A Happy Day and Chinese Food

I have a very unhealthy relationship with the scale. VERY unhealthy. Last week, when we went to our Weight Watchers meeting, I got on the scale, and for the 4th week in a row, I had gained weight. I immediately burst into tears, causing the one snotty woman in our meeting to stare (and to get a death-stare from Adam) and make me completely doubt all my efforts. All my healthy dinners had been for nothing. Why even bother? Why should I eat things like baked tofu and sweet potato rounds (besides the deliciousness factor) when I can eat things like burgers and french fries and get the same result? After an hour of teariness, Adam talked some sense into me. Had I been completely honest with myself?

I’d been bad. I’d made bad unhealthy choices. No, I hadn’t walked every day as I should have would’ve been healthy. I’d had chocolate and not counted it. So I re-evaluated. I switched from Point® counting to the no-counting Simply Filling® plan on Weight Watchers for the week, which relies on low-energy density, very filling foods. I counted my extras. I was active when I could be, and drank a whopping 96 oz. of water a day.

I was almost shaking as I got on the scale this morning. Would my efforts, again, be destroyed with a gain? As I stepped off the scale, the receptionist (who knows me well) smiled and said “Good girl!” So then I knew… I’d at least lost .2 lbs. Oh no, I did not lose .2 lb. I lost 1.6 pounds this week!!! Just as quickly as the tears started last week, the giggles and good mood started today. Adam even said “It’s crazy how different your mood is when you lose…I’m not complaining!”

I was giddy all day, and continued my good healthful eating with an egg beater veggie omelette at brunch, and a fantastic steamed Chinese dinner (more on that in a minute!)

I know this is a different kind of post than I normally do, but I wanted to share… I too struggle with my weight, and since I love food, I struggle with labeling “treats” as “bad” and healthy everyday food as “good” or what I “should” have. As my WW leader says

“If you call chocolate cake, or pizza, or creme brulee ‘bad’, you are a liar, because those can never be bad. A Point®-y choice, sure, but never bad! You need to just ask yourself, ‘Is this something I’m willing to gain weight over?’ and if the answer is no, then reassess.”

One of my other WW buddies who has lost nearly 100 lbs has said “Food is just food, it doesn’t need to be an event.” I’m working on keeping that on a loop in my head!

Enough blathering… On to dinner! (Do you know who that little owl is?)

I went and got my nails done today, and when I left, the Chinese place next door must have been roasting 200 lbs. of garlic because it smelled AMAZING! I got home, and instantly told Adam “We’re getting Chinese for dinner.” So we ordered. I got my favorite thing at our place: steamed shrimp and broccoli with brown rice and black bean sauce.

I love that this place steams things like there’s no tomorrow, and includes dozens of HUGE shrimp. The broccoli is still a little crisp, and the sauce is to DIE for!
The best part though, is the brown rice. It’s perfect, and even better still: I didn’t have to cook it!

It’s still snowing here in Chicago, so we’re going to spend a night in, possibly catch an On-Demand movie and just relax. Sometimes those are the best nights, right?
Have an amazing Saturday night, and don’t forget to change your readers and blogrolls to my new site at http://www.imadedinner.net

xoxo,

Tagged as: accomplishments, dinner out, seafood