The Path of Least Resistance

Mary, oops, I forgot to add that The China Study isn't a diet book - it's not like reading Atkins or someone else where they tell you what foods you can eat and how much and when etc.

Skylar

Dear Skylar:

My brother had me read The China Study, and I tried to follow a vegan diet for a while.  For me, it got terribly expensive, and my husband doesn't believe in vegetarianism (says we evolved as omnivores, not herbivores), so we ended up going back to meat, and to staying within our food budget.  Shopping at health food stores instead of at Save A Lot just cost us too much.  And after a while, the soup recipes all started to taste the same to me, and I just got sick of them.

My brother & his wife have found a way to go on a vegan diet which works for them, but my case is more complicated than theirs, because I am a compulsive overeater (food addict), and my brother & sister-in-law are not.  When I asked them to tell me what foods they eat, they sent me a list of foods, then told me to eat however much I liked.  For me, doing this is insanity!

Maybe someday I'll try the vegetarian diet, rather than the vegan diet.  I do like tempeh, tofu, and other substitutes for meat, cheese, milk, etc.  It would have to be when I went on disability, which would bring us an extra $800.00 a month, at least.  Right now, we just can't afford to do the vegetarian diet, the gluten-free diet, or any other diet which requires shopping at a health food store.

Denise Phares/kitties4

I was raised in a disciplined home.  I only ate at meal time and food was prepared from scratch each day.  A few times a year, we would go out for fast food or pizza.  I do not recall ever eating in a sit-down restaurant when I was young. 

That said, I don't believe I have a head-up on self discipline.  I have learned to be self-motivating.  I need to focus on rewards in order to stay on track, i.e., I want to fit into size 6 skinny jeans so I'll just skip that cake or pie or ice cream.  I need to go to the gym each day because I like the way I feel when I'm done with a workout - it's almost as good as sex . 

I have weaknesses like everyone else.  I have a tendency to use food as comfort when I am upset about something.  When I was a child we were rewarded with sweets and comforted with them when we were hurt or upset.  I know this is pretty typical in families but for me I still struggle with this. 

And I am convinced that it would be impossible for me to maintain my current normal BMI weight if I didn't diet and exercise each day.  It's not enough just to take the weight off, I had to permanently change my lifestyle forever.  It's hard work but very, very worth it.  And it's never to late to start.

Donna