved that I COULD eat well despite having a busy schedule I just didn't keep it going.
Well, Onward.
Back to the drawing board to give it another try. I am apparently my own worst enemy but I know that "even I can't stop me."
