Some Attitudes Towards Food

Got a check-up for body fat today. This was the one-month-after appointment from last month, to see if any improvements were made. The results were a bit disappointing, but then, I did fall off the wagon for 2 weeks. All the more reason to get back on board. The next appointment should yield better results. 

An important thing I learnt today: how much calories I should be eating each meal to fulfill my target of 1200 - 1300 a day. 

Breakfast = 250 - 300 cal.

Lunch and dinner = 300 cal each meal

Snacks = 100 cal each, 2-3 times a day.

The reasoning with eating minimum 5 meals a day is to assure the body that I'm not going to starve itself, so it doesn't need to store fat. Apparently eating too few calories leads to starvation mode, which causes the body to react in the way mentioned above. Ergo, no weight loss. Maybe that could also be the reason the results today were what they were.

Having just finished watching the "What's Wrong With What We Eat" series on TED, it got me thinking. This thing about calories, why did it exist? Because people became more concerned about nutrition and they want to live healthy and have longevity. But I think, is it because we are actually disconnected with what we eat? That we don't know how to eat? That we are easily swayed by advertising and convenience? That we let our eyes decide what we should be feeding ourselves and not our stomaches that is actually doing the digestion? 

I realise my attitude about food has got to change. All along, my idea about food is simply something to stick into my body so that it will be able to function in good condition, leaving me the ability to do things I like, or go to work. Eating was something to be tolerated. Forget about cooking. It seemed like a terrible chore. So much work for 15 minutes of shoveling stuff into my mouth. And to have to do it three times a day? Lord! 

As I grow older, I realise that's simply not going to work. There's a flaw in that logic. My belief needs to change. Even if I've yet to learn to enjoy food, at least I can start with giving it some respect. The farmers work very hard to put the food on my table. This is also why I can't stand to throw food away, even if it has gone bad.

When I just started out on the cooking expedition, I had a poor idea of how long fresh food lasts, even in the fridge.  Since I did not cook them in time, they went bad, and I had to throw them out. It left a bad taste in my mouth. After a couple of times, I felt like a hypocrite. For that reason, I made a really conscious effort to make what I have in the fridge, and not buy so much each time. 

Having taken that decision, the next step is still menu-planning. I still find that to be a chore. Maybe I need to make it into some kind of a game. Find some way to encourage myself. Just saying that it will save me money is simply not enough. 

Another attitude I need to change is that when I am running low on funds for the week, my first reaction is to eat less. What can be more important in this world than feeding myself? That's the mindset I need to change. This is what I'm telling my body: 

My dear dear body, when push comes to shove, rest assured that I will no longer be elbowing you out of the way to feed some other less important desire. Your wellbeing comes first!