Diet is a Four Letter Word

I hate the word "Diet". It sounds so...final. No Good Food Ever!! No Eating Because You Enjoy It Ever!!!

Bleh. When I hear the word "Diet" I envision a long walk down a cold hallway with a priest reciting prayers behind me as I walk to my doom which is to spend all of eternity eating nothing but bland, no carb, no sugar, no salt, no fat, no flavor foods.

To say you are on a "Diet" seems so shameful. If someone offers you a big, honking piece of Ice Cream cake at a child's birthday party and you say "Oh no thank you, I'm on a diet" it just kind of marks you. Makes everyone know "Oh look! She's admitting she's fat! She's on a DIET! Well good for her, but we all know she's gonna fail." Funny how diet and shame seem to go hand in hand for me...but Fat and Shame do not.

My Dad called last night. After some small talk, I told him I had lost a tiny bit of weight, I'm exercising daily, and pretty much feel better about myself. And then he asked "Are you on a diet?"

Ugh. I almost groaned. That dirty, dirty, filthy, no good word.

But I just responded "No. I'm just watching what I eat."

And it's the truth. Because I'm not on a diet. I do not fill my days and my belly with bland, tasteless food. I'm just more aware of what I'm eating. And let's be honest, if you go to your favorite restaurant because they serve the best burgers ever, you are not going to order a salad. You are going to get the burger.

And of course I have my cheat day. Thursday was my cheat day. I had lost four pounds for the week, so I celebrated. With pizza. And corn pops. And oreos. And an ice cream sandwich. I seriously doubt anyone would call that a Diet.

But yesterday, I was back to "watching what I eat." And this included one of my favorite new snacks. Reduced Fat Peanut Butter sandwiched between two slices of Fiber One Multi-Grain Bread. I LOVE this!! And for some reason it really satisfies my love for sweet peanut butter treats like chocolate ice cream with melted peanut butter or Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. The bread is slightly sweet and I love the texture. And I can't tell the difference between the Reduced Fat Peanut Butter and the normal one. So...YUM!!

I also had a Turkey-Swiss Burger last night that was really good! Grilled up the Turkey Burger, smeared one of those little triangles of Laughing Cow Swiss Cheese on a slice of Arnold's Thin Bread/Bun thingies, a dab of ketchup...and it was really good!! Tasted just like a good fast food burger. Totally satisfied that craving for a crappy McWhopper.

So, not actually giving in to my cravings. But I'm not on a Diet either.