cheating

I see people use this word a lot and it always bugs me.  And since they are generally referring to themselves, not to me, I am not sure why it bugs me.  I mean the only person we can "cheat" is ourselves, right?  So if someone has made some sort of rules for themselves that say no carby snacks or no sweets at all, ever, then I guess eating a 100 calorie bag of popcorn or one cookie would be cheating.  And if someone wants to consider it cheating and a negative thing to eat popcorn or a cookie, I guess it's their right to call it whatever they want.

But here's why it bugs me.  How realistic is it that we will never eat popcorn or a cookie, never ever again, for the rest of our lives?  Why make rules that will be so difficult to follow?  Why use negative words like "cheating" when we eat like a "normal person?"  Because normal people do eat a treat now and then.

I'll tell you something.  I never cheat.  Never.  I stick to my food plan all the time.  Honestly, I do.

Know how I do it?  I start with a realistic food plan.  I start with a food plan I know I can stick to all the time, forever.  My food plan includes lots of food high in protein and low in fat.  It includes starchy carbs, even snacky things, but only in small amounts and not too often.  And it includes a cookie now and then.

Now, I am not saying I am perfect.  But my food plan allows for an occasional indulgence.  Like today.  I grazed a lot today which is something I almost never do.  Honestly, I can't remember the last time I grazed like this.  Probably before my surgery.  But yeah, my food plan allows for a day of grazing every three years or so.  And you know what?  One day of grazing every three years will not cause me to gain all my weight back, either.

Well said Kelly!!!! 

A very Merry Christmas to you!  

Other than the fact that I am just starting out and have alot of rules that exclude most of what you just listed, I agree. Sooner of later I will be able to have starches, carbs, oh and hey... a cookie. Not today, but the day is coming, and when it does I will not call it cheating.

And those rules make sense in the beginning because you just had surgery on your stomach.  it needs to heal.  I think that would be the case if you had any kind of operation on your stomach or intestines.  But it's also temporary.  It is totally realistic to expect someone to do liquids or pureed foods for a week or two.  Just not forever.

Enjoy your cookie when that day comes.

Kelly:  You would love my house today. I made the cutest ever
gingerbread men, snowflake sugar cookies and decorated
Christmas tree sugar cookies.  I even had a couple.  Sometimes
life calls for cookies!

I recently went gluten free so I'm already reconfiguring my brain. We've had lots of friends bring wonderful treats for the holidays and once I know they have flour in them, I let it go. I've been really proud of myself. For me, knowing that if I eat certain things can potentially make me not feel well is a great motivator.

Wishing everyone a very joyous and safe Christmas!

Mele Kalikimaka!
Barb

And it makes sense not to eat things that make you feel unwell.

I'm still pre-op so the post-op life is still just theoretical to me, but here's my worry.  I totally agree with what you said but fear that "slippery slope".  In the past, the "just one cookie" (or for me, chocolate) would translate into more than one, then many, then giving up....I know I have to change this thinking, am trying to work on it with my psychologist...but I am terrified of this slippery slope.   I understand that pre-op and post-op life are different.  I get that my past failures with diets don't translate into failure with WLS, but my heart just won't believe it yet.

I guess though, the idea is that if we give ourselves impossible parameters, we are dooming ourselves to failure.  However, if our parameters include the occasional indulgence, this will still count as a success...I think the trick will be to make sure the indulgences are well thought out and not impulse indulgences....those are the dangerous one.

Thanks for starting this threat...it was real food for thought (pun intended )

Andrea.

I think there is, for many of us, that "slippery slope."  I have certain foods, and cookies are not one of them, that if I start eating, I have trouble stopping.  I no longer buy crackers because I cannot eat just a few.  But there are other foods I can indulge in and stick to moderate amounts.  That's something we all have to decide for ourselves.  I think it is possible to live without ever eating cookies.  But without every eating anything that would not be considered perfectly healthy?  I don't think many people, if any, could do that.  And I think it is important that we don't set ourselves up for failure.

I think you are right about making sure the indulgences are well thought out.  It's kind of like, I have  a "rule" I made for myself that when I shop, I will not buy anything that is not on the list.  If I see something at the store that I like, I can buy it - but later.  When I put it on my list ahead of time.  No impulse buying.  No impulse eating is, for me, an achievable goal.

Yeah I never liked that word myself. It's a word that sets you up for failure. I don't like to fail. I like to succeed. So I make plans where I know I can succeed. It isn't a given or even easy but I know I CAN eat a balanced diet. A perfect, no-carb diet? That's a recipe for disaster from the git-go.