Losing weight & eat whatever you want: the answer is simple

June 2011, I wrote a post titled How do I lose weight and eat whatever I want? In this post, I defined the terms of my no diet diet plan, which I still follow (although never meticulously) to this day. However, this post isn't really about following my personally-defined eating plan, but the simplicity of the answer to the original title of the post. 

How do you lose weight and eat whatever you want? 


The answer is simple. You change what you want to eat.


Everyday at lunch, I eat a leafy salad, fruit, a piece of gluten-free rye bread (toasted) topped with a protein choice (tuna/egg salad or hummus). For the work week, I prepare the various parts of my lunch on Sunday so it is simple to assemble it in the morning. However, last Tuesday night I forgot to prepare the head of green leaf lettuce for the next day (wash, tear into bite size pieces, spin, place in lettuce storage container). So I found myself washing lettuce on Wednesday morning, which is stressful (I hate the time-crunch) and time-consuming (I'm out the door at 6:30 with the two bears, so I have to be organized).


That's when I realized that I prefer to eat my lunch prepared at home rather than the food that I can buy at work. I would rather endure the stress of upsetting the morning routine and increasing the possibility of missing my train because I would prefer to eat my leafy lunch over a subway sub, fish and chips at the pub, sushi with tempura or perhaps a mini-pizza from Panago.


I'm one of those bring your lunch to work kind of gals. I just can't fathom the amount of money that people spend buying their lunch everyday. I've been brown-bagging my lunch for years, for a lifetime in fact. 


But in the past, from time-to-time, I looked forward to the day when there just wasn't the time to pull together a lunch or I forgot it on the kitchen counter so I could buy my lunch. And when I bought my lunch, I wanted something different; which usually translated into a meal with a side of french fries, bigger portions, more carbs and way more fat. But not now. The internal panic button goes off and I go into scramble mode. I spin a head of lettuce between pulling on my pants and putting on a new diaper on the baby bear. 


While I still enjoy the taste of pub/restaurant/fast food, I now prefer the taste of healthier foods. I chose to satisfy a need to eat nutritious foods as opposed to foods that only satisfy my taste buds. When I do buy my lunch, I seek out (and if part of a group suggest) healthier establishments. With one group of friends, we meet in the food court and eat our own lunch prepared at home, or we forgo the food and just chat.


Do you want to eat whatever you want and lose weight? The solution is simple, just change what you want to eat.