Happy and Unhappy Eating

When I’m being good, I will eat:

A half-cup of unsweetened oatmeal with a cup of stove-boiled filtered water, topped with half-an-apple cut up and a teaspoon of cinnamon for breakfast.

A fruit salad consisting of an apple, a banana, a dozen or so grapes and/or blueberries and two tablespoons of low-sugar granola for lunch.

A “Naked” fruit smoothie and a packet of 15-20 dry roasted almonds for my mid-afternoon snack when my blood sugar dips.

Salmon or chicken baked for dinner, with a big side of boiled vegetables and maybe some brown-rice based carb.

A low-sugar granola bar at 9 pm for a late-evening snack.

And a big, 16-ounce glass of water between every meal.


When I’m being bad, I will eat:

A pint of sugary cereal, such as Cinnamon Life or Kashi Crunchies, with a cup of skim milk for breakfast.

A can of soup mixed in with a cup of pasta and a 12-ounce diet Coke for lunch. I alternate this with either two pepperoni slices of pizza or an Italian hero and a soda if I’m out running errands.

Lots of little chocolate candies for my mid-afternoon snack, chased with another glass of milk. If no chocolate is in the house, I’ll have chips or pretzels with a second 12-ounce diet Coke.

Boston Market or Chipotle or, on occasion, sushi for dinner if we have money in the bank; otherwise cheese macaroni or tortellinis with the girls or some likewise quickie dinner.

A pint of Ben & Jerry’s at 9 pm.


Okay. Whew.

I actually felt confident, excited, and upbeat writing the first part of this post. And immediately came down from my psychosomatic high with the details of my bad days.

I’m bad to good by about a ratio of about 3.667 to 1 by my off-the-cuff calculations. A lot of the time I make it to lunch before derailing myself.

I do believe that at least 50 percent of my situation – some of which I explicitly mention in this blog, others I only hint about – are directly related to my diet. We are truly mind-body holistic units, the status of one intimately affecting the other in either a vicious or virtuous circle.

Being the heaviest I’ve ever been in my life, and also being in the longest, most dangerous “rut,” I have no choice but to begin here at the physical level. For a whole host of reasons, proven and suspected. A year ago this May I stuck to a similar healthy eating plan and lost ten pounds in twelve days. I’m looking for comparable results by Memorial Day.

Happy Eating!