love my new lifestyle change

pxbride13

I decided to remove all bread, pasta, rice, desserts and alcohol from my meals during Lent, however, after five days, I've been feeling so good that I'll keep it going after Easter. The first few days was trying, but I noticed I was so dependant on that stuff in every meal. This gave me a much need wake up call. I haven't eaten as many veggies, fruits, and lean protein in my life! Pleasant surprise.

sarahlm619

Life changes are always the way to go vs diets -- congrats - happy you found something that makes you feel wonderful!

JuneBug629

Wow, I would love to do that but not sure I can. Can you give me examples of what and how often you're eating? Are you full?

pxbride13

Thank you, sarahlm619! @JuneBug629, I just make sure to eat a small snack every couple of hours...fruit, light cheese, veggies with hummus, boiled egg, nuts. For breakfast, I switch it up between fruit smoothie with light, un-sweetened soy milk, or plain Greek yogurt and fruit. For dinner, I try to have lean meat or fish, salad, and plenty of veggie sides. Mix it up, do an Asian recipe one night, then switch it up to Mexican or BBQ another night. I do use a little sauce/dressing here and there but I keep it to a very small amount, just enough that is needed for a subtle hint of flavor; however, squeezing lemon, lime, grapefruit, etc., over the meat works wonders. I can honestly say that if I didn't have Lent to push me to keep my promise, I wouldn't have lasted more than a day or two. I kept telling myself I'll go on a diet but I always procrastinated. The meals keeps me satisfied. I do want to lose weight, but my goal was to eat less processed foods and more fruits/veggies. It's so stressful to lose weight so I made myself focus on what I was eating instead. I hope this helps.

pxbride13

...I would like to say that I could eat "the bad but good to eat" stuff sparingly, but I don't have the self-control to stop once I start. I figure I should just completely cut it out. I'm sure I'll allow myself a freebie meal on my birthday, but nothing more. I have to be disciplined.

Tandra&Devin

Congrats!  I gave up soda for Lent but I'm also going to continue on without it.  I kinda miss it, but I do feel great without it. 

I do agree that using natural juices on your food instead of condiments is a great way to cut calories and not flavor.  I love shrimp with cocktail sauce, but I switched to using generous squirts of lime instead and it's even better

firsttimersluck

Tandra, you won't miss it for long. :] 

I grew up drinking 3 diet Pepsis a DAY *gag* and haven't had a soda in a few years... NEVER do I have the urge to drink one now, but my cravings for soda stopped completely at about the 2-3 month mark. 

good job on choosing a great thing to cut out for lent and life!  

Tandra&Devin

Thanks!  I gave up sodas once before in college, but I only lasted about two months before I found myself at a get-together with only pizza and soda...after that one can I couldn't ignore my cravings.  I felt like a junkie, lol.

firsttimersluck

haha eh.. we all have our weaknesses.. Mine is oreos )  I know what you mean, though! I have learned to just ask for a glass of water in those situations because now if I even have half a soda I get a wretched headache from the sugar. >_< I guess that's a good thing!