Be a bada** – set up your landscape for diet success

One thing that Dry January taught me is that my desires to fulfill my cravings were damn prominent after the first week of the month.

Then it got harder.

I broke down on Quitter’s Friday but started back up again.  I was determined, so I put my bada** mode on, and every day thereafter I would mostly stick to the efforts of Dry January.

After the honeymoon phase, it became a personal challenge I wasn’t going to quit.

I can’t lie – every day was a mental battle.

Some days, I really missed a refreshing beer.  Other days, not so much.

Especially as the month went on.  My sleeping sessions became so refreshing, I didn’t feel weak and tired at the end of the day, so I didn’t cave into a drink with dinner.

But there were weak moments, too.  It happens when you’re trying to change habits.

Every time I’d enter the kitchen – the room where all the temptations reside, I’d scan the room, looking for alternatives and for the most part, I’d come up clean.

A refreshing glass of water, or a heated cup of water, or Matcha sufficed for the cravings of a beer or a glass of wine.

In fact, I didn’t have any wine the whole month.  Yesterday for dinner was the first time for wine in almost two months.

I do like wine, but wine and me, well, let’s say – as a bottle raised beer drinker, sipping something slowly doesn’t seem to come to me as easily as gulping down a cool refreshing frothy beer.  I don’t care for the after effects, to say the least.

I did find that Kombucha was an excellent alternative, though.  Speaking of that, our first batch of raspberry flavored stuff turned out delicious and bubbly refreshing!

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But chips…dang, they were craved almost every day, I tell ya.  I sure missed my glorious, light and crispy, salty, heavenly – Tostitos.  Even though the contents of the bag expired, it still looks inviting to me.  I’ve been very tempted to use the pen my father-in-law gave me, too.

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The combination of Tostitos and Beer.  That’s my demise.  One leads to the other, and back and forth I go until I’m in a full-fledged fall asleep in my chair coma.

I’m uncontrollable.  Sometimes.  Mostly.  Occasionally.

Mr. helps occasionally, he grabs the bag while I take an in-between cat nap.  Or he puts the clip on the bag as a subtle hint.  In January, he committed to not buying any new bags.  So this one stood the test of time.  Yesterday, I added ‘Tostitos’ to the shopping list.  And a new bag magically appeared and has been added to the kitchen pantry.   I keep the door closed so I have to dig for it when desperation hits.

But…I may just keep it sealed, you know, just to see if I can make it expire before opening it, too.

The cover of the bag reminds me of when I was in college and working full-time on the side.  My stress relieving go-to meal was a bag of chips and a container of the queso.  I could polish off both in one setting.  That would be all I ate for the day, but dang, I was one helluva bada** chip consuming pro.  And damn impressive I thought.

Until college butt appeared.  Then I cut back somehow.  I think it was after scoring a man who can cook the good for me food.

Despite the long horizons of good meals, Mr. prepares for me, and his devotion to grilling in the middle of winter…

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I have cravings to beat.  I know to eat healthily and drinking in moderation.  Those three things (Mr.’s cooking included) will be the keys to my success.

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Because I know my old habits do appear to die-hard, I’m paying attention to what triggers my cravings.

Who will be the bada** this month?  The gal who’s trying to firm up her a**, for the beach, that’s who.  I plan to plant it in a chair and watch my kids having fun in the sun.

And I plan on chasing a frisbee, too…this was a rum-induced moment…ah, the freedom of running on the beach in Jamaica……………………..what happens in Jamaica, stays in Jamaica (until you share a photo on your blog…now that’s a bada** move…)!

 

Post Inspiration – Day 3 – Identify Decoys for the Challenge – Fall In Love With Your Over 50-Self February #FILWYO50SF and a wicked twist to Lens Artists #31 – Landscape.  I love the ladies who host the challenge, they are so kind to me when I sneak in my take on the prompt.  Their landscape photos as travelers are to die for, make sure to go check them out!

PS – What are your life-long cravings?  What delicacy gets you to cave almost every time?  Do you have a pen like mine?  They are easy to make, all you do is attach it to a self-made sign and then pull it out when your item expires, write a new date on it and bingo – savings!