When we were teens, drama was fine. But today, kick the drama and be curious instead.

Pearl One

Meet a friend who lost 49 pounds and has kept them off for ten years.

Gail writes:

I had an interesting experience on my birthday. For various reasons I wasn’t able to go out and do fun things, as I usually do, so I decided to release my iron control and have what I used to call ” an eating day”, which included a very large portion of cheesy mashed potatoes.

The next day I’d put on three pounds. In the past, I would have either panicked and starved myself, or carried on eating. I resumed my normal diet and exercise and within three days was back to normal weight.

Very reassuring.

I love this.

You and I are not new to this game. The scale has gone up and down our entire lives. We know the days of angry-tears and we know the good times too.

Even so, to gain Gail’s skill, here’s what we want to practice: ditching the drama when the scale is not going in the “right” direction.

What I mean by “drama” is that, let’s say, you weigh yourself in the morning, don’t like what you see on the scale and start beating yourself up. You’re furious. You tell yourself that you’re idiotic, stupid and so forth.

Guess how I know? After 16 years of maintenance I still have those bad days. Not as many, but I have them.

And — when I do — like Gail, I don’t go to pieces. Or berate myself. None of that.

Because when you “take yourself to task” in your heart, you’re going backwards. Nothing comes from turning on yourself.

Instead learn to be curious. In your journal, write the timeline of events that led you to overeat. Essentially map out what happened and learn more about who you are with certain triggers.

Then go “Gail” on your Smart Eating Lifestyle. That’s right. Let’s say you’ve gained, follow her exact lead:

In the past, I would have either panicked and starved myself, or carried on eating. I resumed my normal diet and exercise and within three days was back to normal weight.

That’s right. Say buh-bye to all the hoopla that comes from attacking yourself when you’ve gained, get curious, write in your journal — and steer yourself right back to your Smart Eating Lifestyle.

I don’t “think” you can do this. I know you can.

If you want to meet Gail, she’s British and has a fun and colorful fashion blog at Is this Mutton? ♥

Pearl Two

In life, it’s what you make it mean. True story. I was in a meeting in a large conference room with a group of cops and managers. Mid-meeting, an officer showed up with a K-9 officer, a black German shepherd named Bennie.

We took a small break, and I used my time to go bananas over the sweetheart and throw a Kong toy for him again and again. A wonderful GSD.

Another woman was in the meeting. When Bennie arrived she was acting uncomfortable. At the break, a flurry ensued. She was obviously terrified and repeated “no, no, no” (as officers were trying to reassure her) and bolted out of the room never to be seen again.

Same large conference room. Same meeting. Same dog. Two totally different reactions. In slowing down the film here’s what happened:

Door opens and in walks an officer and Officer Bennie.

She sees the dog and thinks, monster! From the thought, she feels scared.

I see Bennie and think, furry baby! From the thought, I feel delighted.

Her action: she leaves the room.

My action: love-bomb the puppy!

This woman wasn’t being “silly.” I have a good friend who grew up in the same culture as this woman. In their world small dogs are fine, but big dogs are vicious and dangerous.

My point: a circumstance unfolds, we have a thought and from the thought we have a feeling. And it’s within our power to choose the thought that will will impact our feeling.

The sequence goes: “situation” then ” our thought” then our “feeling.” Give this concept a lot of your time, because every situation in life boils down to this sequence. There are two more steps, but first I’m hoping you’ll embrace this flow.

If this doesn’t make sense, I would love it if you email me: Wendy@theInspiredEater.com. ♥

Pearl Three

We keep this slot for a new topic each month and in November we’re talking “stacking.”

Today I’m stacking what comforts me when life is being life, and I’m overwhelmed. Take a look at my Comfort Stack:

One

Being in bed on a cold night, and going under my electric blanket.

Two

Laying on the couch under my Grandma’s knitted blankie, headphones on listening to a favorite podcast. Most important: kitty pads over and curls up on Mount Tummy.

Three

In bed – same electric blanket – reading a phenomenal book or watching a favorite show: The Crown, Schitt’s Creek, or Call the Midwife.

Four

Being in the library with three of my most favorite things: free books, magazines and silence.

Five

I love being home – alone – and putting on great music to putter-clean. Largely I’m a panic-cleaner, but occasionally I get the house to myself, and I love doing whatever needs attention (which is everything).

Six

I used to get comfort by being at my yoga/Pilates studio. For the most part we knew each other – sort of –, like I knew when a yoga-friend went to South Korea to visit family. That kind of thing.

And I knew each instructor’s style. (Not saying it was easy. In the beginning I slipped in my own sweat, but it felt homey.)

Now it’s your turn. I’d love to hear about your Comfort Stack in the comments below! ♥

Pearl Four

I ran across this recipe and thought, sounds tasty (and I was right).

Oats muesli-style for the brrrr!! months:

Take:  

• Half an apple or pear, grated (I diced my apple)
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup milk or plant milk of your choice (I used almond milk; some use Kefir)
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt (I used regular yogurt)
• 1/4 cup dried fruits of your choice (I left this out completely, a quarter-cup seems like a lot)
• a squeeze of honey (I didn’t use)
• a generous handful of nuts (I use a light sprinkle of walnuts. I’d never use “a generous sprinkle” of anything).

During the cold months, combine all the ingredients in a cereal bowl and allow to sit for 20 minutes. No, you aren’t heating anything, but the dish is warmer than if it sits in the fridge all night.

But during the summer, let the muesli sit overnight in the fridge and in the morning you’ll wake up to a delicious cold bowl. ♥

Pearl Five

Ok. So you had a bad day. Don’t beat yourself up, don’t let one bad decision send you spiraling out of control. Get back to making decisions that improve your health and happiness. You are who you choose to be.” — Anonymous ♥

I have an advertising budget of lol. If you’ve enjoyed these pearls, I’d love it if you’d share them with friends or family.

On Tuesday we’ll talk Holiday Health Challenge. For this last week before Thanksgiving, join me in doubling-down and doing our new habit each day of this week. And share how you’re doing in the comments below! 🙂

Have a beautiful mid-November everyone!!

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you!

I’ve been asked if I could include something like Buy me a Coffee on the Inspired Eater. So if you feel up to sending a coffee, I am a devotee. You’ll find the coffee “button” to your right. And, as always, thank you so much for reading the Inspired Eater. ♥♥♥

Pearl One

I’ve long thought that our world is so the Jetsons: cutting-edge and very cool.

I mean, we’re rich in brilliance personified like Maria Beasley (invented life rafts for ships) or Rosalind Franklin (discovered something huge in DNA).

And let’s give it up for Josephine Cochrane who invented the dishwasher!! (And the crowd goes wild.)

Furthermore, can we talk indoor plumbing? Wow, right?

And I haven’t even mentioned Prince, Aretha, or Taylor Swift.

Doesn’t planet Earth rock?!

But, then we come to our (funky) diet-industry.

We’ve learned that we’d been lied to for decades by Big Sugar and that, at one point, there was something hinky going on with the food pyramid too. Not to mention that the “calories in, calories out” crowd are still debating each other.

On the plus side, we’ve received life-saving info on sodium, that too much is a hard no. And they genuinely seem to want the nutrition labels on food items to work in our favor (food counts came out in 1994, revised in 2016).

But these are still the peeps who once sang the praises of margarine, only today to urge us to welcome butter back into our fridge (in tiny servings of course). And let’s not forget what happened to the innocent egg.

And yet with the gains made, there are still those of us who are like, whatever. I have to figure this out on my own.

