In January of 2010, when we found out I was pregnant, I gave up my almost weekly date with a bottle of wine. First off, you're thinking, a bottle? And I'm nodding my head yes. Did I finish it? Not always. But I always tried. Being originally from North Dakota I've been surrounded by a peer group that would argue 'that's nothing.' Now, well over a year into extreme moderation (I enjoy a glass of wine on a rare occasion), my body would most likely disagree. Do I miss it? Sometimes. But with breastfeeding and teeny babies, I don't partake in anything resembling debauchery.
While I was pregnant, I also consumed a cup of coffee per day. And when Dax was born, I upped it to two. I read that caffeine in moderation while breastfeeding would be fine. When we wondered why our infant son didn't sleep well, I quit. I wanted to eradicate any "ifs" from the equation. And I hated to admit it, but quitting caffeine helped. Dax slept easier than he ever had before.
And so here I am: boozeless, caffeine less, and even cigarette less. Stronger? Sure. In dire need of a girl's night out? Absolutely.
Instead,
we push further.
Dave has been feeling all sorts of ick lately. His job is so stressful that he has gained weight over the last year, and it's really been bothering him lately. I assure him that I think he's super hot like all the time and he like totally is, but it's hard to convince someone of that when they aren't feeling it.
So we got together and decided to do some lifestyle changes. For one, I gained a pretty hefty addiction to sugar while pregnant. And for two, even though I'm fairly thin, I don't think it's good to eat junk even if it doesn't cause weight gain. It affects the mental and long-term health. Third, eating better is on my list of to-dos this year. Last, I want to give Dax the best formulated milk EVER!
We decided to write out a list. A list of five things we wouldn't eat. We could eat anything else. Just not these things:
candy
ice cream
chips
soda
fast food
Extra caveat: Pizza only on Saturdays. That might sound silly to ya'll, but we LOVE ourselves some pizza.
Extra caveat: Once a month, we eat whatever the f we want. Coming soon...Superbowl Sunday!
And so there it is. I didn't think my addiction to sugar was that bad, until the last couple days I've had a debilitating headache and mood swings like a mad woman. It's amazing too, when you deny yourself something, it brings to light how often you reach for things.
There's our challenge. Trying to break our bad habits without being too crazy strict about it. Trying to make lifestyle changes. The theory is: when you can't reach for your go-to crap basket, you'll be forced to make healthier choices. So far we're feeling pretty good. I'll keep you posted...
What have you all done to create better eating habits?
3 comments:
That is brilliant making a short list of things you can't eat rather than starting out saying I won't put an ounce of sugar in my body again...just setting yourself up for failure going that route. Sounds like you've set yourself up for success!!
I agree brilliant. During my pregnancy I had also gained a crazy addiction to sweets mainly chocolate anything chocolate (and it never went away) and it's been killing me because I've gain 6 lbs since October over the holidays and such.
Well 4 days ago I started on a bit stricter diet to finally loose the 6 lbs + 10 :)
Anyhow I said all this because the first day I started this diet I had the biggest and longest headache of my life. I didn't not realize how dependent on sugar I had become.
Good for you for being so supportive of your husband and wanting to change your life too that is very admirable.
I have a big sweet tooth too and like to have dessert everyday but DH and I have replaced it with fruit or no dessert at all for the most part. I don't like depriving myself because then I think of what I'm depriving myself of constantly. Everything in moderation, right?
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