Thursday, July 10, 2008

Changing your eating habits

I play tennis at least twice a week, with a good friend of mine. This Tuesday, we were talking about eating habits. This would be a good time to mention that my girlfriend is 5' nothing and weights 140 (or so she says). I really don't see any fat in her but she feels she could loose about 20 pounds. That is why she walks an hour every morning and plays tennis at least 5 times a week.

As we are discussing improvements in play and lifestyle, we get into the subject of eating habits. She tells me that if I get into a schedule (6 meals a day at the hours of 7,10,1,4,7 and 10) I should start seeing a difference and that my body is acting out because it feels like it is always on starvation mode. I tell her that when my niece leave on Monday, I will start. Then she proceeds to give me "THE SPEECH".

We all know "the speech". It is when someone gives you a lecture on something that you know well and that you hate getting a speech on. This one was about starting now and not when life is "perfect". And of course, I mentioned that when I quit smoking I just did it. But now, I wanted life to be a little more balanced.

When I got home, I started thinking about "THE SPEECH". And you know what? Too many times we wait for perfect conditions, a better schedule, or a lighter workload, or Monday...whatever, in search of the "perfect" time to do things right, and then, we never get around to it.

So, guess what? Yesterday, I started eating on a schedule. I did not concern myself so much with whether or not it was completely healthy ( although I included yogurt and fruits in my choices). What I was most concerned with was making sure that I got my body used to eating at certain times of the day, and controlling portions based on how full I felt when it was time to eat.

The day was fantastic. I look forward to many days like that. So should you. Keep trying.

My secret hideaway

My secret hideaway