But here’s the thing: the larger culture has long taught that being hyper-focused on what we put into our mouths is is the key to losing weight. But really food is only the substance we use.

The truth is that eating issues begin in our hearts.

We might be grieving or angry or disappointed. We might be deliriously happy. Or scared. Or even despondent.

And the best way I know of to reach our hearts is through journaling-writing. And please don’t tell yourself that journal-writing is a “nice thing to do”, only not today. (Sorry, too busy.)

You’re never too busy for journaling-writing. It’s an imperative piece to losing after 50 and maintaining the forever-loss.

Writing suggestions:

• What’s going on inside of me today? Am I frightened, mad, anxious?
• It’s difficult for me to sit quietly with my feeling(s) and just “let it be” because. . .
• When I’m having my feeling, where do I feel it in my body?
• If I “sit with my feeling”, how long does the feeling stay?
• I know that feelings pass like clouds moving through the sky, but I’m still scared to stay present and be calm with my feeling(s) — rather than feeding it chocolate — because. . .
• When I was young who comforted me when I was having feelings?
• I had to deal with feelings on my own so I turned to (list as many as you can). . .
• In my emotional life today, which feelings can I handle? Which rattle me to my core?
• What kind of self-talk would help me immensely as I learn to better engage with myself while experiencing a hard (for me) feeling?

Journal-writing reveals insights into ourselves in which we’re not consciously aware. Get to know you, you’ll fall in love with the person you find. ♥

Pearl Two

I didn’t think up this great tool, but I’m sure glad that Tim Ferris – podcaster extraordinaire – put words to the feelings of “HELL YEAH!!”

Let me explain.

When we take something away from ourselves – like overeating for comfort – we have to give something in return or we feel a yawning void, an emptiness inside, and head straight for the Doritos. (When people give up alcohol or drugs, the rehab staff strongly encourages participants to find new passions in life as part of the healing process.)

But how to choose from the millions of hobbies out there? We’ve all tried various activities and – while some were okay — none sparked much passion in us.

But Tim’s “HELL YEAH!!” energy changes the equation.

As an example, one woman I know loves comedy. She’ll take her comediennes on Netflix, but she’s wild about seeing stand-up live. Years ago, she saw Seinfeld just months before his show went on the air and last week she saw Kid Gorgeous — John Mulaney — live in her town.

That said, what’s your reaction to seeing a comedienne in person? This is where Tim Ferris says, “If your answer isn’t an uproarious, ‘HELL YEAH!!‘ pass it up.”

If an activity or idea doesn’t light Tim on fire, he’s out.

So, what’s your reaction to:

• Seeing all of Johnny Depp’s top twelve movies? A “HELL YEAH!!” or “meh”?
• Returning to the childhood classics like The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie, and A Little Princess also by Frances Hodgson Burnett. (Adults reading awesome kid-lit is a thing.) “HELL YEAH!! or “so-so”?
• Beginning with a “paint by numbers” kit and moving onto to actual painting classes. “HELL YEAH!!” or “not really”?
• Photography classes. “HELL YEAH!!” or “pass”?
• Taking a therapy dog into a nursing home. “HELL YEAH!!” or “not my thing”?
• Love travel? (TrustedHousitters.com makes it more affordable. Just sayin.’) “HELL YEAH!!” or “not into it”?

But here’s the tricky part: we need to open our hearts to new experiences. We need to at least try — your equivalent of — the comedy show, or the painting class, or the therapy dog. You can’t blow off every suggestion: trying new things is part of our Smart Eating Lifestyle. Don’t make it a dramatic thing, just try two new activities a month. Eventually one will catch your attention.

Btw, I’ve tried a lot of things that didn’t pan out, one to the tune of $2000. So don’t force yourself to like something you don’t like (only try not to spend $2000 when you’re still in the honeymoon stage). Just stay open and try new activities.

When we’re living more of a “HELL YEAH!!” life, our dedication to eating 95 percent fuel-food, while keeping the fun-food to just five percent is way less formidable. I’d love to hear your “HELL YEAH!!” passions in the comments below. ♥

Pearl Three

We keep this slot for a new topic each month and in November we’re talking “stacking.” Last week, I pointed out how easy it is for me to stack negative memories. (Kind of a downer.)

Today let’s talk stacking small, but significant memories that make us laugh. When I think of funny moments, I see in my mind’s eye my grandma who had a great sense of humor and loved to laugh. She was the throw-your-head back type.

Have fun with this one. In your journal stack five memories and then write them on stickies where you’ll see them and smile every day. ♥

Pearl Four

Food. A thriver from Texas wrote and said that she loves to put mashed avocado into warm corn tortillas adding a smidge of salt and a squirt of lime. (Since I use WW’s old points system paired with the REP, I eat my guac-tacs for lunch, not dinner.)

My review: yum, yum, and more yum. ♥

Pearl Five

There is no passion to be found playing small — in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.” – Nelson Mandela ♥

If a problem is bothering you, it’s annoying someone else too, no doubt.

Have a beautiful mid-November everyone!

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you!

You know the scoop: I’m an Amazon affiliate. If you buy from a link in my post, I’ll receive money, but the arrangement won’t cost you a dime.

I am not an expert, a doctor, a surgeon, a nurse or a nutritionist: the information within TheInspiredEater.com is based solely on my personal experience and is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. ♥

We all go a little south more often than we want to admit.

Pearl One

Somewhere within our fad-diet loving culture we accepted the notion that our response to challenges should unfold in a linear style.

We’re so accustomed to our world being somewhat A + B = C. We start college as freshman and finish as seniors (hopefully). The December holidays follow Thanksgiving that follows Halloween (in the U.S.).

And that’s how we want our Smart Eating Lifestyle too. Perfect, pristine, and linear.

Except it’s not. Having maintained a 55-pound loss for 16 years, I can assure you that I’ve found losing and maintaining to be more like a pretty kitchen that needs to be sprayed down occasionally with the garden hose if one doesn’t stay “on top of things.”

Life on the Smart Eating Path is like a child finger-painting: messy. Does she have her apron on? Is there a drop cloth underneath her for miles in all directions, and — quick! — the water for the brushes is about to be knocked over! (Oh, well. Better luck grabbing it next time.)

That’s the logical fallacy of those of us living the Smart Eating Lifestyle™ assuming that “the successful losers and maintainers” are either perfect, or beat themselves up when something in the plan goes awry (otherwise called “feeling ashamed”).

I can tell you — beyond a shadow of a doubt — that I did not shame myself into a healthy weight. As I lost, I did not beat myself up.

Because why?

It won’t actually help anything and “something going wrong in the plan” is part of our lifestyle.

Going “left” instead of “right”, and making a u-ee is what our world is now about. So you ate “off-plan” for a day or more? I just tell myself exactly what I told my German shepherd when he was still begging for treats — all done!! — and I encourage you to try the words too. ♥

Pearl Two

Find the gems in your day-to-day. Remember Christina Hendrix on Mad Men and Good Girls? Well, I happened to see a comment she made and I thought it was genius: she keeps kettlebell weights around her house to use whenever she has a spare moment. “I keep [them] right next to the bed, so I can run my bathwater, do a set, and then do something else, and then come back and do another set,” she told Everyday Health.

Keeping weights throughout the home? Brilliant. That’s how I keep the Smart Eating Lifestyle dynamic, I’m open to fabulous tips coming from any place, from anyone, from anywhere. I’d love it if you’d share an amazing tip you recently learned — about anything — in the comments below! ♥

Pearl Three

We keep this slot for a new topic each month. I’ve written about this wonderful idea recently, but it’s multifaceted; looking at it from new angles can bring great insight.

