PUSH!

For those of you who know who Chalene Johnson is, you will understand when I say that for me she is one of the most motivating people I have ever met, and she is truly someone I look up to in many different ways. If you haven't read her book PUSH, I suggest you order it. Now. In 30 days she will change your life!

Me with my copy of PUSH.

As I was reading this book yesterday I came across something that made me have an aha moment. Since my surgery (July 19) I have eaten more ice cream sundaes than I care to admit. My husband and I were using the act of going to get ice cream as something to do as a family, or just the two of us, since I couldn't really do much else. So now, as we work to eliminate this and other less healthy foods from our diets and break these bad habits (again), I found something that just made sense about the whole thing. On pg 127, Chalene says this:

"There's a difference between "depriving yourself" of a certain food and not wanting to put it in your body in the first place. Deprivation and restrictions occur when a diet dictates for you what you can and cannot eat. Deprivation and restrictions occur when you stop eating a food but you still want it. People trying to find control in an out-of-control life, or who punish themselves by restricting calories, often use deprivation as a form of coping with stress or as an expression of self-hate. The switch happens when you consciously and independently make the decision that one food makes you look and feel better than another. That's when you stop wanting junk. One food helps you to live the life you want; another undermines the quality of your life. It becomes as simple as that."

Now try to tell me that she isn't one of the smartest people ever!