I’m not alone in having struggled with my weight. A lot. For decades. I’ve been thinking about ways my thinking about weight has changed through the years, and about ways of thinking I’ve incorporated that truly seem to help me.

1. Do what works for you now. By which I mean, try to be aware of making comparisons to what you think someone else is doing (you can never actually know), and comparisons to what you used to do or think you should do. Focus on what works, for you, now.
2. I try to include a vegetable (or fruit), protein & fiber with every meal and snack. (So every time you eat it’s nutritionally well rounded, and your body gets some balance.)
3. I try to move every day (the earlier the better, but it’s never too late). I try to be aware of opportunities to move (the old “park your car far away” and “take the stairs” mentality). If I am able walk or bike an errand, I choose that. If my son wants to go outside, I say yes.
4. I try to eat whole foods. Craving fat? Use avocado on your toast or hummus on your salad (instead of butter and oil). Craving sweets? Try a handful of your favorite berries or go all out and eat some dates (instead of sugar or syrup based treats). My peanut butter sandwiches all have bananas instead of jam. It’s not about calories; it’s about eating whole foods that have all their component parts intact so my body has more to work with.
5. I try to make all my own food. Especially snacky or sweet food. More whole food, less packaging, less additives, more in touch with the actual process of food creation and what’s going on your body. Craving cookies? Make them from scratch with what you have on hand, ideally with whole grains and sweetened with dates (links to come for my favorite 2-ingredient cookies & whole wheat cookies). Craving salty snacks? Stovetop popcorn and kale chips are my go to. (I aspire to crunchy baked garbanzos. I suppose I’ll get there eventually.) Craving bread or tortillas? A little time consuming, but easy to do. Cake? I do microwave mug cakes occasionally. Ice cream? Nice cream! All in all, making a habit of making the snack/treat a fun, creative event works better for me now (than my previous habit of grabbing something prepackaged, preservative filled, & nutritionally bereft). It took a while to figure out what I need to have on hand to cover cravings, and it’s a work in progress. But it’s been fun!
6. I try to use positive language. By which I mean, don’t demonize or label your food. Food is just food. It all offers a wide range of nutrition and flavor. Labeling certain foods as bad or off limits makes me yearn for them.
7. I try to be in the now. By which I mean, no food math or food accounting (“I skipped breakfast so I can eat twice as much lunch,” or “I ate too much for lunch so I’ll skip dinner.”) what does your body really need, right now?
8. I try to take the time to listen to my body. When my brain says “snack” or “treat,” I try to check in: am I actually even hungry? Is there an emotional driver to be aware of? If I am really hungry, is there a food that would be more deeply satisfying that whatever I was just triggered by (say a billboard or an advertisement or what someone’s eating in the book I’m reading)? This has been a slow process and I can see I’m getting better at realizing that, hey, while a DQ Blizzard *sounds* good, my body will feel more deeply satisfied if I eat my lentil-quinoa-salad bowl, and my heart will feel more deeply content knowing I’ve acted in accordance with my zero waste, whole food plant based, do no harm, uber frugal intentions.
9. I try to eat foods that have no advertising. If it’s advertised, someone is pushing an agenda that benefits their interests, not mine.
10. I try to be patient and compassionate with myself. We have spent our whole lives learning habits that don’t benefit us. It takes a long time to become aware and practice making different choices that lead to new habits.
11. I try to get plenty of sleep. Tired = hunger as my body tries to compensate for exhaustion with food energy, and my judgement isn’t as good and my inhibitions are down. Tired is a lot like intoxicated that way.
12. I try new things. One new vegetable or main course or fruit or random recipe a week. At least.
13. I try to limit grocery shopping to once a week. For me, this encourages some degree of planning. It also gives me a chance to run out of things at home (easy staples) and try something new (like that bag of split peas I hadn’t gotten around to learning how to use).
14. When I do go, I make a list and try to stick to it. Less spontaneous purchases. If I see something I want that’s not on the list, I have the opportunity to hold off and wait till next week. This gives me a chance to decide if I really need it, and think about alternatives (is it something I can make? Is there a more healthful version available?)
15. I try to keep lots of easily-snackable vegetables and fruits on hand and in sight. For me that’s usually sugar snap peas, whole carrots, apples, blueberries. Sometimes I’ll mix it up with sliced jicama, cucumber, zucchini, okra (it’s great raw when it’s young!), tangerines.
16. I keep my cravy ingredients out of easy sight/reach. For me that’s dark chocolate, peanut butter, anything my husband or son have that’s easily snackable and not in line with my whole foods plant based intentions. All that stuff goes on top or back shelves as much as possible.
17. I try to surround myself with people who are & input that is likeminded and supportive. I join Facebook groups for whole foods plant based eating. I unfollow people or pages that post lots of pictures of foods that don’t work for me, or who (for example) post “funny” memes making fun of exercise or normalizing a sedentary lifestyle. I follow pages and blogs that inspire me: recipes, exercise, awareness, etc. There’s a lot of money being pumped into keeping us overweight an inactive; a little curating of your inbox goes a long way!
18. I try to meet up in active, creative, social ways. “Let’s do lunch” or brunch or breakfast or dinner or drinks is a go to that is often not in line with my intentions. My brother and I used to meet and eat lunch out weekly. We switched to meeting at each other’s houses and cooking for each other. Now when someone wants to meet for a meal I try to suggest meeting at a park or for a hike instead.
19. Hide the TV. For me, TV = potentially endless hours of sessile snack time. Alternatives: invite friends over for dinner. Eat outside. Go for a nighttime walk. Learn to play guitar.
20. We try to eat at the dinner table. With napkins. And maybe even multiple courses if time & creativity are available. No phones if possible. It’s really nice. 🙂
21. I try to focus on what matters. My husband and my son. My family and friends. My career. Joy. Growth. Creativity. Food does not deserve to have the power over me it used to command. I choose to spend my time and energy focusing on what brings me joy and contributes to my family, my community, and the world.