Stacking.

I caught myself last night thinking of a very hard moment when I really – I mean, really – screwed up. And then I thought of another, and another, and another. At that, I realized, I’m stacking negative memories and then repeating them to myself on a loop.

Years ago I read that humans hold onto negative memories because it’s a key survival instinct to immediately recall which rock formation held the cave bear.

So, I consciously push back on the tendency to be negative by saying to myself, cathedral, cathedral, cathedral and I’m back in the present. I use “cathedral” because of a trip to Savannah, in which we stayed near the jaw-dropper.

But there’s no magic to the word “cathedral.” So when you’re in the negative-zone, begin to create the habit of saying one meaningful word or statement to yourself that will whisk you back to the present, and our much — much — better plan of stacking the positives. ♥

Pearl Four

Food. I recently jumped on the air fryer train. The best I’d heard is that they give food a crunchy outer layer.

So, broccoli, sweet potatoes, onion. Let’s do this!

Before buying I knew that an air fryer is essentially a convection oven (which we didn’t have).

So I Googled and got answers that told me to set the air fryer at too high of a temp and too long of a duration. I burned bowls of diced sweet potatoes, and a thing of broccoli.

My review: If you know what I’m doing wrong, send help! The Scarfer’s review: “no brainer” because frozen French fries appear for his mouth that much quicker.

(Sigh.) ♥

Pearl Five

People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.” – Zig Ziglar ♥

I’ve been asked if I could include something like Buy me a Coffee on the Inspired Eater. So if you feel up to sending a coffee, I am a devotee. You’ll find the coffee “button” to your right. And, as always, thank you so much for reading the Inspired Eater. ♥♥♥

And if you have any smart eating conundrums in November or December, feel free to write to me: Wendy@theInspiredEater.com. If a problem is bothering you, it’s bugging someone else too, no doubt.

Have a beautiful early November everyone!

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you!

You know the scoop: I am an Amazon affiliate so if you buy something through a link at this site, I may receive a small commission that won’t impact your price at all.

Chart your growth, pretend that you’re teaching others about how you’ve done it because one day they’ll ask.

Pearl One

You and I aren’t 22.

And though we’ve never sipped wine talking late into the night, I know something profound about you.

You’re a problem solver. It’s like Marie Forleo’s book title says, Everything is Figureoutable.

That’s you.

You figure it out, solve the problem, and get onto the next thing.

Unfortunately, our school system left many of us confused about our abilities and talents. Those of us over “a certain age” know that while we might not have pulled wondrous grades in school, we hold PhDs in not only surviving, but thriving in life.

School never taught us how to deal with the incessant red-tape of our world, babies with colic, moms with Alzheimer’s.

We didn’t have classes like “Intro to Varicose Veins”, the “Fundamentals of Leaving a Narcissist” or “Colonoscopy 101.”

A friend, diagnosed with breast cancer, handled chemo and radiation, and returned to her world homeschooling her teen. She’s happily in remission now. Falling apart was never part of her job description. 

What are Your Triumphs?

Get to the heart of the matter quickly by journaling about the following:

• In your journal list three times in your life when you blew your own mind.
• What did you learn from each win? (Write at least five lessons for each success.)
• Now apply those lessons-learned to trekking the Smart Eating Matterhorn.

I say it often – and I can’t be more serious – take regular notes as you lose and maintain, so that one day you can teach others. Because it’s a habit that pays double: you become a stronger trekker and, trust me, the people willl be asking. ♥

Pearl Two

Have you heard of it? I call it peripheral food shopping.

Here’s how it rolls.

Say I’m shopping in Trader Joe’s. If you were to glance into my cart you’d see: fresh flowers, whole wheat bread, colorful fruit and veggies, a wrapped burrito that I love and so on. My cart is “clean” of food-porn (a clean cart makes for a clean kitchen).

As I steer my cart into the center freezer aisle, I breeze by the cookies and candy, and head for the tins of coffee (on the top row).

But when I get to the coffee — lo and behold — underneath sits TJ’s awesome ice cream. At that moment, my mind jumps to my picky eater son. The poor guy doesn’t have much variety, so when I see something he’ll eat, I tend to buy it.

I lovingly place a carton of vanilla bean into my otherwise “clean” cart.

And that is peripheral shopping at it’s best.

You’ll notice how I essentially tell myself a big, fat lie: that I’m buying the vanilla ice cream for my son and of course I won’t eat it, the vanilla’s strictly for Will.

But, in the recesses of my mind – peripherally you might say – a Horton Hears a Who-whisper tells me that a spoonful of vanilla in the evening would be just the ticket.

Well.

You know as well as I that a spoonful of good ice cream can turn into two bowlfuls in no time.

To stop the peripheral shopping addiction in its tracks, it starts with noticing and acknowledging the whopper of a lie we tell ourselves. Being willing to be straight up honest is a serious game-changer.

Your mission: get really good at “catching yourself out.” Notice that when you pick-up a treat for someone at the grocery store, you’re picking up your favorites too. Put the ice cream back, wish it well, and get out of TJ’s as fast as humanly possible.

Another close call averted. ♥

Pearl Three

This slot is for “how I screwed up this week.” I have a really good “mess up” to share.

It was The Scarfer’s birthday this week (if you’re new here, and welcome!!, my husband loves his nickname). Mistake #1: I didn’t write out a battle plan for his big day of birthday-eating. If I’d had a plan, I’d be reporting success to you right now instead of the following.

There I was, “having” to buy birthday donuts from a shop that bakes fresh donuts every morning. A full dozen rode home with me. OMG, but they were good. (Save yourself by not taking that first bite.)

Mistake #2: I should’ve bought a small bag of donuts for my husband and two sons. And I had no business buying two jelly-filled that nobody eats but me (and occasionally the Scarfer).

We made his favorite for dinner: fondue which is seriously-yum. I was happy that I’d roasted broccoli to dip into the fondue, but when the broccoli was gone, I helped myself to a few bread chunks too. More yum-city. (Again, if I’d made a plan, the bread and fondue fiasco wouldn’t have happened.)

Earlier I’d made the Scarfer a chocolate cake with homemade chocolate frosting and – yikes – had to have a piece. Mistake #3: I know what cake tastes like, if I’d wanted cake, I should have planned for it and had it at breakfast. Truth is, the cake was too dry, but the frosting rocked!

If you’re counting, this was the first time I’ve had dessert after dinner in almost two years.

Do I beat myself up? I sure would if I thought it would help. But – as we know – attacking ourselves doesn’t lighten our load as we trek the Matterhorn (i.e. losing weight after 50).

Later I’m much less worried about the donuts, fondue and frosting, and more concerned about my habits.

Here’s what I did the next day to right my course:

In the morning I got on the scale and – huh — didn’t really love the number. At that I think, “Oh, hell no!!” Seriously, “oh, hell no” is my mantra when my smart eating habits tank. The mantra gets me back into the groove. Try it, it really works.

Because I deeply believe in the Royal Eating Plan, I have one donut with my morning coffee.

I carefully track everything that goes into my mouth.

For lunch I’m back in the game and have a whole-wheat English muffin sandwich with veggies.

Then I had something small at 6 p.m. (brown rice and a roasted sweet potato).

I clean the kitchen, write a post for Inspired Eater, and head to bed by 8:00 with my new book. Lights out by 9:30, Eventually I want to get up by 6 a.m. without feeling like a zombie.

And that’s how I deal with “relaxing my eating standards” (what we once called “cheating”).

Best Idea

If I could go back in time, I’d write up a plan for myself and keep the plan and it’s excellent tactics where I can see it all day long.

