Eating is About Feeling Good

Frozen freshly squeezed orange juice "guitar" - a very good treat!

First, I want to thank everyone, who replied to my last post in comments, e-mails and phone calls. I am truly touched by amount of warm words I received. I appreciate everyone, who sent me an e-mail with a personal stories and own struggles with their weight loss. I was emotionally overwhelmed while reading through it.
While I am on a mission to respond to every e-mail, comment, message, one question was almost in every e-mail: "What do you eat? Please share!"


I am not a professional nutritional adviser, nor I am a dietitian, all I can share is my personal adventure. 
It began with analyzing of what and how much I eat.  On the "What" part I had to keep some sort of unwritten diary: how does it make me feel after I ate it? Light? Heavy? Tiered? Energized? Sleepy? Active? and so on.  It's a process of re-discovery of real good eats, and it's a fun process. 

Regular breakfast - no sugar added...

But a few foods are aliens on my list, and I limit them from a very little to none: sugar, processed foods, baked goods, fats.
Let me start with the Sugar. I thought I can't do it and I can't live without it, although I am not a big sweet eater. Surprise! I can live without sugar, or too much sugar in my case: not more than 1 teaspoon of sugar. But I had to negotiate sugar intake with myself. 
My rule: no white sugar. Period. It is the most unhealthy sweetener out there, along with artificial ones. 
Sucanat, turbinado, agave, honey, maple syrup - those products live in my kitchen. Stevia? I am not a big fan of it. 
Another rule: no sweets after 2PM. I have to burn all those calories sugar has before it becomes fat in my body at night. And it doesn't mean that I have to run. Just basic daily activities need energy, even sleeping, although that's not what I do.
Was it hard for me to stick to my plan? Not really. I had some withdrawals for about four days, but is wasn't something painful.  I can easily control my cravings with a 5-7 walnuts and 1-2 dried fruits (no sugar, no oil, no sulfur added). 

Blueberries sweetens  enough  my morning breakfast...

One person asked me how can I stay away from all the sweet food around: in the refrigerator, in the cupboard? Easy, I don't have it! That's right, not even a box of a cereal. Why? The real food, like rolled oats and rye with some blueberries taste so much better and have such a great nutritional value, that no cereal can match it. 
It makes me feel good and energized. 

Isn't it what eating is about: feeling good? 

Next time: what kind of fats live in my kitchen. 

Until next time,

Cowboy Country Vegetarian


Disclaimer: Please, consult a medical professional prior to changing your diet or starting an exercise program.