Food is the source of my energy…and I’ve vowed to recycle that energy into eating to live, and not living to eat. I’ve always been addicted to sweets…cupcakes in particular, and ever since the influx of cupcakeries has flooded every other street corner in the DC area, I’ve struggled to kick my addiction to sugar. For three years, my stomach as continued to expand, and only until recently I’ve accepted that the culprit has been my addiction to cupcakes and my lack of exercise. So I vowed to make a difference in my health and to eliminate the fat and sugar out of my life. I started my own rehab. I joined Weight Watchers online and was so pumped as I tracked all of my food for a month straight. My log is full of great information, but with every new fad the novelty wears off and points are a distant memory…of course that’s not stopping them from deducting points out of my checking account every month.
Over the past five months, I’ve read several books to aid in my (wannabe self discovery) of a healthy lifestyle. In April 2013, 
I journeyed (along with a couple of my close friends) on a 30 Day detox, which required “no chew days”, at least three to four times a week, along with unlimited vegetables, brown rice, pastas, fruit and more vegetables. When my girlfriends and I read the meal plan, we laughed hysterically at the thought of not chewing any solid foods as we were gearing up for Chicken Tuesday in the cafeteria in my office building. The first week of the 30 Day Detox was a struggle, both mentally and physically. I often heard voices of fried chicken wings and french fries talking to me as I graced throughout my job’s cafeteria in search of a vegetable infused meal. By the third week, I was a pro. I pulled out my expensive HealthMaster that I just had to have, and started mixing kale greens, apples, bananas and other fruits of choice in the morning. By the time I arrived to work, I would guzzle down water and chomp on an apple or banana to curve the grumble in my stomach. Of course, if one of my productive work days fell on the “no chew day”…I would drink my daily morning smoothie and a 64oz. of Naked Green Juice throughout the day. By the 30th day, I was twelve pounds lighter. Three months later, and massive traveling for my job, I gained ten of those flabby pounds back.
In July, I decided to r
ead AARP’s New American Diet by Dr. John Whyte. This book was filled with so much information, and it didn’t require me to starve myself three to four times a week. But of course, my short attention span and empty refrigerator overrode my commitment to eat right and stick to it. For the first three days of the meal plan from the New American Diet, I ate fresh chicken salad with spinach. It was delicious, nutritious and juicy. I think the kale greens kept the chicken moist. I kept up with the plan for three weeks straight, and the fourth week went downhill. My family celebrated my mother’s birthday (Marble Cake with butter creme icing) and the next day I went on travel for my job. Let’s just say that summer time fun, drinks and good food while on travel is a wonderful recipe for overindulgence.
So here I am, August 2013, refreshed and renewed with another outlook on a healthy lifestyle after reading the book, Eating to Live written by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. This book is filled with vegetarian recipes and full of information about how to reprogram your connection with food. I’ve identified my problem with sugar. I can eat healthy all day and all week, but as soon as I sniff out a pound of sugar being spread on another pound of sugar encased in a cupcake pan, my knees buckle and I’m writing myself an apology outlined in icing as I reroute my rehab journey.