Remember, we can’t fall off anything because we’re not on anything. We’re living a Smart Eating Lifestyle and relaxing our standards is just part of the trek. It’s nothing to be dramatic about. It’s how we respond to eating food-porn that really matters.

How we respond is everything. ♥

Pearl Four

Our food slot! My Italian grandparents loved polenta especially my grandfather. He ate it like we eat Cream of Wheat. It’s boiled cornmeal and makes a great hot breakfast when it’s cold out.

But these days, I buy Trader Joe’s polenta that’s formed into yellow “logs” that you’ll find in TJ’s dry goods by the soup. (Or just ask, the staff can point you right to it.)

You can bake, fry, or grill polenta.

Here’s what I do.

I cut the log in half, and then cut one of the halves into four rounds placing the other half in the refrigerator. I fry my four rounds on the stove, but I bet they’re even tastier when baked or grilled.

After I heat them on the stove, I place my four hot rounds of polenta on the top of my salad. Sometimes I dab a tiny bit of butter on each round and add Parmesan cheese. Yum-o. ♥

Pearl Five

“The easiest thing is to react. The second easiest thing is to respond. But the hardest thing is to initiate.” – Seth Godin ♥

We have 27 days until Thanksgiving which isn’t meant to panic you. How is your new habit doing? Does it need shoring up? No problem. Get back on your habit-horse. You’re not starting anew, you’re continuing on with what you already started.

You’re not perfect? Join the club!!

I actually wrote my fitness habit on sticky notes and placed them throughout my life — the steering wheel is my favorite — so they’d remind me to workout. The stickies have been super helpful.

Remember, we’re working towards Thanksgiving at the moment, but soon we’ll be working towards Christmas.

I would love to hear the habit you’re creating in the comments below! Please share.

Have a wonderful end to October.

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you! ♥

Photo by Rhett Wesley on Unsplash

Hello Thrivers!

Whichever beautiful country you’re reading this from, I hope it finds you cozy.

I should add that I’m trying not to write such long posts. I don’t want you to see my emails and think, oh no, another phone book.

Here we go.

Pearl One

My Gram – who I mention a lot because I loved her so much – used to say, “My get-up-and-go, got-up-and-went.”

I receive just enough emails to leave me with the vibe that so many of us are losing – and maintaining – after age 50, 60, 70, 80 and 90, with our fingers crossed, hoping for a miracle this time around.

For sure, I talk about the many micro-habits that are so important to embed in your life:

• Keeping a cold-tote with you at all times when you’re out-and-about.
• Going to bed early with a book-dessert (especially when you’re changing an evening eating habit).
• Always stashing a protein bar or a banana in your handbag. Always.
• Keeping a clean grocery cart and kitchen (eliminating all food that you’ll overeat).

And so on.

But just like your phone that needs to be charged each day, your part-time job (if you will) is to ignite the part of you that brings the energy, the fire, the magic to every strategy as we trek the Matterhorn of losing after 50.

Without charge, our awesome phones go from 33%, to 12%, to – hold me!! – eight percent.

So the question is, how do you bring your most on-fire self to the Smartest Eating Lifestyle?

No more wishing on a star or hoping for a miracle.

We’re the captain of our gorgeous cruise ship, and our ship runs on the magic of our excitement. With it, she’ll tour the most amazing ports around the world.

But without our crackling energy, she goes nowhere.

Your choice. ♥

Pearl Two

You know how we’re participating in the Healthy Holiday Challenge that we began in August? Well, my plan was to establish a fitness habit.

I didn’t want to work towards a goal, I wanted to embed an actual habit (like my morning coffee).

And I’m right in the middle of establishing a fitness habit, as we speak.

This is what I do. To make developing the habit easier on myself, I tell myself that I don’t need to change into “the right clothes” because I’m only riding for ten minutes. By luck, this time, I pulled out my favorite toy — Instagram — and scrolled away as I rode.

O.M.G.

The first day I used Instagram, I rode at a level-five for 20 minutes (I wasn’t working out. I was merely trying to establish a habit). When I looked up, I realized that I’d ridden that long because of Instagram. The next day — with Instagram along for the ride again — I rode for 29 minutes, and I’ve done that every day since.

I should add that my “why” has also changed and I hadn’t realized it, but I’d always thought my “why” was about my sons. At least at the moment, I realized that I now have a much stronger “why.” As a writer I sit on my butt way too much and for that reason I need to work out and stretch. How I feel on a daily basis is more motivating than two cranky teenagers. (Who’d have guessed?)

So too-much-sitting motivates my workouts today. Consider looking at your “why” to see if it too could use an update. ♥

Pearl Three

Welcome to how I “screwed up.” I want to share how I “relaxed my standards a bit” because I don’t want you to think for a moment that I’m perfect in any sense of the word. To keep my weight down, I don’t overexercise and I’m not bulimic. I’m just your average gal who got tired of clothes not fitting. Nothing unusual to see here folks.

A good example. My idea of heaven is me on the couch, eating half (maybe more) of the Cheez-It box, kitty on lap (if I’m lucky) with a good book. I haven’t had a good Cheez-It blowout in years. Ah, the memories. Cheez-Its and I had some wild times together.

But my size eight jeans gave me an ultimatum. Choose. Would it be the jeans or the Cheez-Its?

I chose.

Completely worth it. ♥

Pear Four

Whole wheat pumpkin muffins! I’ve made these babies for years throughout the chilly months. Look how low in sugar!

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

• 1 cup white flour
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 3 TBL. sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder.
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice.
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 whole egg (I add more for added nutrition).
• 3/4 cup skim milk (I use almond milk)
• 2 TBL. butter
• 15 oz. can of pumpkin (plain), or 3 or 4 mashed bananas for banana muffins.

Spray muffin pan, use foil muffin cups or try these silicone muffin cups that I think rock.

In a large bowl, stir the dry ingredients together and make a well in the center.

In a small mixing bowl, stir together egg, milk and butter.

Stir in 3/4 of a can of pumpkin (I use the entire can).

Add wet ingredients to dry. Batter should be somewhat lumpy. Spoon into muffin cups.

Bake for 20 minutes. Healthy and yum. ♥

Pearl Five

A habit is a gift you give yourself.” – Me ♥

The Holiday Weight Challenge. Just 35 days until Thanksgiving!! Which new habit have you been working towards? I hope you’ll share in the comments below.

Creating a new habit is not about being perfect. Say this over and over (and over) to yourself.

Have a beautiful fall weekend everyone!!

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you!

You know the scoop: I am an Amazon affiliate so if you buy something through a link at this site, I may receive a small commission that won’t impact your price at all.

I am not an expert, a doctor, a surgeon, a nurse or a nutritionist: the information within TheInspiredEater.com is based solely on my personal experience and is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. ♥

Step away from the pizza and wine, and nobody’s Smart Eating Lifestyle gets hurt.

Pearl One

I listen often to the Two Disabled Dude’s podcast that’s tagline reads, we believe life is how we react.

Viktor Frankl, a survivor of Auschwitz, would completely agree.

You may already know is story, but before Frankl and his family were arrested by the Nazis, he was a successful psychiatrist and neurologist in Vienna. In the death camp, it came to Frankl that while the Nazis could take everything from him, they couldn’t take his thoughts, or his responses. The Nazis had no say over his mind.

Frankl left us with so many lessons on life, but this is one of my favorites.

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” ― Viktor E. Frankl

I love this quote. Between stimulus and response there is a space, and human beings have the ability to choose the thought that goes into that space.

An example.

