Eating Like a King!

Anybody who knows me, knows I struggle with my weight. I love eating more than almost anything else in the world. The middle age spread or proverbial spare tire around my middle is a constant battle. When I decide to diet, I diet with a vengeance. I have iron-clad will power. When I am dieting, I will not cheat for anyone or anything. I've spent many days watching my family enjoy an ice cream cone or a pizza. My approach to dieting is... Do it all the way or don't do it at all. You can't be on a diet part time. Anyway, there have been at least 4 times in my life that I have dropped 30-40 pounds only to slowly put it back on after abandoning the diet because I was satisfied with my self image. I don't need to be told this is the wrong approach. I know all about healthy eating and exercise. It's a lifestyle change. But as you may already be aware, saying it and doing it are often totally different things.

Tami and I are currently on the "Lose to Cruise" program. That's a humorous way of saying we need to drop some weight before our cruise vacation in July. I guess I should say our past cruises (aka Floating 24 Hour Buffets) have been my undoing. I usually drop a bunch of weight prior to a cruise, go hog wild eating everything in sight for a week, then never get back to sensible eating. The result is this 30-40 pound diet roller coaster I've ridden for most of my adult life. I always say THIS time will be different. This is where you all come in. I'm asking my family and friends to hold me accountable to returning to sensible eating habits when I return from my July vacation. Yes, I want you to ask me if I'm back on the program. Yes, I want you to encourage me to do the right thing. I have been unable to do this on my own in the past, so don't feel like you're insulting me. Will you help me?

Now... to the real reason for this post. I mentioned that Tami and I are doing this South Beach Diet together. I'm so thankful because it's too tough on my own. I also want to brag on Tami for a minute. She has worked really, really hard planning meals, shopping for diet friendly ingredients and cooking delicious dishes that are good for us. She is an awesome cook. She recently made Kung Pao chicken that nearly made me cry with delight. She also made a ham and bean soup that was scrumptious. She created a crock pot meal with chicken, bacon, onions and ranch dressing. YUM! She makes a hot roll up with chicken, swiss cheese, red onion and hot mustard that makes my taste buds do the tango. Every time I turn around Tami has found a new recipe to try and she nails it every time. She knows what foods I like and she keeps my hungry belly very happy. She also makes frequent trips to the grocery (not a small or easy task). We have a nice salad at least twice a week. The greens are always fresh. Never more than a day or two old. It takes extra time and effort to shop for food this way, so I really do appreciate all she does.

Aside from the weight loss benefits, we've also found this system of feeding the family is good for the wallet. We hardly ever eat out anymore. More frequent trips to the grocery store has drastically reduced food waste as well. And speaking of eating out... I've found that the food we're eating at home is better than what we can get at a restaurant. Obviously it's nice to go out from time to time. If for nothing else than to have someone else cook, serve the food and do the dishes. But for sheer food quality, Tami's cooking beats a restaurant every time. I'm eating like a king and shedding a few pounds to boot.