The Two-Headed Monster

Today I have been thinking of myself and my eating habits as a two-headed monster.  I can be good.  I can be bad.  I often feel happy.  I often feel sad.  It's often a struggle between the two monsters within me to cooperate together so I can function and live a balanced life. 

For example, yesterday I was in a rotten, sad state of mind.  It was my pity party day.  I ate chocolate chip cookies (and yogurt) for breakfast.  I had a huge chocolate brownie for lunch.  I cried a few times.  I ignored phone calls, emails and people so that I could get lost in a book and my John Mayer music CD while I drove around town with no real destination in mind.  I didn't exercise.  I had a huge coffee with steamed milk. I was glad to be alone.  My thoughts felt scattered. 

Today I woke up and decided to do some yoga and a Jillian Michael's workout dvd first thing.  I ate a healthy banana crumble muffin after that.  Mid morning I decided to make some tofu pudding. (It actually turned out pretty great so I'll share that recipe soon!)  The only thing I drank so far is about 60 oz of water and a cup of herbal tea.  It's raining buckets today but I'm more than happy to be at home in my pajamas.  I couldn't wait to call my mom to talk to her.  I'm still lost in the book I picked up yesterday but I'm stopping to take breaks, take a few notes and do a few chores around the house.  I'm much more at peace.

Environmental and external factors often affect our mood and our eating habits.  Fortunately I've never been one to binge eat or starve myself.  I just have my occasional days of overindulgence (like yesterday).  Generally I don't feel guilty over it.  I just make up for it or work it off later. 

Self-discipline can be hard but it can be achieved.  When I find myself struggling I keep a food diary and a personal diary to make me more accountable of my actions and intake.  When I feel more confident and on the right path, I slack off because I know what to do and I don't need to write it down.   Although doing weekly meal planning like I do certainly helps! 

Everyone I know has their little indulgences too.  No one is good all the time.  I often just let my two-headed monster argue it out.  I close my eyes and wait to see if my hand reaches for the chocolate or the broccoli.  The best days are when it grabs both! 

Thank you for reading this random post of mine today.  I had a recipe prepared but then these wild thoughts came to my head instead and sometimes you just have to go with it..... Also, sometimes it's a good learning technique to share where you've been, what you've done and how you've felt so you can move forward - whether it's food related or not!!!  :-)

Do you also have a two-headed monster?  If so, do you try to tame it or let it lead you?  How does it affect your eating habits?

I promise that tomorrow will be a less thought-provoking post.  I will get back to sharing great recipes - Coming up is a wonderful pasta dish along with some make-ahead tips for creating your own "gourmet" sandwiches too! 

Stay tuned to see which head of the two-headed monster will win out for the remainder of this week!  :-)