Stimulus: you make it home after a long, tiring day to a hot, huge cheesy pizza in your kitchen. Next to the pizza sits a bottle of Merlot.

Response: You say to your partner, “give me five seconds to put on jammies and I’ll be right back!”

But slow your roll for a second.

Frankl tells us that there’s a space between seeing the pizza, and racing to get into our jams.

The space Frankl talks about is the moment when we have the ability – to slow everything down – and choose our thought, rather than reacting from a cave woman’s point of view (pizza, grunt, grunt, mine! grunt, grunt).

Instead the scene could go like this.

You walk into the house after a long, tiring day. You see the pizza. You think, major-yum. But you take a moment to chill and gather your thoughts. At that, you ask yourself the best question ever, do I want to be a size 8 or do I want to eat the pizza?

You also remind yourself that you can have the pizza in the morning. It’ll be tasty! (Having saved food for breakfast in the past, you know this is a fun move.)

You say to your partner, “You go ahead without me. I’ll eat my pizza in the morning.” At that, you grab a fast shower, relax into your jams, and return feeling much better. You eat a small dinner – that you prepared in advance — of brown rice, roasted sweet potatoes, and broccoli (your favorite).

As Loki tells Thor, “If it were easy, everyone would do it.” ♥

Pearl Two

Readers have asked what I think about intuitive eating. I can tell you that it’s an outstanding way to engage with food once you’ve lost the weight, and have maintained the loss for ten years.

At that point I say, go for it!

Living in our food-porn world, an intuitive eating lifestyle won’t produce the results you’re looking for when losing after age 50 (but I think you intuitively already knew that).

As you know I’m 16 years into maintenance and 50% of the time I eat intuitively. Here’s how I do it:  First, I have to feel hungry because if I don’t feel ready to eat, I won’t eat. (I know this sounds obvious, but you and I can easily eat with others when we’re not exactly hungry.)

Second, I give careful thought to what kind of food sounds good to me at that moment.

I ask myself:

• Do I want to prepare food? Or grab something quickly?
• Do I want cold or hot?
• Sweet or savory? (Sweet would be my oatmeal-fruit bowl. Savory would be brown rice with veggies.)

But – in a million years – there’s no way I could’ve had this conversation with myself in the past if I hadn’t already maintained a loss for 16 years.

Which is why I say that intuitive eating is awesome, but only after ten years of maintenance. ♥

Pearl Three

We’re keeping this slot in October for what we once called “cheating,” “screwing up” or even “goofing.” Today we call “relaxing our standards a bit.” 🙂

Here’s how my eating went south these last seven days.

Turns out, I never tossed the donuts I talked about last week. And I never threw out the marshmallows. In my defense, my husband kept buying the marshmallows, so I had to eat them.

I finally put my foot down, “no more marshmallows!” He said, “I thought you liked marshmallows.” And I said, “what does that have to do with anything? No more!”

It’s funny how “just four marshmallows” becomes eight, becomes ten, becomes handfuls. But at this typing the kitchen is definitely marshmallow-free. Because I ate them all. (And, yes, I kindly requested that he not buy more this week. I have to nip it in the bud so that my mini-addiction doesn’t turn into a tough habit to break.)

Okay, now we come to the donuts. They really are fun to have with morning coffee, but they fill me up to such a degree that I’m not ready for lunch. And that has always been the deal that I’ve had with myself, that I have to be somewhat hungry to eat lunch at noon(ish).

Plus one of my sons love cinnamon and sugar donuts, so I tend to leave treats alone if they’re someone’s favorite. (I just keep the food out of sight.)

So, that’s how I relaxed my standards a bit this week. Next month we’ll focus on how I crushed it too. I want you to know that I have both not-so-fun and fantastic days. One of the most damaging thoughts I once held was thinking that I had to be perfect for weight loss to happen. I couldn’t make even one error or all was lost.

I didn’t understand that in real life, the successful folks stumble and get back up.

Over, and over, and over again ♥

Pearl Four

Let’s talk avocados. For years I didn’t eat avocados because I thought that they were too high in calories. They are, but check out their amazing nutrition content:

A whole medium avocado contains about 240 calories, 13 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams protein, 22 grams fat (15 grams monounsaturated, 4 grams polyunsaturated, 3 grams saturated), 10 grams fiber, and 11 milligrams sodium. Along with their low sodium levels, avocados contain no cholesterol. – Harvard, School of Public Health.

I’ve always been a huge fan of avocados, and because I strongly believe that when we eat is as important as what we eat, so I have my avocado sandwich for lunch.

I mash a plain avocado with a light sprinkle of salt and add it to whole-wheat bread. I also grab a bowl of cherry tomatoes, and pop one in my mouth as I take each bite of my avocado sandwich.

Awesome lunch. ♥

Pearl Five

What is the secret of success? Right decisions. How do you make right decisions? Experience. How do you gain experience? Wrong decisions.” – Abdul Kalam ♥

Our Holiday Health Challenge!! Just 41 days until the U.S. Thanksgiving and we’ve got this. I don’t care how many times you’ve started and stopped because it’s okay! Starting and stopping is part of how habits develop!

If you need to journal about why you chose the original goal in the first place, journal-away. I sure am. I’ll be journaling about why the goal I set in late August matters so much to me, and how I will begin the new year with this habit locked into place. (Not “I hope to,” but “I will.”)

Have a wonderful October everyone!

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you!

You know the scoop: I am an Amazon affiliate so if you buy something through a link at this site, I may receive a small commission that won’t impact your price at all.

I am not an expert, a doctor, a surgeon, a nurse or a nutritionist: the information within TheInspiredEater.com is based solely on my personal experience and is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. ♥

Photo by Reynier Carl on Unsplash

Hello Thrivers,

The price of everything is skyrocketing. We’ve started shopping at Aldis again. If you have a way to save money, please share in the comments below.

It’s Five Pearl Friday!

Pearl One

There’s Oprah of course. But — aside from the obvious — have you ever thought about the genius that’s all around us? You and I marinate in the success of others to such an extent that we’ve become accustomed to the greatness, and don’t give it a second thought.

Give me a moment, and I’ll explain how seeing the genius all around us can change our inner world.

Let’s start with my car mechanic. Kyle isn’t just “fixing cars,” he’s saving lives by keeping his customers off the side of the freeway, and we love him for it. (K&R Auto, Atlanta.)

Or my hairstylist who doesn’t only do hair, her artistry leaves me feeling confident and pretty long after I’ve left her chair.

When you walk into your local Costco (839 total as of September 2022), do you wonder about the two guys who brought Costco into our world?

When you open the refrigerator, do you marvel at the guys through the last few centuries who built on each other’s knowledge and dedication to bring us our modern day frig?

That novel you can’t put down? That’s the work of a master storyteller.

Genius is all around us. Guess who invented the first car? There’s debate, but one name that comes up repeatedly is Karl Benz, Mercedes’s dad!!

And it’s not just the big time inventors. There’s people like the dedicated IT guy who keeps the Children’s Hospital computers in top condition for the nurses and doctors who care for the children.

We can include our librarian, the people at the post office, the gutter cleaning company, the owner and people who work at the gas station; our list would be endless.

You’re thinking, big whoop. So there’s amazing inventions everywhere. I’m not exactly inventing cars. In Pearl Two I’ll explain why this matters. ♥

Pearl Two

It’s self-evident that we can take great inspiration from the story of a single, destitute mom who in a Scottish café brought Harry Potter’s world to life.

But there’s phenomenal examples of inspiration all around us, and here’s how I keep myself pumped up: I look for inspiration everywhere I can find it. I mean, in any situation I’m looking for inspiration (or learning from mistakes).

