What I've Been Up To

As some of you know I now have a desk job. This makes it very difficult to go to the gym after a long day in the office. Food is constantly in my reach. So what have I been doing lately to bring down the scale without going overboard or on an extreme diet?

1. Pay attention to anything I'm putting into my mouth.
2. Exchanging one of my midday snacks with a liquid. This helps me to feel slimmer and it motivates me to keep eating well during the day. I do not drink a protein drink in exchange for a meal. It usually leaves me hungrier than before and I binge.
3. Eating more soups. A hearty soup is a great way to slim down when you don't necessarily feel like being too strict with yourself. I've been having great Spanish soup with rice, black beans, corn, chicken, and broth. It's delicious. Or typical rice, chicken, carrots, celery, and chicken broth with some good seasoning.
4. I'm not on a diet. As soon as you tell yourself you're on a diet, everything you've ever wanted all of a sudden looks so desirable! Instead, I can have a dessert if I make a conscious decision to have one. That might sound silly, but sometimes we have it just because it's there, or we're used to it. But if it's someone's birthday, or it's been a while, I'll let myself have a small piece of razzleberry pie with ice cream. It's good for us mentally.
5. Not missing my midday snacks. When I miss a midday snack it usually means that I ate too big of a breakfast or lunch. I'm trying to be conscious of reminding myself that I don't need to eat too much because I'll be eating again in a few hours. And when I miss the snack, I usually eat more at the next meal because I'm famished.
6. Paying attention to my starches. Starches are what most people refer to as "bad carbs". Although starches aren't always bad. But since I'm trying to shed a few extra pounds, I'm being conscious of switching out a granola bar for a yogurt instead. Or instead of a cold cereal for breakfast I'll have some eggs.
7. Remind myself that food is for fuel. This is a simple concept and yet so easy to forget. Food is our energy. That's what it's for. So treat it that way. Remember we need our lean proteins, complex carbs (fruits, veggies, and starches), and essential fats to function. Try to look at your food by what food group it's in and see if you're a balanced eater.