Knowledge

First, a woo hoo carrots post to help keep me accountable.

I'm calling today a success. For the most part at least. Didn't make it to the gym AGAIN but with work the way it is right now I'm okay with it.

I did keep my calories fairly low today, even with a Red Bull to keep me going, so I feel good about that. And I cooked tonight even with the boy out of town, so I feel really good about that.

So this girl in my office is getting married in July and she started dieting and the process she's going through has really opened my eyes. She is so new to everything and she's really struggling to learn how to eat right and what good choices are. For her whole life, she's eaten a typical American diet. Lots of meat and potatoes and fast food and very few fruits and veggies.

We had a lunch at a certain chain Italian restaurant the other day, and she chose cheese ravioli for lunch. I chose a low fat pasta dish, which wasn't great because of all the carbs, but at least it was low fat. We started discussing the amount of calories in this and that and we told her she probably didn't want to know how many calories were in her ravioli, and she was SO upset. She thought she made a good choice and didn't realize how much the calories and fat can add up in cheesey dishes. She was so bummed out that day.

I found myself starting to give her advice about eating. At first I sort of felt like a hypocrite, because who am I give out nutrition advice when I can't even maintain my weight loss? But then I started thinking about it, and I really do know a LOT LOT about nutrition. I read everything I can get my hands on, and honestly it really has paid off.

It feels good to know that I'm educated on the subject. I know about carbs and fat and protein and sodium and how many calories I should eat per day and what kind of workouts I should do and I know how I feel when I eat certain foods and how I feel when I don't. I know about keeping my plate colorful and having a veggie at every meal and I know that a glass of red wine is actually good for me.

I know all these things and more, and while I don't practice what I know every single day, it feels good to know that I'm throwing myself into this prepared. I have a lot of tools at my disposal, including all of your blogs, and I use those tools. I'm not confused about what I need to do. I just need to do it.

So I'm committed to a couple of things right now.

1. Helping my friend at work learn as much as she can about living a healthy lifestyle.
2. Being a walking example of that healthy lifestyle.

There is no reason why I shouldn't practice what I preach. I should put all this knowledge to good use and quit screwing myself over. Otherwise, what's the point of all that knowledge?