When my boys were young, I found inspirational messages in their superhero shows (especially Big Hero Six). I essentially looked at the bigger message the movie was conveying, and used it as a boost in my own life.

I love my veterinarian, and watching him expand over the last seven years has been crazy-inspirational. He had a thriving practice, but then created a cat clinic, and now is building a second story onto his clinic that will become his surgery room. (It’s easy to see his dream go up because he’s on a main road in town.)

When I drive by his clinic rather than saying to myself, a second story, cool. I think, look at how much he believes in himself. And my very next thought is, wowza, if Zach can commit a massive amount of money to his business I can sure stay focused on creating a Smart Eating Lifestyle. Had he always dreamed of a huge vet clinic? What did he say to the loan officer? How does he pumps himself up each day?

In other words, I’ve made it a habit to look for inspiration everywhere I go, so that I’m always filling my brain with a can-do mindset.

My point, J.K. Rowling doesn’t have a lock on inspiration.

It’s a habit to instill – looking for inspiration in your day-to-day –, but practice it often, and eventually it becomes second nature.

Journal about the encouraging scenes you notice each day, write about them in your journal, and then “inspiration stack.” My stack would be: my veterinarian, Dr. Edith Eger (survived Auschwitz), a friend’s daughter who travels solo to other countries, and definitively my friend who has a disability, but lives life with gusto.

I’d love to hear what inspirational scenes you’ve spotted in your own life. I hope you’ll share. ♥

Pearl Three

In October, we’re keeping this slot for “How I Screwed Up.” You know that I’m a big believer in “brownies for breakfast.”

The Scarfer went shopping and he brought home donuts. I went to bed thinking, tomorrow morning will be tasty. The morning dawned and while it was fun to have a donut with coffee – okay three –, they weren’t worth the sugar and rush.

Remember wad-able food? Well, these donuts were melt-in-your-mouth, gone in a flash, totally wad-able bites. Normally I eat maximum-bite food like a whole wheat bagel with whipped cream cheese, a bowl of Cheerios, or maybe pizza from last night. I don’t eat food that disappears in a blink.

As you know I hold myself to two rules for eating “anything I want for breakfast:” I have to be done eating by 9:00 a.m. And I can’t eat so much that I won’t want lunch at noonish. For example, if I’d eaten half the box of donuts, I probably wouldn’t have wanted lunch until 3 or 4 p.m.

My Takeaway

Wad-able foods are merely eye candy and aren’t worth the time and money. I won’t put them on my grocery list again. ♥

Pearl Four

You know what hasn’t been in my freezer for a handful of months? A gallon or more of ice cream. My husband hasn’t been buying any. I work hard not to preach about how he should eat.

So, I didn’t say a word.

Today he casually mentioned that he’s buying cereal – on sale – and has a bowl every evening instead of ice cream. (I acted all cool like, “oh, what a good idea.” Inside I was thinking, strike up the band!!)

He added, “Have you seen the price of ice cream??” Um, no, I never go in that aisle. Apparently it’s doubled in price. Yikes.

He’s not doing it for his health, he’s doing it because he’s angry about the prices.

Whatever works, I’m flexible.

This a huge step for this guy. He isn’t a teen, he’s in his 50s and eating whackadoo-food all day has caught up with him.

If you’re also struggling with an ice cream habit, consider keeping a clean grocery cart when you shop (no ice cream goes into the cart), and eating cereal as your “bridge-food.” (Meaning the slower you go, the better the habit will be rooted into your life.) ♥

Pearl Five

I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of “Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this,” and you push through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough. – Marissa Mayer ♥

Have a smart eating weekend, everyone!

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you!

You know the scoop: I am an Amazon affiliate so if you buy something through a link at this site, I may receive a small commission that won’t impact your price at all.

I am not an expert, a doctor, a surgeon, a nurse or a nutritionist: the information within TheInspiredEater.com is based solely on my personal experience and is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. ♥

Happy Friday, Thrivers!!

It’s been pointed out to me that my posts are too long. So I planned to keep this post short.

I’ll do better next week.

Pearl One

Let’s Talk the “S” Word.

I was planning to use Pearl One for another topic, but I just received an email from a sweet thriver who wrote about the success she’s having:  she’s down 44 lbs. since April 2021!! I LOVE hearing about those who trust the process of losing weight slowly.

If the weight loss happens a bit at a time, our cave woman slumbers in her cave, not feeling her presence is needed. Take it slowly with the many plateaus that are actually a good thing. (It’s just your body adjusting to the new weight.)

Our thriver brought up an important topic she wrote, (the trainer at the gym) said not to weigh myself!! And you weigh yourself every day. Maybe you could write about that sometime please. Cheers!!

The scale. Is anything as revered or hated as much as your average bathroom scale? On one side we have “Team How Could I Survive without my Scale?” And on the other side is “Team My Ears, My Ears! I Just Heard Talk of He who must not be Named!”

Here’s my take on the “S” word-drama.

The scale is merely a feedback device. Nothing more, nothing less. Many of us associate scales with the hurt, pain, and humiliation we experienced as kids when we were forced to step onto the scale. Totally get it. I have my own stories.

The reason the fitness industry is absolutely not a fan of the scale, however, is that muscle weighs more than fat, so if we’re working out we may — in theory — be gaining muscle, and today’s scale doesn’t differentiate between fat and muscle. So, the scale-haters, say “scales aren’t giving us useful information. What the point?”

Then we have the team who has no intention of ever giving up their scale. Their point is that the scale helps them know if what they’re eating is working or not.

I live somewhere in the middle. I don’t have a knee-jerk reaction to the word “scale.”

When I first became wacko-determined to lose the weight for good, I was weighed at Weight Watchers once a week. Then I got pregnant with twins, and of course stopped losing weight. A few weeks after I had my babies, I started WW meetings again. (I wasn’t able to breast feed so losing weight wasn’t a problem.)

I took one baby every Saturday (left one with my hub) and attended a meeting that also had the weekly weigh-in. I’m not in any way endorsing WW. It was simply the plan I picked, but I know many who count calories in their tracker living on the Mediterranean Diet, the Keto Diet and others. (The key: pick a plan you can live with forever. Trying a new plan every so often might be good for the diet industry’s bottom line, but it does nothing for our forever weight loss.)

Within months of being back to WW, I felt ready to be on my own. So I stayed with Weight Watchers “old” point system and was only weighed at the doctor’s office. I’d gotten it into my head that super strong habits come always came first for me.

Finally in my early 40s I lost all of the weight, and still chose to go without a scale for many years; I was still focused mainly on creating good habits. But I was never rabid against using a scale, I just didn’t think I needed it at the time. I (somehow) intuited that smart eating habits were the only thing I cared about. I figured that if I didn’t lose weight eating healthy foods in healthy amounts, so be it. The plan was to live a smart eating lifestyle. Come what weigh. LOL!

Around the time I hit 50 – and was past menopause – I bought a scale and used it every morning. Why? Because being down to a very low, but healthy weight, it was clear that if I happened to to eat a bit too much here or there, I could inadvertently eat myself out of my four-pound weight window. (If I gain weight, it’s only because it’s a conscious choice.)

The Scale-Naysayers

As we move forward in losing after 50, I think it’s super important to gather the info about eating plans, work outs, and the scale, and come to your own conclusion. Some feel safer using a scale, some feel fine without one. I used both tactics. At one time I loved working on my habits only. But these days I appreciate the feedback device for the info it gives me.

If I could talk to the fitness industry as a whole, I would explain that your average woman over 50 – like me – does not work out at the level needed for weight loss.

