Still doing well

Day 2 down and I managed to finish all of my cards again.

Boot camp was difficult (no surprise there) as we did a night of Super Sets. 4 consecutive minutes of 2 exercises. I find solace in knowing that I am still pushing myself to make it the last 20 seconds of each set and noticably sore every day. That means it's working.

Sore muscles = worked muscles = burning fat, making new muscles.

Since my new approach revolves around blatent honesty, I've been forced to "face the music" as they say and answer the question..."Why am I fat?"

Sadly, there are quite a few reasons (excuses...lines...conclusions) that I came up with, but basically, they all have to do with the fact that I (used to) eat too much crap.

My vices?

• Chips. The more flavor packed, the better. I am ashamed to admit that I can remember several occasions where I sat down with a new tube of Pringles and ate them all at once in one sitting. Oh no, and not only Pringles. Lay's, Ruffles, Doritos, Cheetos...you name it, I've probably eaten at least 1/2 a bag a time or two in my life.

• Fast food. In a time where obligations consume our lives, days are too short, and cooking a decent healthy meal (quite frankly) takes too long, fast food had become my (and many other I fear) salvation and easy solution...our new best friend. I had too many excuses to NOT make dinner...no time, too tired, to busy...but now looking at it from a different perspective: How ironic is it that I would work out right after work and then get fast food on the way home...because I wouldn't have time to make a dinner? I would have been better off not working out at all, since I would consume at least DOUBLE the amount of calories that I had just burned. Or that I put the kids in sports so that they wouldn't get fat or lazy, only to get them a Happy Meal on the way home. It's pretty amazing how your mind seems to rationalize everything you do even though, when you stop and think about it, it really makes no sense at all. Not to mention...I wasted SO MUCH MONEY!

• Dips. Pair this with vice # 1, and you're sure to hit a sweet spot of mine. Ranch dressing with pizza became a VERY bad habit in our house...one that the kids are really fighting to let go. Dips for fries, chips, vegetables, fruits. Anything that "could" be healthy for you lost its potential once paired with a dip.

• Cheese & Crackers. What is it about those cans of cheese that taste so good? Is it even real cheese? I used to sit down and finish a can in 2 - 3 sittings. I could eat 1/2 a box of Ritz crackers a day...in one sitting...for a meal. 1 package would be a "snack" for me. The really sad part? I usually wasn't even hungry when I ate my snack. I just ate because my kids were having their snack.

I remember my mom, on occasion, would say to me in my early teen years, "Take some & put them on your plate. Then put the bag away." It's hard to admit that even then I was a junk food junkie, but I remember it. I, of course, pass that superb advice onto my kids today...my problem though (honesty, remember?) is............I don't follow my own advice. Plain & simple. Honestly, I probably wouldn't be in the situation I am today if I had learned portion control W-A-Y back then.

The most difficult part of reforming myself to attain my goal is portion control. I am constantly reminding myself to weigh or count my food items. What is a serving? What may be sold as one could really be meant for 2.5. I hate that about packaging companies. They're so misleading.

"Only 150 calories...per serving" though packaged for an individual, the serving count is most likely more than 1.

Even though I sink in my chair and hide while I read what I just wrote, it is good. Good to know that I recognize my vices and past mistakes of (let's face it) gluttony...and good that I have changed...or at least on the long road to change. It's good that I have learned that I can eat anything...in moderation...and even better to know that I have the will power to stay away from the foods that I no longer hear calling my name from the pantry. If they call me at all, they do so from the shelf in the grocery store...and I am now too busy to heed their calls.