A year ago, I would not recognize the person I was today. I would THINK I had it in me, but when push came to shove, I didn’t stick to my guns the way I did today.
Let me enlighten you a bit. Today, something major happened. Again, I have this lofty November goal/challenge to not eat any meals out. I may not have spelled out every single little instance of this out clearly, but in my mind, this means no eating out, no ordering in, no picking up – no foods prepared by someone other than ME. It’s a goal to get me closer to a smaller size, but ultimately it’s about building healthier habits.
Today was a thanksgiving (lower case t) lunch for all employees. It was catered Mexican food (my fav) and it was free. In the past, I had always said free food trumps healthy food. I was also very poor back when I thought that, but you can see how my priorities were misaligned. In those days, it didn’t matter if I was on day one of a diet – if someone else was paying, the diet could wait.
Quick confession regarding my decision today: I REALLY had to think about eating that (free) food. I discussed with my coworkers the possible loopholes in my challenge that would allow me to eat this offering of thanks from our CEO. They suggested I only eat the healthy stuff, skip the tortillas and cheese, etc. etc. I even started thinking through a trade-off where IF I ate from the make-your-own-fajita train today, then I could not have diet soda OR processed foods for the rest of the month. In the end, I decided PoK-e-Joe’s just was. not. worth. it.
Before I could talk myself into eating the yummy food, I made my Top Chef inspired Healthy Choice Cafe Steamers Chicken Fresca and ate it before I headed to the conference room. As everyone lined up to assemble their meal, I stood back and just chatted with coworkers who were waiting for the line to die down. Eventually someone asked me why I wasn’t eating, and I explained my deal.
And get this! They said that I inspire them! Me!
I’ve never thought much about inspiring others, especially where healthy choices were concerned. I did however read this blog post once, by one of my favorite bloggers at one twenty five, where she talked about inspiring herself. My choices today, and as of late for that matter, have inspired ME. What a great feeling it is!
Way to go! That’s huge!