Flex Diet Update #2

So…about this flexitarian thing. I really want to do it. I mean, it’s not that hard to eat more fruits and vegetables and less meat but for some reason, I fell off the bandwagon. I got tired of eating salads, tuna and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. Also I don’t know if this was related to my flex ambitions but my nails became brittle and started splitting. After about six weeks, I was pretty much done. So now my goal is to explore more vegetarian options so if or when I try again, I’ll be better prepared. Over the weekend I ate Trader Joe’s meatless corn dogs. They were tasty.

Got any other suggestions? I need them to be easy. Send them my way.

Fried Chicken Cravings

Every four to six months I get a craving for fried chicken. Usually it’s Popeye’s spicy chicken or extra crispy Kentucky Fried Chicken. Further feeding this recent craving was the arrival of KFC coupons in the mail. Since my husband had to work late this past Friday and I’d be on my own for dinner, I figured it would be a good time to give into my craving. As I pulled into the drive-thru, a small, still voice said “Get the grilled chicken,” but bad Diva shouted, “Get the ‘good’ stuff.” You can guess which voice I listened to.

Why is it that when you finally eat something you’ve been craving for a while, it doesn’t taste as good? That was the case as I chomped away on my extra crispy KFC chicken Friday night. Plus as soon as I finished eating my meal, my stomach started hurting. This always happens. The grease pays me back by upsetting my stomach.

I asked myself, “Why did you do this to yourself?” Each time I give into my fried chicken cravings, I get sick. I hope the next time, about six months from now, I’ll have the strength to say no. My stomach will thank me.

Flex Diet Update

So I’ve been a practicing flexitarian for a week or so and I’m doing okay. It made me realize how little fruits and vegetables I had been eating lately. I spent most of week one eating cheese pizza, which I don’t think was a good thing. Oatmeal or a multigrain, high fiber cereal is my typical breakfast. Lunch is peanut butter and jelly or a salad. Dinner (when I usually eat meat) is teriyaki chicken and jasmine rice or a turkey burger or grilled chicken and veggies. This week I started with cheese pizza again but I also had tuna salad. Snacks include almonds, dried cranberries and nonfat strawberry yogurt. I plan to hit the library and the Internet for more vegetarian meal ideas. Feel free to send your suggestions my way.

New Diet Regime

Okay, I think I’m about to embark on something major here, or at least major for me. I’ve been talking about it for months. I’m sure my friends are tired of me by now. I think I’m finally ready to do it. I’m going to become a flexitarian! There I said it.

What finally pushed me over the edge? An article in the October issue of “Runner’s World.” In “Simply Good” Mark Bittman discussed the health benefits of eating more fruits and vegetables and less meat and how eating this way is good for runners. He presented his case in a way that made it seem doable. I know it will take some work and I’ll have to get creative with meals so I’m not just eating lettuce all the time but I’m going to give it a try.

Getting to this point was hard for me for some reason. Yes, I try to eat organic about 80 percent of the time and I limit fatty, junk food but I felt like it wasn’t enough. Part of my motivation to do more is my family health history. Heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and glaucoma run in my family. Running and eating better has already helped lower my cholesterol by 20 points. I want to do all I can to prevent the health challenges my father and aunts and uncles struggle with.

So my plan is to start with limiting meat to one meal a day, most likely dinner. I’m three days into the new eating regime and I can’t wait to go grocery shopping so I can buy more foods to support my cause. Now I need your encouragement to keep it up. Please share your recipes and eating tips and when I develop some, I’ll share mine and we’ll embark on this journey together.