"They Always Ask"..........is that on your diet?"

I am sure you all have been asked this burning question at some point along the way.  Perhaps it was a family member, co-worker or friend.  "Is that on your diet?"


I am on a life journey.  On this journey I have to carefully plan my caloric intake and exercise to maintain my momentum.  While I try to make my calories consumed count by eating (lean proteins, fresh vegetables, whole grains, and low fat dairy products and of course fruits) I know that I must spend some of my calorie budget on a treat now and again so that I do not feel deprived while I am learning to live my plan.  You see I build my treat into my calories.  If I eat a 150 calorie ice cream bar, it is because I have allotted for it in my daily food plan.  This is why logging food is so effective, when you know exactly how much you are consuming, you know how much you can give for a treat or not.


There is nothing more frustrating than to have carefully calculated my calories to allow for a special food or even a meal, and then have someone ask "Is that on your diet?"  First, I am NOT on a diet. Second, yes I have planned for this food.


Now some people are truly trying to help.  They think you are  "blowing your plan" which might be true if I just ordered the large Georgia Mud Fudge blizzard at Dairy Queen for 1450 calories, but it might not be true if I ordered the kid size cone at McDonalds for 45 calories.


So how do you deal with these "helpers"?  I suggest that you tell them that you plan your food budget and live within it including the food that you are now currently enjoying.  Use the opportunity to educate.


Yes, I have lost 160+ pounds.  Have I eaten a steady diet of broccoli and watercress?  NO.  I have had a well-balanced approach to my nutrition.  I make the MAJORITY of my calories be high quality, nutrient dense foods, but I have had treats.  I eat out every week.  This is how you succeed in changing from a DIET mentality to LIFESTYLE CHANGE.  You have to learn to live on a BUDGET.  Just like we do with our finances.  If you want that high calorie meal with friends at the end of the week, then you better work it off in the GYM before hand, and watch the other calories during the week. Every time I eat ice cream, my scale sees a drop the next morning.  This has been the truth for the past five years.  Why?  I think when you are limiting your foods to healthy the majority of the time that a fat laden meal or treat causes our bodies to let go of fat.  It is the only way that I can explain why that happens for me.


So next time someone sees you eating the Hershey Almond chocolate bar (210 Calories) and thinks that you have fallen of the wagon don't get upset, just explain to them about your "plan".  They most likely will be impressed on how you have learned how to include those occasional treats and still managed to lose weight.


Life's lessons!