Lately I’m beginning to wonder if I should hire one of those personal shoppers to make all of my food purchases.  With the exception of fast food restaurants (which I am still not eating at- 8 months and going strong), there is probably no place as full of perilous diet choices as the grocery store.  This is particularly true during the holiday seasons. For instance, right now the Halloween candy and treats are oh so tempting!  So far I’ve managed to dodge most of the bad food land mines, but I occasionally fall sway.   Having to write everything down for my trainer is certainly a good motivation to stay on track!

Unfortunately there are still bad foods that I like and that taste good to me.  As much as I want to crave a salad over a side of mashed potatoes with gravy, I don’t know if I ever will.  I don’t see myself  ever wishing I could have a peice of chicken with brown rice over a pizza with my favorite toppings.  Maybe it will happen but I doubt it.   In the meantime I am trying to keep my eye on the prize.  I’d say I’ve been doing pretty well.  Since I joined my gym in August I have not had a single week of less than 3 workouts- most of the time 4 or 5.  This includes weight training and cardio each day.  I have also been counting my calories on weekdays and keeping my intake between 1300-1500.   My current weight is 277 (36 lbs down) and I’m down one jean size. I’d love to say I had more energy, but I’m still working on that.  Right now my workouts are still wiping me out, and I’ve learned to accept being sore and tired all the time.

Anyway, I don’t mean to complain to all of you beloved blog readers but it just feels good to get these feelings out there.  Sometimes it seems like I’m living in a different world than everyone else.  I drive around and see nothing but food establishments and then I can never make the recipes I want.  Now you might say ‘go ahead indulge every now and then’ and I do occasionally.  However, the problem is if I indulge and make let’s say a lasagna, I have lasagna hanging around for a week.  This makes for an entire week of indulging.  The same could be said for almost any other recipe.  I have to be very careful what I make because most likely I will be eating it for multiple days.

I’ve already mentioned how I miss my beloved cheese but there are some other things I never eat anymore:

1. Grandma Sycamore’s white bread- this is delicious white fluffy bread that I can not dare have around.  I can seriously eat 4 or 5 pieces of toast with butter no problem.

2. Butter- I grew up on butter not margarine.  Try as I might the  ‘good’ margarine just isn’t the same as butter.

3. Snacks/Chips- There are healthy snacks that I eat but I do miss the unhealthy ones.  I like regular chips better than baked.  No matter what I can never seem to get excited about vegetable snacking.  I don’t think I have ever finished a bag of baby carrots I’ve bought.  Don’t know why.

4. Burgers/Red Meat- I know you can still eat red meat but in small doses.  It has so much fat when it is prepared correctly, with any flavor.  Plus, if you are eating a burger then you have to worry about the carbs/calories in the bun.

5. Thai food/Indian food- I have a few recipes that work with yogurt but most of both cuisines call for coconut milk which is horrible for you.  The other day I found a recipe for a thai chicken soup that looked good- It had 51 grams of fat for one serving!  Don’t think I will be making that anytime soon.

6. Pie- Especially around this time of year I love all kinds of pie (rhubarb is the only kind I don’t like).  Thanksgiving will be an exception.

7. Comfort food- there are diet versions of these foods but does that really comfort?I love stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes etc.

8.  Easy food- I work out so hard that most of the time I want a real meal for dinner, not just a salad.  Most healthy meals take a lot of prep.  Gone are the days when I could throw in a pizza or a quesadilla and be done with it.

9. Juice- Except for the occasional diet drink all I have now is water or milk.   I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss other liquids.

10. Carbs- I look longingly at the pasta aisle.  Pretty much all Italian food is difficult for me to eat.  I will occasionally eat whole wheat pasta but it isn’t as good.  Plus, I’m not eating cheese and that cuts out Italian food.

Well, thanks for putting up with a bit of complaining.  The sacrifices are worth it. I am saving my life or at least extending it.  Surely that is worth some long sighs at the market.  Ahhhh….