Satiety Alcohol and Emotions
I missed lunch yesterday and this is not a smart move especially before going to a surprise party.
The usual last minute gift wrapping, where is the camera, do we have a memory card for found camera took up the lunch hour.
Planning is an important part of making lifestyle changes. This includes planning a salad with lunch and an afternoon snack. To successfully battle the cookies displayed each day in the break room, adequate protein and veggie consumption is my armour. Knowing my needs, I insisted on having lunch at IKEA (last minute stop) at 2:30. The lines were long and the food was not what I remembered from when my daughters loved playing in the balls followed by the IKEA cafe. Salad, a plate of steamed veggies and 2 chicken crisper's with the coating removed best I could, I felt satiated.
"Pace Yourself'" - If I am hungry before I arrive, I have a tough time not filling up on appetizers. In winter these appetizers are hot and usually rich and or fried. Calorically they are treacherous because they are so small. This is compounded with waitress service where I am not limiting myself to one pass at the buffet. Lucky for me with IKEA veggies and chicken on board I was not even tempted. This was a new experience. I did take one chicken skewer with peanut sauce and put it on a plate in case I changed my mind which I didn't.
The next early decision that makes a difference is what to drink. Assuming since it is a party after all ,the question becomes which alcohol. If I choose a drink that sneaks up on me I lose my inhibitions (lots of calories lost). This limits my choice which is also helpful for me.. so Wine- white or red, Beer - lite or full bodied are my choices.
I have learned that keeping adequately hydrated helps with weight loss. Each day I aim for 1/2 gallon of pure water plus other beverages. At parties I do so much better if I alternate an alcoholic drink with a seltzer and lime. It took me 10 minutes to pick my poison and I sipped seltzer while I was thinking. Lite beer, low in carb and calories and it takes a while to drink. True red wine is better for the heart but beer quenches thirst better. So I make it through Happy Hour actually 1 1/2 hours, with only 2 lite beers and lots of seltzer. Pretty good start.
Checking my seat arrangement turns out to be trouble. I understand it is sometimes difficult for the party planner to provide a great table for each attendee. But reality is, over the last decades, I have had more than my fair share of sitting at the dull table. I am by no means a Diva, but realizing that yet again I am being "put" at the odd table because I am "so chatty" stirs up strong emotions. I have driven 2 1/2 hours to this party and now I am suppose to spend the rest of the evening in dull company while I hear my comrades laughter at the next table. I am not an entertainer for hire.
My initial reaction in years past would have been to suck it up and take the high road, convincing myself "Its nice to meet new people". But turning 50 has changed my eyesight. It has also changed my responses to painful situations. I can sit here and suck it up and probably eat extra (OK a lot extra) so I keep the annoyance "stuffed" or I can find another place to sit. This has been a day where the 50 year old has had experiences the internal 20 year old has not. My husband actually chose the later option for me and moved one place setting to my comrade's table where one seat was already vacant. Perfect. I did not even look over when people finally sat at the odd table. I didn't even allow myself to get annoyed at the situation until I was in the car driving home (another 21/2 hours).
Emotions and eating have been strongly linked for this 50 year old body. The theory "It's not what you Eat but What is Eeating you that makes the difference " rings true for me. I made great strides today in molding the external me. I did choose red meat but ate salad and all the veggies. I took a small slice of cake and did taste the ice cream but the end caloric result was much lower than if I had stayed at the Odd table stuffing my annoyance. Score 1 for 50 years of experience.
Early in the day I did have a slip. I was frantic when I couldn't find my make up case. One part of molding a 50 year old body to match an internal 20 year old is make up. I never needed more than mascara until 6 years ago. The fine lines never bothered me but menopause has brought on dark spots and blotchy red areas. I vacillate between just moisturizing, exfoliating and allowing the blotchy area to breathe as my cosmetologist suggests and looking in the mirror seeing the 50 year old face and needing to cover up. I am taking it day by day. Weight adds years and with more weight loss I may find I am comfortable with more "breathing" times. I will wait and see.
The climb continues and today I reached a mesa. Nice place to be
