Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Sugar-Coated Secrets

So I was reading some articles on how to break bad habits because articles are much shorter than books and you can finish them in all of fifteen minutes and there's a whole lot less guilt involved than with buying an e-book after hearing the Fresh Air story about the actual book and vowing to read it immediately and changing your ways immediately and then only getting one-third of the way through the book you paid for and never picking it up again. 

Not to mention not getting started on changing those bad habits because you can't yet because you didn't finish the book. And you want to make sure you do it right.  

Right?  

Which, now that I think about it, may be the underlying reason for not finishing the book--so I don't have to change the bad habits.*  

At any rate, I read articles. Yay for the internet! 

Unfortunately, now I don't have any excuses to not get started. One of the things I'm supposed to do is publicly state what my bad habit is so I can be held accountable for changing it.   

Don't worry. I'm not going to shock you by admitting to a heroin habit, although my mother was convinced I was on the needle back in the early 90's.** No, this habit is much more mundane and middle-aged and typical and frightfully, dreadfully, unblog-worthy boring. 

I eat at night.

I eat when I'm sorta hungry, not hungry at all, bored, sitting in front of the computer, reading a book, or lying in bed watching Game of Thrones. I eat chocolate and hummus and buttered popcorn and sushi and pretzels and pretzels sandwiched with yummy cheese and right now I want to eat ALL THE CHEDDAR in the house. And all the chocolate. 

So I'm madly typing, intending to go public with my secret and drinking a ton of water (so I feel full. Yes, I know about chewing gum and brushing my teeth too.)  

Because water is absolutely what one wants when a carb craving is hitting you in the psyche like a wreaking ball. 

I was OK on the first night because I got called out right during the witching hour. Obviously I had other stuff on my mind and when I got home, I was exhausted. Never mind that life is a cruel bitch and the ER had pizza and cake, opened and displayed like a centerfold upon my arrival. But it was the first night and my resolve held firm.

Last night wasn't bad because I was with friends late into the evening. 

But tonight has been rough.   

I would like to point out to all of you that should you struggle with this same habit and would like to break said habit, day three of your new and improved lifestyle at approximately 10:45 at night is not the best time to visit Pinterest. BadbadBAD idea.  

*gulping water*  

The action that makes the most sense to me is picking one habit you want to change and concentrating all your efforts on that one goal for thirty days. Thirty days is do-able. It's a relatively short amount of time and when you start there's already a light at the end of the tunnel. It is, after all, only September or April or June or November. 

Unless you're on day three of your new! Improved! lifestyle and really, really, really want something that, once you eat it, releases sugar into your blood at roughly the rate of a failed Hoover Dam. 

Honestly, raw spaghetti sounds good right about now.  

This sucks. ->


*Whoa, insight! Sorry, got carried away there. I'll try not to let that happen again.  


**Really. Maybe I'll tell you about it sometime. 


3 comments:

Deirdre Newcomb said...

First question - when the hell do you sleep?!?!?

Food questions - is it mostly carbs? can you do a wise portioned size to wean yourself off? or would having a healthy snack a few hours after dinner help?

We got into the very bad habit of eating popcorn in the evenings about 1/2 an hour before bed. Conveniently (not) my body started letting me know that it didn't appreciate it. The heartburn alone made it crazy.

Good luck and keep trying!!!

Tanya said...

It's mainly carbs and the whole carrots-before-bed thing doesn't really do it for me. The honest truth is I often eat when I'm not hungry at all. I don't plan to stick with this forever, but I think it will help me pay attention to my body in the future so if I'm truly hungry at night, I'll eat something good for me.

Or, you know, popcorn.

Anonymous said...

The entire Gremillion family has this problem --- including me Mom