excising the badness

I had a conversation with my brother today. We were talking about people that say they are trying to lose weight and things that we see and have witnessed.  Is it any wonder that our society has a problem with obesity???  Is it any wonder that the city/town nearest to the small burg that I live in is listed as one of the top 5 cities in terms of obesity?

So what are we seeing?

1.  People that exercise for a half hour or so that feel entitled to eat like a starving pig.   I've completed a few 5k races and I have seen people double fisting bagels and food after the run.  Seriously?  It was 30-45 minutes of exercise.  Your body is NOT depleted that badly.  If you are fueling your body with the proper foods you do NOT need to snack after a half hour or hour of exercise.

2.  People that eat salads and other healthy foods simply because it's "healthy".  I did this for years.  I would pack carrots in my lunch box to eat at work.  This in itself is not a bad thing, until you realize that I HATE raw carrots.  Cooked carrots I love...raw taste like dirt to me!   But I was eating them because they were 'healthy' for me.  Seriously?    I'm ashamed to say that it wasn't the only food that I ate simply because it was 'healthy'.  I was eating yogurt.  Yogurt to me is only a step above snot!   (just my opinion, if you love yogurt and carrots, I don't mean to step on toes...I"m sure there are things in my food repertoire that will make you gag!).   Yes, I was fueling my body with healthy nutritious foods...but I'm a food addict and I was NOT satisfying that aspect.  I"m not saying that I need to feed my addiction, but I need to at least satisfy it...and carrots and yogurt are NOT gonna do that.  There are other foods that have the same benefits....and that WILL make me satisfied.

3.  Salads.  Yes, salads can be incredibly healthy and they can be low in calories.   BUT.....who eats a bowl of lettuce.  Oh no, the average person adds croutons, nuts, berries, scads of salad dressing and who knows what else.  Each of those things add on calories...and I know or a fact that a lot of salads tend to be more calories than having the slice of pizza that we are all dying for!   So why not have the pizza and feel satisfied. (OK, making sure to get enough fruits and veggies in your daily food intake).

A picture from my morning run!

4.  People feel that Fat free and 'health' foods gives them the license to eat double the amount.  I buy them.  I admit it. However, being fat free or low fat or low sugar foods are NOT a license to eat extra.  If a serving is one cookie....then eat one cookie...don't eat two because two low calorie cookies are the same as one regular.  Do yourself a favor....EAT ONE!

5.  Over valuing our exercise is another way that we cheat ourselves and derail our efforts.  So in the sake of fairness.  I told everyone on facebook this morning that I ran 3.5 miles.  I have to confess....it was really 3.41 miles!  But that is exactly the point.  How often to we over emphasize how hard we work.  How much we sweated and how far we went.   It's only short changing ourselves!


There are so many more.  It's time to get rid of these bad habits from my life.....and to look deeper to find more and get rid of them too!