Sure, some can work out to such a degree that they struggle to get enough calories. Navy Seals, Olympians like Michael Phelps, and devoted marathon runners, okay.

But – I’d tell the industry – we aren’t in the armed forces; we’re not aiming for a place in the Olympics, and I definitely would never qualify for a long distance marathon.

Women over 50, 60, 70, and 80 – yes, we have thrivers over 80 – are past menopause and aren’t training so hard that the weight of their muscles are impacting the scale.

Are there outliers who work out to such a degree that the new muscle is adding weight to the scale? I guess there could be, and more power to her! But I’ve never met anyone over 50 who worked out at that level of intensity.

But always know: there are so many seriously awesome reasons to work out when we’re over 50: the feel-good rush of endorphins for one, fewer falls for two, and the magical properties for our brains! ♥

Pearl Two

In 2012, my best friend, passed. Ollie was a black lab who we rescued from a busy street. An absolute sweetheart.

In 2016, I had back surgery to repair a slipped disc (Heller, Emory. Masterpiece of a surgeon).

In 2019, my first ever car crash. Before I read the accident report, I so worried that I’d caused the accident. I hadn’t, major phew. Nobody was hurt. I had a broken arm, but that was it. (The cars took the impact.)

And so what?! Every one of us has stories. Life is hard, period. Nothing calk-walk about it.

At the beginning of making my wacko-dedication to losing after 40 (that later turned into maintaining 16 years at this writing) I let nothing come between me and getting healthier day by day.

One time at Starbucks I was on crutches and I remember thinking, it doesn’t matter that I broke my foot I will not stop being wacko-dedicated.

As the years careened by and life veered from merely being difficult to once or twice just awful. I did not waver in my dedication to, once and for giving up bad choices food. I was intent on embedding into my core what living a Smart Eating Lifestyle was all about.

So, how did I do this?

1. I made the decision to always put my dedication front-and-center, and I recommitted to the Smart Eating Lifestyle in the beginning at least three times a day. In your journal, write about why you’re so committed to losing weight for the trip, sure, but also aiming at a forever-loss. Then write that sentence into your calendar every day for at least a year.

2. I changed my self-talk and essentially said a version of this to me daily, just because we made a major move from the West Coast to the East, does not give me an open window to stagger off our Smart Eating Lifestyle.

3. Somehow I knew deep inside that chowing ice cream with my family even just once, would lead to a new habit of chowing with the family again and again. It’s takes forever to instill a great habit, but barely a moment to bring on a bad one.

Right?!

Seriously, when you’re ready, get dedicated to living the Smart Eating Lifestyle and check in with yourself about your commitment daily. ♥

Pearl Three

In September we’re keeping this slot for “how I screwed up this week”: the truth is that wearing Invisalign braces has somewhat thrown a monkey wrench into my good eating habits. Every month on the 30^th I put in a new super tight tray and the lip/tongue biting thing starts anew.

This time I was ready. I kept myself moderately full and I didn’t go near stores where I could score ice cream or vanilla shakes. (Thankfully I broke the vanilla shake habit in days, just missed a really terrible habit. The longer a bad habit goes on, the more difficult it is to break.) This time around I made a lot of smoothies and ate a lot of mashed food.

I didn’t exactly mess up this week. But I did make a chocolate cake with homemade chocolate frosting — yum-city!! — for one son who loves chocolate. I really wanted a piece, but adhered to my plan of saying to myself, if you really want that cake, you can have it in the morning with coffee.

Which is exactly what I did. So I wouldn’t call that messing up per se.

So instead of saying to myself, woe is me. I can never have fun-food in my life ever again. (Whimper, whimper.)

I say, If I want a slice I can have it in the morning with coffee.

The REP (Royal Eating Plan) is alive and well. If I want something fun and decadent, I tell me, just have it in the morning. The most wonderful part of the REP is that I never feel left out because I “can’t have” what everyone else is having. I can have it, it just has to happen in the morning

Check out this study that came to the same conclusion as me, they call it “food-timing.” ♥

Pearl Four

You guys, you will feel so virtuous eating this dish. Even better, it’s full-on yum!

A bunch of sweet potatoes showed up in my kitchen today. So I skinned two, and chopped them into cubes, then swished them around in a bowl with the following:

3 Tbl. Olive oil

Balsamic vinegar (I love Costco’s)

One small sweet onion (chopped)

2 garlic cloves or a Tbl. of the minced garlic that comes in a jar.

A pinch of salt and pepper.

To roast, I put parchment paper on a baking sheet (optional), and tossed the sweet potato squares onto the parchment.

Turn on the oven to 400 degrees. Let the squares roast for on one side for 15 minutes, pull them out of the oven, and turn them over. Now roast for another 20 minutes. And you’re good to go. (I had to play around with the temperature and time in the oven because initially mine weren’t golden, but black. So keep an eye on them.)

While the sweet potato and onion were roasting, I made brown rice which is super easy. All you do is boil 2.5 cups water. Once the water is in full-boil, add one cup of brown rice and then bring the rice to a boil (happens in seconds). Finally put a lid on the rice and turn the stove down to simmer for about 50 minutes.

I only wish I had had broccoli and baby tomatoes, because then I’d have felt triply virtuous!! I found this keeper of a recipe on AllRecipes.com. ♥

Pearl Five

Three months from now you will thank yourself.” — Alex Peterson ♥

The Holiday Healthy Weight Challenge!! Okay, we’re at seven weeks and six days until the U.S. Thanksgiving. My goal is to workout each day on my indoor bike. It’s been up and down. I’m not proud, but I get so impatient with myself because it’s a hard habit to establish. But even when I realize that I’m not riding my bike, I don’t give up, I merely hop on the bike and petal. With any new habit: give yourself good cues, and never give up on the original plan.

Have a wonderful weekend!

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you!

You know the scoop: I am an Amazon affiliate so if you buy something through a link at this site, I may receive a small commission that won’t impact your price at all.

I am not an expert, a doctor, a surgeon, a nurse or a nutritionist: the information within TheInspiredEater.com is based solely on my personal experience and is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. ♥

A sugar-addict can find her fix anywhere. Just saying. Photo by Wouter Supardi Salari on Unsplash

Happy Friday, Thrivers!

Let’s jump right in!

Pearl One

I have a dear friend who has a rare disease called spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) that a doctor described as being like MS and Parkinson’s had a baby.

A handful of years after getting her diagnosis, her lovely husband – of 30 years — told her that he wanted a divorce and was gone in a flash.

And finally tested, her two adult kids have the SCA gene too.

Her response to all of this? Before her ex left, she went all-in and found several “adaptive” sports programs that welcomed her with open arms like indoor rock climbing, a weekly Parkinson’s dance group, the YMCA for individual and group classes, and an adaptive scuba diving program in the Bahamas.

But coolest of all, Susan adopted a service dog and by holding his harness can walk unaided. He’s also super helpful if she falls.

Susan’s response to what could me called a nightmarish situation, has been nothing less than spectacular.

But I have to add, she’s not a superhero because of course, she cries, she rages, and then she cries and rages some more.

But somewhere deep in her psyche, Susan has reached a place of acceptance. Not that she loves what she’s learned to accept, but that she’s made peace with “what is” and is getting on with life.

In Elizabeth Kübler-Ross’s five stages of grief – denial, anger, bargaining, depression and finally acceptance – getting to the stage of acceptance doesn’t mean loving what’s happened, it means calling a truce with grief and accepting the reality of the circumstances.

