Can You Really Indulge Without Guilt???

As I am about to begin another weekend of Spike Days, I can’t help but be delighted with where I am now with my weight, my body and food.  

One of the big misconceptions of being overweight and then losing weight is that you have to give up junk food-things like pizza, ice cream and donuts, and that you have to give them up for good. I don’t know about you, but I feel like we only live once and the thought of never eating those foods again is almost as bad as living life overweight.

Even though I have now lost 126lbs, I still love those foods just the same as I did when I was 330lbs. In fact, I think I love them even more now.  You see, I used to have a love/hate relationship with food.  I loved to eat it, but then hated myself afterwards.

To lose weight, some people do cut out junk food completely and more power to them!  I have tried doing just that in the past, but unfortunately, it didn’t work for me.  Maybe I am a slave to those foods but I can’t go through life without having pizza or ice cream every now and then. The more I avoid them, the more I want them. I think it comes down to the fact they just taste good...no they taste amazing.  I would tell myself over and over again that food is just energy and I can be happy without them but, for me, it just wasn’t true. Sure, food is energy but it is also something to be enjoyed.  I, unfortunately, don’t enjoy asparagus as much as I enjoy a cream cheese donut.

So part of my journey was understanding that I couldn’t, and didn't want to, live without pizza, ice cream or donuts.

When I was overweight, I was embarrassed to eat high calorie foods in front of people.  I felt like I was constantly being judged. Sadly, I would often eat without enjoyment, because eating delicious but high calorie food just felt wrong or bad.  

Another part of my journey was accepting the fact that I wanted the best of both worlds. I wanted to be fit and still eat what I love.  But was this possible???

I am very proud to tell you that, yes it is! I am walking proof. I can happily say that this weekend I will eat donuts, I will have ice cream, I will probably eat a whole large pizza, and I most definitely will do it without guilt or embarrassment!