The Rules

So now I am beginning my second day of my odyssey. The first day did not go so badly; I exercised for over 90 minutes and was able to control my eating rather well. I stuck with food that I had at home, and made sure that I was focusing on healthier options. Of course, since I am home this week on vacation, this certainly does make things easier. The normal stress of work is not affecting me at all. However, I do believe that if I start making some good habits now, those will start to help me next week when I begin my new job.

I focused on eating eggs, oatmeal and juice for breakfast; followed by a sandwich with smoked salmon, avocado and goat cheese. I had a LaraBar and an orange as a snack, and then concluded the day by having some wasabi marinated salmon, miso soup and cucumber salad. I held off on any dessert, and I made sure I had eight glasses of water and at least 3 cups of tea.

All in all a good day. Yes, I did get hungry at one point but just ignored it until dinner was ready. I was tempted to go out for lunch, but withstood the temptation and just ate what was in the house. This morning, we passed by a Chick-Fil-A and I thought of getting something for breakfast, but opted not to. This is very difficult as I am really working to change a lot of ingrained behavior, but this is the only way I can actually be successful.

Which leads me to this point - the Rules. I have established some Rules for myself that I will follow every day to achieve my goals. As I stated earlier, I am not going to place myself on some sort of structured diet. I have tried many of those, and they have all failed. I am going to change my relationship with food - which begins with changing the way I live my life and handle myself. So, these rules become an essential part of this.

Without further adieu, they are as follows:

1. No more eating in my car - I have done this for years and it is always bad stuff. To break this chain, I must break this habit.

2. No more consumption of soda, diet or otherwise - soda is not healthy at all, and when I drank a Diet Coke, it was always a justification to eat something terrible. From now on, it needs to be water, tea or juice.

3. No more Fast Food - this is going to be hard, because it is all around me, and I still indulge my kids every so often. But this has to change - there are no healthy options here.

4. Do not swear off indulgences forever - this would be impossible. I cannot sit here and tell you that I will never have another cheeseburger for the rest of my life. But I need to limit those indulgences to one day, and to be honest, to really limit them to one meal. If I exercise regularly and eat well then this will not really hurt me. But, I need to ensure that I maintain that exercise and eating regimen, otherwise I cannot and will not indulge at all. Even if I choose to indulge, fast food is still a no-no.

4. Stay off the sugar - desserts should not be part of my diet at all, and if I choose to indulge, then I must look for the items that are lower in sugar that others. Continually eating foods high in sugar will kill me faster than anything else.

5. Cook - I have been cooking since I was 12 and I love it. There is no reason or excuse not to do it. I am just going to have to plan ahead so that I am not caught up in a time crunch.

6. Don't Buy More Than You Need - I hate wasting food, and we do a lot of it. I am going to focus on buying only what I need for the week and stocking up when I have coupons or items are on sale. I will use all of the vegetables I buy during the week. This means that I am actually eating them rather than discarding them.

7. Exercise Six Times A Week - If I don't, then this is all for not. I have a Wii Fit and Several Exercise Games. I also have a Gym Membership. There is no excuse. If I have to get up early, than so be it. I can find the time and I must do this. There are so many positive effect to exercise that this really is a no brainer.

8. Find Calming Routines in the Morning and Evening - These are the two biggest stress moments for me; I need to develop routines that reduce the stress and anxiety and do not cause me to overeat or snack incessantly later.

9. Look at Your Children Everyday - They are my heart and everytime I think of slipping I need to look at both of them and ask if it is worth it. Every failed moment is once closer to making them both orphans.

10.Look at Your Wife Everyday - Do you want her to be a widow? Would she ever forgive you for that? She is the biggest part of your life and you OWE her this. Don't forget it.

These seem like simple rules, but it will be harder than you think. However, I need to be determined, committed and focused. I have done it before, I can do it again, and this time for good.

Until tomorrow.