It’s January 8th and I have successfully
completed the first week of 2014 without eating sweets.
Don’t you think the word resolution
has adopted all kinds of bad connotations? It seems resolutions, especially New
Year’s resolutions, are destined to fail. They are too associated with the
regrets, guilt, and gluttony of the holidays. They are made in a hangover
mentality. They have everything to do with the past and nothing to do with the
future.
That’s why I don’t consider this a resolution. It’s one of a
few goals I have written down. I am not going to eat sweets this year.
I am doing it because it’s actually more appealing to me
than not doing it. Sweets are a lovely part of life. Or they should be. But
they are so easy to abuse.
I’ve really tried to cultivate the mentality of balance. I
welcome all good food: everything from lentils to gelato. What’s good is good
if eating it is truly being good to yourself. That’s where sugar really gets in
my way. One evening I am joyfully enjoying homemade pie and ice cream with company,
and by noon the next day a head of lettuce is wilting in my fridge while I am alone
hitting up the drive through at Kneaders to get my fix of cookies and pastries
for lunch (There’s nothing more dangerous—and delightful!—than cookies and
pastries available at a drive through). I don’t keep ice cream in the house
anymore, because I can easily eat the whole gallon on my own in two days. It's embarrassing, I know. It's not really easy to talk about but I know I am not alone. Eating
like that, I literally get sick, tired, and depressed. It really gets in the
way of normal and happy life. I know
that for me, at least for now, it has to be all or nothing.
It won’t be the first time I’ve given up sweets. I abstained
with almost complete success for the last 2 months of my last pregnancy. Those
two months before my baby girl was born were so surprisingly easy and enjoyable
that I’ve been thinking about it and wanting to do it again since then.
Something clicked and I’m ready for it.
This blog is where I’m going to blab instead of binge. Along
the way I want to explore and share useful tips and information, not only about
sweets but about eating to nourish yourself, about having a sweet life. Perhaps
share recipes, book recommendations, links, etc. (regarding both the healthy
food I love and the gorgeous sweets I look forward to enjoying in 2015). And
share some of my own stories: experiences, struggles, and successes with food (and
life, and how they are inseparable). We'll see what it's possible for this resolution goal to become.
What about you? Have you ever successfully completed a New Year's resolution? Or successfully given up sweets or sugar or for a certain amount of time? What do you think is the magic that makes it happen?
What about you? Have you ever successfully completed a New Year's resolution? Or successfully given up sweets or sugar or for a certain amount of time? What do you think is the magic that makes it happen?
And here's a picture of me with my cute little family, because there's nothing sweeter than that:
