1) If I eat more nuts than I'm supposed to, let those count as the 10%. The 10% amounts to 1000 calories a week. That can be some fun overindulgence. Fresh-ground peanut butter can fall in this category (I like it with a banana). It's not as healthy as raw nuts, but Dr. Fuhrman doesn't forbid it.
2) Every few months when I get a cupcake craving, just go for it, eat one, and then stop there and don't worry about it.
3) Every few months if I find myself at a restaurant and there is some reason I can't just be my usual crazy self and bring my own food, or maybe I really want to eat the food there, just go ahead and do it, and don't eat too much of it, and don't worry about it.
That sounds like a pretty good Life Plan for me.
5 comments:
I like that you can give yourself permission to eat the nuts/nut butter, cupcake and in a restaurant from time to time. No guilt that way and it's part of your controlled plan. Plus you won't feel so 'weird', as you've said in previous posts (when bringing your own food to restaurants etc).
Is this the way Dr. Fuhrman and his family eat? I would think 10% gives just enough flexibility to help in social situations and with cravings from time to time.
For me, early in this ETL lifestyle, I tell myself 'today I'll do 100%' when I'm drinking my smoothie in the morning, but through the day I mess up so I'm at maybe 70%.
Still, it's a process and over time I'll get there. Love the 10% Life Plan idea though, when I reach my goal of course :)
I think Dr. Furhman and his wife Lisa are pretty close to 100% nutritarian. For their (four) children, it's more difficult, because children are trapped in a lot of social/food situations without the level of control that we adults have (at least, if we are willing to exercise it). Here's a Lisa Fuhrman blog post on DiseaseProof that gives some detail on life as a nutritarian child:
http://www.diseaseproof.com/archives/healthy-parenting-dont-make-food-a-war-zone.html
Hi Nancy and Darryl!
Also check out this post by Dr. Fuhrman:
http://www.diseaseproof.com/archives/travel-being-a-nutritarian-in-italy.html
They weren't 100% on that trip. So even the Fuhrmans allow for off-plan foods occasionally.
I have been doing this for a few years, and I prefer being 100% as much as possible. It really does become a preference for most people over time. But when I have forbidden foods, they become desirable. So that's why I decided cupcakes (and everything else except animal products because I'm a vegan) are no longer forbidden. I may not eat them at all if they aren't forbidden. Psychology is funny!
And regarding restaurants, I almost always prefer bringing my own food and I don't care if people think I'm crazy--but it took me a while to get to this point.
70% is so much better than 0%. Really, that sounds like great progress. I've been noticing more what other people eat this week because I've been in restaurants a lot with my travel companion, and it is so unhealthy. If you are only doing that 30% of the time, that is so much better. And if you get enough rewards from this (some weight loss, improved health), it will probably spur you on and soon you'll be a weirdo like me! ha.
-barb
Psychology IS a funny thing. I've been vegetarian for 16 years now and I'm not even tempted to eat meat...it's forbidden in my head I guess.
But 'cupcakes' and other tempting treats are just foods I know I SHOULDN'T eat and that's not cemented in my brain yet.
Perhaps over time my brain will put the treats in the same category where meat is now...does that make sense? Reading The Pleasure Trap is explaining the mental aspect of changing behavior.
And I am looking forward to the rewards - and being a 'weirdo' too.
I know EXACTLY what you mean. I am the same way! I am vegan and I have no trouble saying no to any aninmal product even when it's part of a chocolate chip cookie or cupcake etc. It doesn't tempt me in the slightest. But a vegan cupcake, what is the deal with that? I didn't used to be so tempted by cupcakes. I mostly think it is humorous now since I am only rarely tempted by them. But it is weird how it works. And I do think not making them forbidden will make them less tempting. weird weird psychology. We just have to figure out ways to work around it!
Post a Comment