DID YOU KNOW THAT OVER HALF OF PEOPLE BELIEVE DOING THEIR TAXES IS EASIER THAN FIGURING OUT HOW TO EAT HEALTHY?! WE DO OUR TAXES ONCE PER YE...
DID YOU KNOW THAT OVER HALF OF PEOPLE BELIEVE DOING THEIR TAXES IS EASIER THAN FIGURING OUT HOW TO EAT HEALTHY?! WE DO OUR TAXES ONCE PER YEAR, BUT WE EAT AT LEAST 1000 TIMES PER YEAR. AND WE EAT A LOT OF FOOD: NEARLY 2,000 POUNDS PER YEAR ON AVERAGE! IF YOU FIND FIGURING OUT WHAT TO EAT CHALLENGING, THIS ARTICLE IS FOR YOU! I AM GOING TO SHARE WITH YOU WHAT ENLIGHTENED ME THE MOST ABOUT FIGURING OUT WHAT TO EAT.
FIRST… IMAGINE THE WORST LINE THAT YOU HAVE EVER WAITED IN…
WHERE WAS IT? THE DMV? A LINE FOR A RIDE AT A THEME PARK? A TELEPHONE HOLDS
WITH STALE ELEVATOR MUSIC? WHAT ABOUT A BLACK FRIDAY LINE?!? FOR ME, THERE IS
ONE LINE I HATE. THAT IS THE TSA LINE AT THE AIRPORT—ESPECIALLY AT ONE OF THE BUSIEST
AIRPORTS IN THE WORLD. THE LINES CAN BE INCREDIBLY UNPREDICTABLE. WILL MY WAIT
BE 10 MINUTES OR AN HOUR? IT’S ONE OF THE MOST IRRITATING LINES ON THE PLANET.
YOU GET IN A LINE WITH A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT ARE ALREADY STRESSED AND SHORT-TEMPERED AND YOU ASK THEM TO DISMANTLE THEMSELVES: TAKE OFF YOUR SHOES. TAKE
OFF YOUR JACKET. TAKE YOUR LIQUIDS AND LAPTOPS OUT. GO THROUGH THIS INVASIVE
MACHINE THAT IS GOING TO BEEP BECAUSE YOU FORGOT ONE THING WHILE EVERYONE ELSE
IN THE LINE GLARES AT YOU. AND THERE ARE ALWAYS PEOPLE IN THE LINE THAT JUST
CAN’T FIGURE IT OUT. IT’S AMAZING HOW FEW PEOPLE KNOW HOW TO GO THROUGH
SCREENING AND HOW MANY OF THEM, EVEN WHEN THEY ARE TOLD EACH STEP TO TAKE,
CAN’T SEEM TO DO IT. IN AN AVERAGE YEAR, JUST UNDER 1 BILLION PEOPLE GO THROUGH
THESE LINES TO BOARD AIRPLANES IN THE UNITED STATES. THAT’S ABOUT 1 BILLION
CONFUSED, STRESSED OR SHORT ON TIME PEOPLE VERSUS 50,000 SOMETIMES CRANKY TSA
OFFICERS.
NOW… IMAGINE BATTLING THIS MESS EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. THIS IS
EXACTLY WHAT I DID AT LEAST 5 DAYS PER WEEK WHEN I WORKED AT THE AIRPORT. WHERE
I WORKED ON THE INTERNATIONAL CONCOURSE, WE WENT THROUGH THE TSA PRE-CHECK LINE
WITH ALL THE REGULAR PASSENGERS. SHOULD I ADD THAT BEING ON THE INTERNATIONAL
SIDE, SOME PEOPLE THAT WENT THROUGH THE LINE WEREN’T FLUENT IN ENGLISH, AND THAT
ADDED FOR A WHOLE NEW LAYER OF FUN? USUALLY, MY 25-MINUTE TRAIN RIDE TO THE
AIRPORT WAS MY TIME TO COLLECT MY THOUGHTS BEFORE FIGHTING THE SECURITY LINE
MADNESS. I USUALLY DABBLED WITH MY SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS ON THE TRAIN. FOR A
PERIOD OF A FEW MONTHS, I HAD AN INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT WHERE I SHARED PHOTOS FROM
MY WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY. AT LEAST ONCE A DAY I WOULD GET A MESSAGE FROM SOME
RANDOM PERSON TRYING TO SELL ME A PARTICULAR WEIGHT-LOSS SHAKE. NOW THAT SHAKE
MAY HAVE BEEN AN AWESOME PRODUCT. IT MAY HAVE WORKED FOR SOME PEOPLE.
