I have been trying and trying to get back on my weight control program with no success. It is time for a change.
What has worked: going to bed early, and one other thing I just tried today. That is, I tried eating earlier in the day. I have been getting worried that by pressuring myself to eat in a controlled way during the day, I am setting myself up for feelings of deprivation that build up during the day and come out at night. This all comes down to my headspace. I am eating for the wrong reasons and seeing food as a palliative instead of a fuel.
I didn’t take a picture today.
My food intake and calorie count
Breakfast – cobbler (300);
- 300 calories
Lunch – Pane Torano Italian bread (210) ham (140) cheese (70) olive salad (50)
- 470 calories
Dinner – 5oz rice (160); veg curry (240);
- 400 calories
Snacking – croissant (300); cupcakes (340); ice cream (200);
- 840 calories
Total for the day: 2040 calories (desired limit 1700). Fitbit says I burned 3600 calories today.
Sleeping and eating
I have been feeling stressed out. To de-stress myself I am paying a lot more attention to my comfort level. In a way, all that does is make me less productive. If I feel stressed or tense I take a short break or do something else for a few minutes. On the other hand, I am feeling optimistic about my solution to the food intake problem.
It’s 10PM, I have had 2,040 calories and I don’t feel even a little bit resentful or deprived or any need to eat anything at all. That’s amazing. For the last month or longer I have been trying and failing to restrict my food intake during the day because after being careful the whole day I eat the whole kitchen at night. It’s very bad to spend the day restricting your food intake only to make it all for nothing at night. For one thing it’s a huge waste of time. It’s frustrating. And it’s disappointing. You end up not believing in yourself because of the repeated failures.
But I have learned. In that situation, what’s wrong is my own stubbornness. All I am doing is depriving myself, and that never works. I have years of evidence of that. And many failed diet attempts.
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. There’s no way to feel deprived at MY Thanksgiving!
-The Doctor