It’s my take that most who refer to Kübler-Ross’s five stages of grief automatically assume that we’re talking giant chunks of time (he died in 2012, ten years later I’ve finally made it to acceptance).

But actually we can cycle through the stages in one minute like this: let’s say that I’ve been in maintenance for 16 years now and one evening I see my husband plow through a huge bowl of ice cream at 8 p.m. In the space of a moment watch how I pass through the grief stages:

Denial: He can sit next to me with ice cream. I’m fine. No biggie. Really. I’m fine.

Anger: I say to him,”Do have to eat the fricken’ bowl in front of me? How do you think I feel?!”

Bargaining: To myself, maybe I can have just a little and it won’t matter.

Depression: Why does everyone get to have fun-food, but me? 🙁

Acceptance: I say to myself, look, if you really want the ice cream you can have it in the morning. No problem. But when I ask myself if I want to be a size 8 or eat massive bowls of ice cream, it’s no contest. My wonderful grandma used to say, “in every life a little rain must fall, my darling.”

And so, keeping our smart eating lifestyle in mind as we proceed, knowing which stage of grief we’re in can only strengthen our smart eating lifestyle. ♥

Pearl Two

A step-by-step on how to make the first and second week successful, so you’ll have a third week. Let’s say that I want to bring a new habit to my evenings.

In the afternoon of the day I’m beginning to establish the new habit, I journal about how Day One will unfold. I never allow for the cave woman’s attitude “what happens, happens.”

I write in detail about the food I’ll eat (this is different than your tracker, continue tracking as you usually do), the podcasts I’ll listen to, and how I’ll remove myself from rooms and activities (like TV) that in the past I’ve always paired with ice cream. I’ll include what the most difficult moments in the evening will be for me, and I’ll write about how I’ll address each difficulty. Up until the moment I turn the lights out and fall asleep, I follow my plan.

The Steps to Creating a New Habit (or shoring up an old one). What follows is exactly how I begin — in the first week — to create a new habit. This process works for every new habit like giving up afternoon or evening sugar; having a smoothie in the evening versus cookies, cake, and candy (the Big Three), or walking each day for 30 minutes.

My Journal

The idea behind planning your toughest part of the day, is that you’re addressing what’s most difficult when you’re feeling good and aren’t under the duress of a craving.

Then when you get to the time of day that’s most difficult, you refer to the evening plan already written in your journal.

As you know, the first week or two of developing a new habit can be crazy-hard. Staying present with yourself every moment of the most difficult time of day is key (my difficult time is in the evening, yours might be mid-afternoon, or only on weekends).

The idea is that we’re taking ourselves by the hand, and following what we’ve already mapped out in our journal.

So, for week 1 and 2, our goal is to stay in our prefrontal brain by adhering to the plan. In the past, we’ve eaten poorly in the mid-afternoon or evening because we allowed our cave woman brain to run the show. After a long day, we need a break, and it just seems miles easier to let the cave woman run wild.

But she’s famous for making bad choices again and again.

Remember the cave woman will encourage you to overeat the lasagna, drink a third glass of wine, and chow the last of the garlic bread as you clean the kitchen. (This is a good time to say, ask for help. If evenings are tough, ask someone else to clean the kitchen or just leave it for tomorrow morning.)

The moment we engage our prefrontal brain — and lull our cave woman to sleep –, look out. The habit we want to embed in our hearts is just a few journal-planning sessions away.

This is how my journal rolls:

6:00 p.m. — I put all treats that I don’t want to eat, straight into the trash and squirt ketchup into the bag for good measure. (If you can’t exactly trash other people’s food, ask him or her to hide it on a top shelf that you can’t reach.)

6:15 – Eat my sweet potato with a light sprinkle of salt.

6:30 – Write for an hour or so. Don’t hang around to watch everyone have dessert.

7:30 – Listen to one episode of an inspirational podcast; two or three if needed.

8:30 – Evening shower, brush teeth, book/bed. (Currently reading The Gift: 14 Lessons to Save Your Life by Edith Eger. Great book. You might remember Dr. Eger from her first book, The Choice: Embrace the Possible. I’ve never been able to get through the entirety of a memoir about Auschwitz, — ever –until Dr. Eger’s. This woman’s story is so uplifting and I loved reading it, but heads up: I sent The Choice as a gift to a sweet, sensitive friend. She wouldn’t read past page 30. If you don’t do Auschwitz, The Gift is an excellent second choice.

Below I’ve included podcast and streaming suggestions that are motivational or just plain funny to keep you on the straight and narrow. Remember you don’t need to listen or watch a gung-ho podcast about food. You just want something entertaining that’ll lift your spirits.

Take a look.

• 29 Motivational Podcasts to Inspire You in 2022. I haven’t listened all 29 podcasts of course, but I love many on this list like The Tim Ferriss Show (although I hope you’ll ignore his “cheat day” eating plan) and the TED Radio Show.

• If you don’t like podcasts, consider watching TED Talks on your device. They’re short and motivational.

• These Are the 30 Best Comedy Specials on Netflix Right Now. If you want funny, this list has John Mulaney (Kid Gorgeous), Wanda Sykes, Sarah Silverman, Pete Davidson and many more. Only catch: do not watch shows about cooking or food.

The idea is that we’re taking ourselves by the hand, and leading us though the evening based on our planning earlier in the day.

Creating new habits is a challenge, for sure, but master how to keep your prefrontal brain in charge and prepare for success. ♥

Pearl Three

We’re keeping Pearl Three’s slot for what we once called “cheating,” “screwing up” or even “goofing,” today we call “relaxing our standards.” Who’s in?

Title this story: she’s in complete denial or how I relaxed my standards in one week. It all started with four innocent baby marshmallows melted atop my sweet potato. Once I’d had the taste of marshmallow I quickly progressed to handfuls of babies, eventually graduating to the big guys (keeping the count to just four, um, in the beginning).

But just as you’d expect, the time came when even four didn’t give me the fix I needed. Soon, I was downing a third of a bag — at one sitting. I should add: when nobody was around. I know that I need to decouple from the marshmallows and I’ll get to it, just as soon as I finish the last two bags in the cupboard.

As AA says, “Progress not perfection.” ♥

Pearl Four

As you know, I’m a huge fan of taking snacks in my cold-tote. But there are times when I’d like to eat something satiating in my kitchen, so that I’m not super hungry right in the middle of whatever I’m doing out of my home. Don’t get me wrong: I always travel with my cold-tote, but sometimes I want to leave the house comfortably full.

Here’s how I fill my tum: I make a peanut butter and ‘nanna sandwich (thank you, Elvis’s mom) on whole-wheat. If I’m out of bananas, I use strawberry preserves or honey.

Each of these food items on their own are filling, but when put into sandwich mode will “hold me” for a good two hours.♥

Pearl Five

The pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” – Winston Churchill ♥

Have a great weekend, Thrivers!

♥, Wendy

P.S. Are you new to the Inspired Eater? Welcome!! This blog won’t make much sense until you first read the Aunt Bea post (and you’ll find Aunt Bea on this page to the right under my short bio). On your cell you’ll see it immediately following the first post. After you enter your email address, the Aunt Bea article will be sent to your email’s inbox. If it’s not there, you might check the spam folder. And always feel free to email me at Wendy@TheInspiredEater.com and I’ll get Aunt Bea right to you!

You know the scoop: I am an Amazon affiliate so if you buy something through a link at this site, I may receive a small commission that won’t impact your price at all.

I am not an expert, a doctor, a surgeon, a nurse or a nutritionist: the information within TheInspiredEater.com is based solely on my personal experience and is not intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. ♥