Well if you have read some of my other blog entries you may have read that I am recently diagnosed with diabetes. I have ran with my denial long enough and am working at gaining control of my blood sugar and my health. I have felt two extremes from this recent diagnosis. That debilitating illness and bitter enemy that ends sugar. That dynamic influence aiding better efforts that encourage success. Both spell diabetes and either outlook can be a choice. One can choose to succumb to the diagnose and can continue on their same path. Or can take the diagnosis as a wake-up call. Currently I feel 85% on board with the wake-up call and allow myself the occasional pity party ( I do love me a good pity party now and again :) Don't get me wrong I miss the sweet taste and comforting starches, but what I really miss? The convenience! Oh when you wipe away high carb choices our pantry looks almost empty, so do restaurant choices, and 90% of a grocery store is off limits. Good-bye pizza, pasta, rice, breads, and potatoes! Eek! Did you read those options? I honestly believe in the previous six months of dinners (we'll say 180) my husband and I have included one of those ingredients/entrees for 165 of them. If not all 180! Why? Because they are quick, easy to pull a meal together, and satisfying. Can a meal get simpler than pulling a frozen pizza out of the freezer and heat up in the oven? Not that I have found.
This means when it comes to meal we have to pull out our thinking caps. There can be creative ways around the carbs to pull out classic favorites. Substitute spaghetti squash for pasta (though squash still is high in carbs it does carry the benefit of fiber). I read a recipe where you treat flattened chicken like your pizza crust and cover it with some sauce, toppings, and cheese. Sounds good. But we aren't quite there yet in our meal preparation. We are still being conned by convenience. Rice dishes and pasta still call our names. Pizza still beckons from the freezer section. Even fruits get in their two cents about how they're healthy (but many exceed carb counts). I love bananas but I am very picky about their color, size, and taste. One banana usually exceeds snack proportions and I need something a little more filling for breakfast. And to leave half for the next day isn't going to happen - talk about waste. Because well I still fall for their call. And yet I can't break their peel knowing they are packed with carbs (and a million other wonderful benefits) but for right now I am focusing on my carb counts as I get my blood sugar numbers under control.
I am a snacker and who doesn't appreciate handy snack portions - like a package of crackers, pudding cups, a snack size bag of chips, or my favorite - Little Debby? Most of these are automatic no-nos according to my carb breakdowns for the day. There are some "cheats" so I can feel like "me". But I don't want my carb counts to be slimmed down snack foods and want some of my options to count towards improving my health. But again the "con" of convenience can knock me off the path with their snack size wrapping and luring promises of being the healthier alternative of their full-flavored carb loaded cousins. Most of these versions remind you how much you miss the real thing and so in hindsight you either dump the healthier alternative or eat 3 trying to "con"vince yourself that it is almost as good as the real thing.
This blog isn't about whining though. Just a reflection that it is easy to tell oneself I miss the sweet flavor and the comfort of starch but if one gets really honest? Doesn't the convenience factor rank just a bit higher? The blissfullness of choosing anything one craves and that it comes in handy dandy packages or can be whipped up in a jiffy. Oh I do miss that. But I love and appreciate more than convenience? Is that I feel I am gaining back energy that I and many sweet treats used to kid that their presence brought. Saturday I felt like I was actually keeping up with my life and not running behind the bus. I got major house cleaning done, ran some errands, spent quality time with my hubby and son, and even found a little quiet time with me, myself, and I. There is still a long road to follow on this HealthFULL Journey and I feel there will be some surprising turns, hills and dips, but I actually feel I can face it step by step now as this burden of overtiredness, excessive thirst, craving monster, distracted thoughts, slowly fades. Good Riddance! And convenience though I know you manipulate and tease I still do appreciate your efforts because sometimes we all need that lift and help that you do occasionally provide.
May your HealthFULL Journey echo success and be immune to the cons of convenience but still have room for those unexpected and appreciated conveniences that share their boost. 'Til we meet again. . .
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