Diet Rule: Moderation Not Deprivation

I've been overweight most of my life (since I was 8 years old) so "dieting" has frequently been on my To Do list. When I was younger, and before I did A LOT of research, my concept of A Diet was eating markedly restricted calories and a list of "allowed" foods like lettuce, celery, cottage cheese, canned tuna, Special K. (I even tried to "diet" like that a few times and it lasted (maybe) one day.) And I know a lot of other people have the same concept of dieting: I cannot eat X (whatever X may be) because I'm on a diet.

It's simply NOT TRUE. If you feel deprived, you're gonna fail.....fast. Deprivation = Failure. And by making a list of "diet foods" you're not learning how to eat healthy in the long term. Eventually you're going to go back to "normal eating" and gain weight again.

You need to learn how to eat nutritiously. You need to learn how to eat balanced. You need to learn how to MODERATE what you eat.

I found myself slipping into the "I cannot eat X..." thinking this week. I was CRAVING Mexican food. No, I told myself, that would be a diet nightmare. But, really, it's not. It's totally possible if you do so with moderation.

I had TACOS for lunch. My mouth was so happy. And I stayed right on plan!

Lunch was:

• three ounces extra lean ground beef seasoned with homemade taco seasoning
• 2 tablespoons Wholly Guacamole 
• 3 tablespoons Pace picante sauce
• 1/2 cup shredded romaine lettuce
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

all divided and stuffed into three crunchy taco shells.

Calories: 582
Carbs: 26
Protein: 35

And I had a veggie side. Who eats veggies with a Mexican meal, right? But I found this amazing delicious recipe for Mexican Stir-Fry Veggies - yellow squash, zucchini, jicama, and bell peppers seasoned with jalapeno and cumin and stir-fried. SO GOOD...and only 59 calories and 7 carbs!

Yes, it's a pretty significant number of calories for one meal and the carbs are right at the limit of what I consider acceptable for one meal. But is it okay for a once in a while treat so I don't feel deprived? Abso-freakin'-lutely.

Diet Rule: Moderation Not Deprivation