Each week I allow myself one splurge.  I call it my “treat”.  My diet has always included a treat because I feel it is very important to still act like a human being while on a diet.  Seriously, I think that sometimes people cut out so much so fast and they lose it all so quickly that they forget that it’s not just a diet that we are on, but that it’s a lifestyle change.  I’m not knocking their strategies for losing weight but this is how I have to look at my own journey.  I found this article that helps explain this theory and why it’s important not to cut everything out completely.  It also provides tips on successful splurging.

I’m not just in this to lose weight so I can wear the clothes I like and look cute.  Don’t get me wrong, that is a huge reward, but it’s not my motivation.  My goal is to be a healthy person and make my older years a little easier than they might have otherwise been.  I don’t want to learn how to cut out all my favorite foods only to never have them again; I want to learn moderation.  My other goal is to teach my daughter how to live a healthy lifestyle through mine and my husband’s actions, not just our words.  I want her to grow up eating healthy foods and being active, and our hope is that with a solid foundation, she would continue that on her own. 

Now, my treat as of late has consisted of an ice cream from Coldstone Creamery.  Peanut butter ice cream with a Kit Kat Bar all crunched and mixed up in it.  Yum!  I can have whatever I want for the treat but my conscience keeps me in check.  I am definitely aware of the calories I am consuming and I like to make sure my treat is something that I deem worthy of those calories.  I’m sorry but 300 calories for a couple of crappy little cookies is just not worth it!!

So you see, this “diet” of mine must include a treat each week to remind me that this is a choice I am making.  I am choosing to live a healthier life and I am choosing to make these changes for the good of myself and my family.  This “diet” does not end. 

Do you have a treat that you splurge on every once in awhile?  I’ve noticed that the treats often are never as good as I build them up in my head to be.  But then again, they taste better than they used to because before, they were more of a fix rather than anything special. 

Treadmill Note

I just had to give an update to my 10 minute run on the treadmill run post.  Well, as you can imagine, I was not sure if this 10 minute run might be a fluke or some crazy moment of adrenaline (like a mom lifting car off toddler) or something like that.  But I did it again today and it felt great!!!  I believe I will actually be able to implement this lengthy run into my workout!  Oh YEAH!!  Can you imagine the smack I’ve been talking to the treadmill now!? 

“I eat treadmills like you for breakfast!”