What to do, what to do

One other recommendation from the doctor...in terms of diet - low fat and high fiber with lots of fruits and veggies. I can feel myself expanding now. I am attempting to gear myself up to get on the Atkins or South Beach diet plans (or....without going into all sorts of dealing with the timetables - just cutting out the majority of carbs in my day). It's going to take a lot of gearing though, since I have horrid weaknesses in the carb area. The worst...tortilla chips. I am big on chips and dips - ha, ha - no pun intended! There are some things I can substitute for dip-eating....there are marvelous containers of mini-peppers (red, orange and yellow) that I use to scoop up a bit of garden veggie cream cheese or cajun salmon dip...but they don't work with guacamole or queso! There's just no substitute!

I am sitting here pondering and identifying the bumps in the road I expect to face...

(1) ME. More specifically, my willpower. Even more specifically...my lack of it. I do have certain food cravings, such as the aforementioned chips. There are times that it's hard to overcome the craving. Brownies, sugar cookies, chicken fried steak (although I haven't had one of those in a long while), bread sticks at Olive Garden, even just cereal (straight out of the box)! Although there are times on my own where I am able to avoid the presence of those temptations. But...enter bump #2...

(2) DH-DEAR HUBBY. I think he just wants to keep me FAT! Maybe so no other man would think to look and/or try to woo me away from him. Outside the fact that I love him...have I mentioned how damned TIRED I am? I don't have the energy to bother with one man....much less an extra one! Now....as hard as DH works to find me interesting low-carb stuff when handling the grocery shopping, and actually compare labels...he never fails to bring home gobs of "taboo" foods - cereal, pop tarts, a case of cinnamon rolls from Sam's, chips (ugh). No matter how much I will fuss - this crap shows up after every trip to the grocery. He's the type that puts the weight on in only one place - his belly. No butt, no legs, no chest - but he's got it all on his belly. Just where they say it's indicative of heart disease - so it's not like he doesn't need to be watching what he's eating too! And God forbid he give up the sugar soda!! Now - I need my "fizz" - but these days there are so many great choices in diet drinks (Fresca, the 7Up Plus flavors, Diet Rite fruity flavors, Hansen's Diet Ginger Ale, Minute Maid Light Cherry Limeade....I could go on. I tell myself if he were to be away for 9-12 months...I could lose so MUCH weight! Of course - watching what he eats and all....he may not be around :(

(3) MY LIFESTYLE - this can be a hard one. We raise and show dogs. Many weekends one of is away from home. Attempting to diet while on the road seems an insurmountable task. Many times we are out to eat with friends as well....the choice usually being a Mexican restaurant (chips!!). It's so hard to just order a salad (with no bread) when seeing all these other gastronomic masterpieces on the menu or coming to the table. It's actually pretty easy for me to skip desserts though. But I usually want some form of alcohol. And there's not really a convenient breakfast to order from the fast food spots that does not involve some sort of sandwich. Can't eat with a knife and fork while driving - trust me...I've tried.

(4) MY KITCHEN ABILITIES - cook? I am an "Open Box - Add Water" kinda gal. Cooking with fresh food is time consuming...and I'm pressed for time. Between the daily grind, contract work, pro-bono work (with dog clubs), and the dogs...time is a precious commodity around here.

(5) FATIGUE - Another factor working against having to cook meals at the end of the day is the chronic fatigue I have battled for a few years now. After coming home from work in rush hour traffic, I am completely beat. Trying to fit cooking in along with the rest of the daily duties around here - well....there's just not enough energy to spare. Of course....part of the fatigue is likely due to having to haul around all this extra weight. So it's a catch-22 - I could get more energy by eating better and losing some weight, but I am fighting to get the energy to do so.

So these are what I am looking to work through as I make my attempt, yet again, to shed the fat. These are what many of my future posts will center around as I manage (or attempt) to work on losing weight and post my various experiences and/or discoveries.