Something occurred to me recently that I just have to call an epiphany in my weight loss efforts.  And really, an epiphany about my relationship with food.  So here are the gory details…

It was an Upday in my diet and I had eaten pretty well so far.  We had some ground chicken in the fridge that was going to go bad if we didn’t eat it so hubby thought he would make some chicken tacos.  Yum!  Well, he used this fancy trick that I taught him (that I learned from my dad) to make these delicious “fried” taco shells.  (Pretty funny actually because he fried my whole wheat taco shells!) 

So anyway, these taco shells absolutely stole the show!  My plan had been to just have one but as a matter of fact, I could not get enough of these tacos.  After eating one, I started working on my second one, eating it as if it was the last taco I was ever going to eat… savoring every bite… enjoying the flavor… the smell… already starting to think about eating a third one… then thinking that I had better eat as much as I can while it lasted… And that was when it occurred to me:

This is not the last taco I will ever eat! 

Sounds simple, right?  Well the truth is, throughout my life, when I am indulging in something (which before my diet was at every meal), I eat the food with this feeling of “I have to eat as much as I can because this tastes so good and I just want the flavor to stay in my mouth and this makes me feel so good and yuuuuuuuuuum.“  Kinda disgusting but those are my subconscious thoughts when eating food I love.

I eat it as if I will never get to eat that particular food ever again.  And I feel panicked about it.

So as this was occurring to me, my next thought was this:

“But if I can calm down and just enjoy my food until I am satisfied, and NOT overeat it, I have a better chance of actually getting to eat this food again!!!”

And that, my friends, was my epiphany.  That is the thought that I now can use to combat my desires to overeat.  And I swear, it has an amazing affect on me.

So here is an example of how this new way of thinking has already helped me.  Hubby, Aly, and myself took a day trip to the beach yesterday.  It was a hot day and we stopped to get some ice cream.  When confronted with making the decision on what I wanted, my instinct was to order at least two scoops or more because who knew when I would actually get to eat ice cream again?  And I wanted the delicious treat to last as long as possible so I could savor it!  So what did I do? 

I reminded myself that this would not be the last ice cream that I ever eat and that by having some in moderation, I will in fact probably be able to eat it again sooner than if I went crazy with it now.  And wow, what a calming effect it had on my mind.  It made my decision so easy.  And as I ate the ice cream, that obsession that I would usually feel in this situation was gone, as well as all the guilt and shame that would have followed because of eating so much. 

I don’t know if any of you can relate to these particular issues relating to food but if so, maybe this can help you too!  It has really helped me gain a sense of perspective, self-control, and moderation when making my eating decisions.  I am so grateful to have figured this out because I think it’s going to make a big difference for me in the long run of making healthy choices.