The Journey

My journey began on Tuesday Oct. 7th, 2008. It was that day that I made the commitment to myself to stop relying on food for emotional support. It was that day that I began to eat only when I was truly hungry and eat only enough food to make me feel satisfied. It was that day that I stopped overeating.

At age 45 and 5 feet tall my weight is 227 and I rely on food to make me feel good about myself and the world around me. Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, Heart Disease, and Cancer run in my family. So I’m faced with some tough decisions; get healthier or have to rely on medications and doctors to keep me alive. I HATE doctors!

Now, I’m a chef AND a certified nutrition coach. Being a chef is all I want to be. I love cooking and food, I love living the life of a chef, I love being around other chefs and food lovers, I love reading about food, talking about food, taking pictures of food, attending food and restaurant shows (showen above at the Southwest Foodservice Expo), creating wonderful food. Food Food Food – do we see a pattern here? Well I’m not walking away from my passion and my income. Being a foodie is what I am and that will not change. As a nutrition coach…well, it’s like the shoe maker that goes bare foot himself. You take care of the needs of others but never yourself. As a woman like most women we care for our families, job, friends, and everything before ourselves.

My problem is not what I eat – I eat and cook for my family very healthy for the most part. We eat whole grains, lots of veggies and fruit, lean meats, lots of fish and seafood, and use very little fat and then mostly all good fats. We eat well, just too much. You know what they say “Too much of a good thing is still too much.” The key for me is moderate exercise, reduce my snacking and PORTION CONTROL. Eating less of those good things that I cook. I’ll keep a diary of everything I eat and drink and post weekly on my progress.

I’m not going on a DIET. Do you know why the first 3 letters in DIET are DIE. Because when you’re on one you wish you were dead! J I’ll eat regular, freshly made food (not frozen or packaged chemicals disguised as food) and not be going to meetings (who has time for that). I’ll cut my portion sizes to the proper size (aka spa portions) and cut my calorie intake by 1/3. I’ll be happy and satisfied when I eat and won’t feel deprived of anything.