Comments on: plan your day backwards!

By: debbiebrodsky

debbiebrodsky — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 20:06:54 +0000

Hi Erika,
First of all, my daughter, Michele, will love the compliment on her chocolate pecan pie, which she created from a composite of various recipes! Michele made the pie for Thanksgiving and it was truly scrumptious!
Now I want to thank you so much for your reply and congratulations on losing 30 pounds. You must feel really proud! I would suggest making a gradual transition to eating 3 times a day and only eating foods that you really love! Utilize the discipline it took to be on a strict diet, but in a different manner, by giving yourself complete freedom to choose what you are going to eat, but committing to keeping it within the framework of three meals a day and no snacking! Because I love dessert so much that I must have a piece everyday, I consider it my third meal. So, to answer your question about skipping breakfast, I have found a comfortable way to eat everyday, and that is to have my coffee with milk in the morning, which I do savor, then have a combined breakfast and lunch anywhere from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. This way I am able to have a substantial meal, where I don't feel cheated or hungry the rest of the day. However, some days I have a bowl of berries in the morning because I love berries and feel the need for fruit! During the afternoon, I drink alot of hot tea, because I love it, and try and remember to drink water (adding lemon makes it easier). I also do something physical, trying to refrain from using the dreaded “e” word – (exercise just sounds like work, and I think it needs to be some kind of fun movement or else you will just dread doing it!). Then late in the afternoon, I start thinking about what sounds good for dinner and will go to the little market close by my house and compose a dinner based on what vegetables look good, adding a meat or fish and some kind of starch. I make time for this because I love to cook and eat. Then I make sure to make a whole portion on my plate. It is visually appealing and sets some limits as to how much I can eat. Then, I sit down at a table and enjoy the whole plate of food, ideally slowly, but usually quickly because it is so good! Then I cut a whole piece of dessert, put it on a nice plate and sit down at the table and really enjoy it, knowing that I can have a big piece the next night, which keeps me from eating two pieces.
Now, you just have to use your clothes as well as your common sense as a guide to how much food you can eat. If your clothes ever feel a little snug, cut out bread or starches for a few days (keep the dessert!) or decrease the portions a little until your clothes fit better. And increase the amount of “movement” you are doing so you can eat more. Let me know if this was helpful. I wish you much success and happy eating!

By: debbiebrodsky

debbiebrodsky — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 14:06:54 +0000

By: erikavilla

erikavilla — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 23:30:29 +0000

Oh! and I almost forgot the most important question. What is that scrumptious dessert above the M&M cookie? haha

By: erikavilla

erikavilla — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 23:28:05 +0000

Hi Debbie,
I really like your blog because that is how my mom eats and she has always been thin and no one understood how she ate a bar of chocolate at night and never got fat but she ate a small portion at dinner because she preferred her dessert. How do you do it? If you are going to have a nice dessert after dinner, do you skip breakfast that day like you mentioned in your other blog? I was wondering about your system which is kinda like how the french eat. I just recently lost 30 pounds and have read a lot about eating slowly, savoring your food and eating what you like and you will actually eat less and not eating between meals like you do. I lost the weight but with a strict diet of eating a certain amount of portions of each food per day but no sugar, but I ate 5 times a day, but don't want to do this forever. Thanks so much!