BUT, AS AN AIRPORT EMPLOYEE, I WAS NOT EXEMPT FROM
TSA REQUIREMENTS. I’M LACTOSE INTOLERANT AND WOULD HAVE HAD TO BRING IN A
NON-DAIRY MILK TO MIX THE SHAKE. CAN YOU IMAGINE ME TRYING TO TAKE LIQUID FOR
THE SHAKE THROUGH THE TSA LINE? IMAGINE ME TAKING 3-OUNCE SHAMPOO BOTTLES
FILLED WITH SOY MILK THROUGH TSA. WHAT ABOUT GETTING RANDOM FLAGGED FOR EXTRA
SCREENING? THAT TSA AGENT IS GOING TO REMEMBER ME AS THE WEIRD AIRPORT EMPLOYEE
WITH SHAMPOO BOTTLES OF SOY MILK. THE AIRPORT IS BIG, BUT THE EMPLOYEE
COMMUNITY IS TIGHT-KNIT LIKE A SMALL TOWN. I WOULD TOTALLY BE EMBARRASSED TO
SEE THAT TSA AGENT EVERY DAY. AND TRYING TO FIND A LACTOSE-FREE MILK FOR SALE
AT THE AIRPORT? NOT EASY. AND IF DOABLE, I’D PAY NO LESS THAN $7 AT A COFFEE
SHOP FOR A CUP OF SOY MILK. AFTER PAYING FOR THE SHAKE AND THE LIQUID TO MIX IT
WITH, IT WOULD HAVE LIKELY ENDED UP WITH A COMBINED COST OF ALMOST $15 TO
CONSUME A SHAKE WITH NO MORE THAN 500 CALORIES. I WAS ACTIVE ENOUGH AT THAT
TIME TO NEED MORE THAN 500 CALORIES TO SUSTAIN ME ON A SHIFT. SO IF I NEEDED
MORE THAN ONE SHAKE? THAT’S A LOT OF MONEY IN SHAKES. WE ALSO HAD LITTLE TO NO
STORAGE SPACE AT WORK NOR A BLENDER. IT’S AN AIRPORT. SPACE IS AT A PREMIUM.
I’M GETTING A HEADACHE TRYING TO RELAY ALL THE NUANCES! ON THE FLIP SIDE, I
COULD BUY A MEAL AT THE SEAFOOD RESTAURANT WHERE I WORKED THAT WAS RELATIVELY
HEALTHY AND, WITH MY EMPLOYEE DISCOUNT, MUCH LESS THAN $10 AND WITH MORE
VARIETY AND LESS HEADACHE. THE BOTTOM LINE IS THIS… IT WOULD BE A LOT OF MONEY
AND AGGRAVATION TO ADOPT THAT SHAKE INTO MY LIFESTYLE. IT WASN’T GOING TO WORK
FOR ME. AND I WOULD TRY TO POLITELY EXPLAIN THIS TO PEOPLE ON INSTAGRAM AND SAY
THANK YOU, BUT NO THANK YOU. BUT IT WAS LIKE: “YOU’RE NOT GONNA REACH YOUR
GOALS IF YOU DON’T DRINK OUR SHAKE!!!!!” REALLY?! ARE YOU GOING TO PAY MY BILLS
SO I CAN QUIT MY JOB TO DRINK THAT SHAKE? THE PROBLEM IS THIS…
OUR WEIGHT LOSS EFFORTS WILL NOT BE SUCCESSFUL IF WE DO NOT
IMPLEMENT SOLUTIONS THAT ARE ENJOYABLE AND WORK FOR OUR LIFESTYLE. LET ME TELL
YOU WHY THIS IS A PROBLEM… YOU CAN’T LIVE YOUR PURPOSE AND YOUR WHY WHILE
FOLLOWING SOMEONE ELSE’S AGENDA. IT IS SIMPLE: IF YOU DON’T ENJOY THE STRATEGY,
YOU AREN’T GOING TO KEEP DOING IT. EVEN IF IT WORKS FOR OTHER PEOPLE! DIETING
TAKES MORE THAN WILLPOWER. PEOPLE WHO SUCCESSFULLY LOSE WEIGHT AND KEEP IT OFF
HAVE SIMPLY DISCOVERED WHICH APPROACHES WORK FOR THEIR OWN LIFESTYLE. I PROMISE
YOU THAT… THERE IS MORE THAN ONE PATHWAY TO WEIGHT LOSS, AND YOU WILL BE ABLE
TO FIND SOLUTIONS THAT KEEP YOU HAPPY AND HEALTHY. THE BEST DIET IS THE ONE
THAT WORKS FOR YOU. EVEN IF IT TAKES A FEW TIMES TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS RIGHT
FOR YOU. THE GREAT THING IS THAT THERE IS MORE THAN ONE SOLUTION, IF A SOLUTION
DOESN’T WORK, IT IS NOT A FAILURE. IT JUST SIMPLY MEANS THAT YOU TRY SOMETHING
ELSE. WE AREN’T FAILING UNTIL WE STOP TRYING. WHEN I FIGURED THIS OUT, I BECAME
TRULY ENLIGHTENED ON MY WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY. IT BECAME INFINITELY EASIER AND
MORE ENJOYABLE.
