Ok so one of the things that is ALWAYS a challenge when you are trying to eat healthier is eating out. Yesterday after class I went out with the tenth grade girls that I mentor from church. They chose…wait for it…CHILIS!
Yep, I thought the same thing you are thinking…How can you Cut the Crap THERE. Well let me inform you that it was NOT easy. They do have a “lighter fare” menu but the bottomless chips and fried cheese were really hard to resist. ( If you have no idea about Cut The Crap, go here.)
I am happy to say that I was successful in NOT eating the chips and such. I even ordered from the lighter fare menu and substituted broccoli for the rice.
All should have been well right? WRONG, when my meal came I was instantly depressed. The chicken was soooo dry and that broccoli was just bland broccoli. I sat back and watched all of the girls giggle and order more soft drinks while twisting pasta around their forks and I pouted. (Chilis does have other options on their “lower fare” menu so perhaps next time I will try something else.)
Here were my thoughts at the table:
Stupid “Cut The Crap”.
“How much longer of this CRAP?”
“I could have fixed that chicken and bland broccoli at home and it probably would have tasted better!”
When the chocolate molten cake was delivered at the table, I thought my head just might explode right there.
I didn’t have any of that either. It wasn’t that hard to resist it since I wasn’t hungry anymore but I was just plain unfulfilled :(.
On a brighter side, I did engage in lots of conversation and I enjoyed being with the girls.
All of this helped me see that a part of my mind (Rational Katina) agreed to this whole challenge thing but it left another part of my mind (Victim Katina) feeling deprived.
It is this mind conflict that may cause us to stumble when making changes. The rational part of us understands what we are doing and why but there are emotions tied into how we feel when we can’t have what we want.
Soooo, I had to remind myself:
“Craving the processed and sweet stuff is natural and the cravings will decrease over time.”
“Eating out may require a little more research than it did before) (Some restaurants have tasty healthy options and some do not. Scanning the menu online prior to going may be a good thing to do!)
But most of all:
“I am NOT being deprived. I am Choosing to Cut the Crap.”
Divas, although we are taking the Cut The Crap challenge for 21 days, the purpose is to help jump-start a lifestyle change. Changing your lifestyle means to replace unhealthy habits with healthy ones, (like exercise, good self-care, and eating nutritious foods) and to do so consistently. It isn’t something you do for a week or two, only to revert back your old ways – a lifestyle change redefines who you are.
Since we are redefining who we are, make sure you download the “Healthy Plate” to help redefine what your plate looks like! The weekend is coming and we want to be prepared!
You can enter comments here or discuss Cut the Crap on our Meetup Page!
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