Moderate Changes

I have been holding off talking about diet, because everything associated with weight and body is so fraught with emotions and social pressure. That still seems to be where we're heading now.

"Moderate Changes" itself came about specifically because of work. There are programs we can do to earn a discount on our monthly health insurance premiums. Actually, that was last year. There had been similar but different programs before, and it's somewhat different this year too. Anyway, I needed some more points, and the only way to do it was to design my own program.

I was thinking about the things that I felt that I needed, and none of it was groundbreaking, which was helpful, but it also required tracking or it did not get done. A spreadsheet would allow me to track it, and submit it for credit.

My rules were that I needed to have one serving of whole grains each day, plus three different fruits and vegetables, and with a goal of exercising for at least thirty minutes at least five times a week, 150 minutes of exercise weekly.

As luck would have it, the six week period on the spreadsheet included our vacation to Disneyland. I worried about that. I know there are healthy choices available there, but often the other options are going to look better.

I got in the habit of trying to get things in early. If I could get my whole grain and two fruits or vegetables in at breakfast, then I knew that getting one more fruit or vegetable in would be relatively easy. For exercise I was very opportunistic. Often this simply meant walking back to our hotel instead of catching the shuttle, but we were making the choice for extra activity, so it counted.

I am quite sure that this isn't the plan for everybody, but it has been good for me. It reminds me to get nutrients that I need, but it's also manageable. I understand the value of tracking what you eat, and I tried that many times, but then I would always forget to write something down and get confused, or I would eat something that I didn't want to write down, and I would give up.

It helps for me that I am okay with a certain amount of monotony. My whole grain is almost always the same thing, and then the fruits and vegetables repeat a lot as well. As long as they fill my needs, the repetition doesn't bother me. Whole oats did not fill my needs, so I changed to a whole wheat bagel most mornings. I would keep other grain clusters on hand for backups. Sometimes I throw in something else, but not that often.

I have thought about raising the requirements, like going up to five fruits and vegetables daily. I find that I am often getting more anyway, which takes away some of the urgency. It could also make things harder and lead to me falling behind. I have thought about trying to get in more colors, because there are days where oranges and carrots are both counted, or tomatoes and red peppers. That is some variety, but not as much as it could be. I know.

At the same time, it feels like this is just about the right amount of effort, where I already know that I am juggling a lot of different things, and the thought of kicking things up another notch just makes me feel tired.

The other thing that makes me feel tired is knowing how many people would criticize various food choices. I eat wheat and potatoes and corn and meat and sometimes there are juice and sauces and a lot of it is cooked and people can be really comfortable writing off any ways of doing things other than their own. Listening to all of them wouldn't leave much, so I am just going to listen to me.

The real strength of this program is that I am making a point of giving myself things that I need, and that are good for me, and that I am doing it while simultaneously respecting my current abilities. The next phase will most likely involve keeping a better eye on the clock so that I don't let the morning pass me by until I will eat anything fast. I will probably deal with that by keeping a stash of granola bars that are not only commercially made but are also chocolate-coated. The horror!

Many people will tell you that diets don't work, but that you need to commit to a lifestyle change, and a future mode of eating that you can stick to. I agree with that, but there can also be a need for intermediate steps. For example, I had been trying to be better about both whole grains and produce, so when I started this it was not a total shift. If you are only eating processed foods and trying to move away from that, I recommend a gradual buildup. The whole grains and the fruits and vegetables are going to be a big increase in fiber. Work your way up to save some drama.

I think the most important part of this is respect for yourself and your body. It is easy to only see what is wrong with your body, and to hold all of the blame for it. That is not productive. Other people may have good advice, but the things that work for them will not necessarily be the things that work for you. So listen, but listen to yourself too. Notice what feels good, and what doesn't, and believe that you deserve to feel good.