SO, YOU’RE PROBABLY THINKING AT THIS POINT: OK LUCY, BUT HOW DID YOU SOLVE THIS. THIS IS HOW I SOLVED THE PROBLEM… BEFORE I PUT TIME OR MONEY INTO A PROBLEM IT HAD TO MEET 3 CRITERIA. THESE WERE… THE EATING STRATEGY HAD TO ALLOW ME FLEXIBILITY AND CHOICES. I HAD TO ASK MYSELF: WILL THIS EATING STRATEGY ALLOW ME ENOUGH FREEDOM? I WANTED PERMANENT CHANGE, SO I STOPPED FOLLOWING SHORT-TERM DIETS. I BEGAN ASKING MYSELF: WILL THIS STRATEGY WORK FOR THE LONG-TERM? I WANTED TO KEEP MY SOCIAL LIFE AND FAMILY TRADITIONS. I ASKED MYSELF: HOW WILL THIS STRATEGY IMPACT MY SOCIAL LIFE? THESE WERE THE 3 MOST IMPORTANT THINGS FOR ME, AND THERE MAY BE OTHERS FOR YOU. HOWEVER, I MADE SURE THAT THE EATING STRATEGY WAS GOING TO MEET MY TOP CRITERIA BEFORE I DUMPED ANY TIME OR MONEY INTO TRYING IT OUT. THESE ARE THE 5 MOST IMPORTANT STEPS I USED TO PUT TOGETHER MY OWN EATING STRATEGY…
FIRST: YOU DON’T GO SHOPPING WITHOUT A BUDGET. THEREFORE,
YOU CAN’T GO SHOPPING FOR A NEW DIET WITHOUT KNOWING WHAT YOUR CALORIE BUDGET
IS. THERE ARE ONLY TWO WAYS TO WORK WITH YOUR CALORIE BUDGET TO LOSE WEIGHT:
EAT LESS OR BURN MORE! SECOND: I STRUCTURED MY EATING STRATEGY AROUND PROTEIN
AS PROTEIN HELPS KEEP YOU FEELING FULL AND THUS EATING LESS. THIS CAN BE ANIMAL
PROTEIN OR PLANT PROTEIN OR BOTH! YOUR CHOICE! THIRD: AT LEAST FOR THE
SHORT-TERM, TRACK, ANALYZE, AND ADJUST WHAT YOU EAT REGARDLESS OF WHETHER YOU
CHOOSE A COOKIE-CUTTER DIET OR CREATE ONE OF YOUR OWN. MY HANDS-DOWN FAVORITE
APP FOR THAT IS MONETARY. I WILL LINK IT BELOW IF YOU WANT TO CHECK IT OUT!
FOURTH: HOW MANY MEALS ARE YOU EATING PER DAY? DIVIDE YOUR CALORIE BUDGET FOR
THE DAY BY THAT NUMBER TO GET AN ESTIMATED CALORIE GOAL FOR EACH MEAL. FINALLY,
RECORD WHAT DOESN’T WORK, SO THAT FUTURE SOLUTIONS MEET THE CRITERIA YOU NEED
FOR YOUR LIFE, HEALTH AND HAPPINESS. DON’T GIVE UP ON THE JOURNEY! IT’S
CHALLENGING, BUT IT’S WORTH IT.
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