I don’t make New Years resolutions anymore. The things that always were on the list – lose weight, exercise regularly, eat healthy, save money – were almost always unattainable because I made them too specific, trying to stretch myself to be a Good Person and making myself miserable.
The fact is that I’m a Good Person without the resolutions. And I already know that losing weight, exercising regularly, eating healthy foods, and managing money better are things that should be part of my life, and I’m working to improve them. I know what to do, it’s really a matter of setting small achievable steps and then building on that.
I noticed on my Texas trip that I wasn’t eating low-fat healthy food all the time – and also wasn’t snacking between meals the way I often do at home. I was just more satisfied with the flavors and textures, and didn’t want more. Nothing was off limits or hidden away – so there was no need to sneak. We had good protein, complex carbs, veggies (even sweet and sour red cabbage for Christmas dinner), desserts of all kinds – plus fresh fruit sitting around all the time. We ate out and had Chinese take out. It just felt normal. I didn’t gain any weight and didn’t feel deprived. I liked it.
My niece gave me a copy of Alice Waters’ The Art of Simple Food for Christmas and I look forward to reading, learning, and expanding the things I eat in 2009. Of course, right now I’m hampered by a fractured clavicle and my right arm is in a sling. Somehow I think this is going to be a hindrance in the kitchen for the next few weeks, not to mention facing snow piles outside that need to be shoveled. How can I cut up apples for applesauce, or onions for roasting or all sorts of other things using only my left hand? I think a fair amount of processed foods are in my near future.
Happy New Year – without resolutions – from me and the kitty.
January 1, 2009 at 8:33 am
Anne, when did you break your clavicle and how? How did I miss that in recent posts?
Left-handed cooking would be, um, challenging, but I’d head for the deli for fresh salads (fruit and vegetable) and good cheese. Personally I think frozen dinners and processed foods in general are too little bang for the buck(s).
Left-handed typing must be quite a trick, too!
Take care … I’m glad you’re back.
January 1, 2009 at 10:24 am
I have found the same thing when eating real food vs. lowfat/diet stuff — I enjoy the food more and don’t need to snack as much.
Hope your resolution-free year is a great one. My only resolution is to use the appreciation exercises to pay more attention to the good that’s already in my life.
January 7, 2009 at 1:22 pm
Sorry to hear about your collarbone! Hoping you have a speedy recovery.
I love that cookbook – bought it in the last great book splurge at the end of Dec 2007.