Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Do you think you could eat Burger King every day for lunch?

As many of my loyal followers were informed, I am no longer able to check the blog at work anymore. The company I work for has tightened their internet restrictions and now I can no longer get into blogs at work. Which makes sense intellectually but is really, really annoying. It's not like I don't do my work. I do it and I do it well. So why can't I check my blog if I am getting all my work done. I guess they want me to look for more work to do.
It will be fine as long as all of you continue to follow and are patient for my responses.
And now back to our regularly scheduled programming:
I think that in yesterday's comments people were discussing the idea of knowing what is right to eat and what is wrong. What strikes me is that for me it's not about knowing it, it's about executing. I know that asparagus is better for me than a chocolate bar, but I often would still rather eat the chocolate. For me it is so much more about self control than eating the wrong foods.
But what really gets me is when people really are uneducated about their food choices. Sometimes I will see people eating Burger King or other fast food and all I can think is that that is an entire day's worth of calories in your one meal. If I ate non kosher I am certain I would eat it on occasion, but what I do not understand is how people can order this three times a week for lunch. I just cannot fathom this at all. But I do know that it has a lot to do with what people can afford and unfortunately the unhealthy food is the cheapest and that is what people can afford so that's what they eat.
I am thankful to Hashem that I have been given the knowledge to live a healthier lifestyle and the resources to be able to afford this lifestyle. Now if only He would take away my love for chocolate...

9 comments:

She-nerd said...

you would be sad if you didn't love chocolate.

i would totally eat mcdonald's fries if i could. and a chocolate shake. at least once. but you're right - i can't see myself eating there every day. maybe cinnabon though...

zehava said...

I was thinking about this post last night after I had a conversation with 3 really thin friends of mine who have TERRIBLE eating habits. They basically eat no fruites and vegetables, and just eat junk (pasta, fattening shabbos leftovers etc.) all of the time. And they are thin! I don't get it. But you know, I sort of agree with what She-Nerd said in an earlier post, that people who struggle with their weight are almost lucky b/c we are forced to eat healthy, and honestly I love healthy foods and don't really feel like I'm missing out on anything. I've realized that the pleasure I get from food is very very fleeting.....Especially if it makes you feel badly afterwards. My three friends might wear a much smaller dress size than I do, but I am much much healthier, and in the end that is what matters. Sarah, try and focus on that endgame and maybe it will help you with you self control struggles. Because, after all, dieting is all about motivation, that's really what it all comes down to, are you motivated to change or not?

SaraK said...

I agree with Z. I have some friends who are very thin and have SUCH bad eating habits. I cringe when I watch them eat all that junk. I do enjoy eating healthy. I need to keep in mind that the pleasure from food is fleeting and it's just not worth it to indulge on a regular basis.

Rivka said...

Sarah, I shouldn't be blogging at work either, but oh well. I just wanted to say that I have definitely become more of an emotional eater over the last several years. Just yesterday I had a meeting at school about one of my kids that made me stressed, so I didn't have a lunch and came back to the office and ate chips and figured I ruined it for the day and ate horribly the rest of the night. But today is a new day and I will do better. But I also see here that people will eat fast food 4-5 times per week, and If I had the choice I would eat at olive garden:). But Baruch HAshem we have to control ourselves to some degree. well, it's back to work. By the way I have someone in my office who is trying to gain weight because she is SOOO little, and she says she struggles the same way. It should only be that way for all of us.
Did you see the soup recipe I left? you should try it. HAve a great shabbos.
Rivka

Anonymous said...

For me it's a combo of: genuinely not being as aware as I should be and not investing enough to deprive myself of something I want. Like, do I know water is better than, say, apple juice? Yes. But do I care enough to acquire a taste for something tasteless when I want is sugar? Generally no. So odds are I would be scarfing the burger king because it's cheap and easy and I'm sure tastes good, and bottom line it will fill me more than a salad. It takes more effort to eat well let alone expense and for some people that;s enough of a deterrent.
(But a lot of it reall is, I walk into the grocery aND NOW WHAT?)

SaraK said...

One of the biggest points in WW is PLANNING! When you don't plan in advance, you show up to the supermarket and buy whatever you see. And you go out to for lunch and dinner to the easiest, quickest fast food places. But if you plan what you are going to eat and buy accordingly and then pack your lunch, prepare your dinner, etc., then you will have the tools in place to facilitate your healthy eating.

zehava said...

Marg,

There is a big difference between health and low calories. For someone who is not watching their weight, its not bad to drink apple juice (though it is much more beneficial to eat an actual apple, it has the same amount of calories with lots of vitamins and fiber that aren't in the juice.) Juice is not unhealthy, it just is horrible for weight loss/maintenance. You want all of your calories to have as much fiber as possible, so that you are filled up and eat less. You can spend 300 calories on a big glass of apple juice or you can spend 300calories on 3 fruits. You will be a lot fuller after the 3 fruits than after apple juice. That is pretty much what it boils down to.

SK said...

Firstly I am touched that all of you kept it going today even though I am not checking in till now. So, thanks. I have been waiting all day to blog!
So here is what i have to say:
Rivka: What soup? and I sympathize with the emotional eating very much. If you have to eat emotionally you have to try to eat different foods to fill that need.
Now I hear m's point very well. let's face it, we are in instant gratification society (and Rivka-we know instant gratification is a no-no). Most people find it easier to get it done quickly and effortlessly so they can just get down to the eating. And Sara- I appreciate how well thought out and organized you are but for others that is a much much harder thing to accomplish.
And Z, I agree 100% that eating an apple is better than drinking the juice on every level, but I don't really like juice.
And finally, I think She-nerd was most honest when she said she would eat the fires -we all would and maybe not everyday, but sometimes...

Unknown said...

Thanks a lot for the post. I love to read articles which are about medicine or health related topics. They keep me up to date with the current issues. I hope to read more from you!

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