A Change in Lifestyle

One thing I’ve noticed about this project to eat as closely to the guidelines in the Food Rules book as possible is the number of changes that have come to my diet and to my lifestyle. I immediately knew that several things were going to be taken out of my weekly routines when I started this project but I did not think it would have quite the drastic affect. A few of the rules involve cutting back on foods that list sugar third under the list of ingredients, foods with ingredients that you cannot pronounce and foods that your grandmother would not recognize as food; so as a result I have stopped going to certain occasions that would involve eating one of these items.
To begin, I have turned down a few opportunities to go with friends to movies as these trips usually lead to eating popcorn, candy and soft drinks (on that note, the book also says to avoid eating when bored, and to eat when hungry). To avoid trying to figure out what is in the food at restaurants, I have been eating out less and less. It occurs to me that a number of the social experiences I have with many of my friends and family involves eating. It never really hit me before but this is true. In a city like New Orleans, there are few things to do other than eating or drinking. Even activities like going to see a movie or going bowling usually have eating or drinking mixed in somehow.
One thing I have noticed is my obvious lack of desire to continue reading labels and looking at names of ingredients I know I will never be able to pronounce much less recognize. My diet now is mostly comprised of fruits and vegetables that I know are fresh and “safe” to eat or a meal my mother or brother have made for dinner. Occasionally I do break from the rules between classes, especially if I have not eaten anything for breakfast, and grab a cereal bar from Loyola.
This project has not been the easiest to follow as I rarely ever go grocery shopping and don’t really enjoy doing it. But it has opened my eyes to a number of habits I have and how much better off I am without them. My mother and sister found out about this assignment and have decided to take part which is a great help since they do the majority of grocery shopping in the first place. To be extra careful they make a trip to Whole Foods every so often if they’re not sure about an item from the usual Rouses. I’ve noticed that the freezer has remained pretty empty except for meats and bread. Anything other than bread, meat, vegetables and fruits are usually bought from Whole Foods, like peanut butter, or canned tomato sauce.
Since most of this food is much more expensive than what we were buying, the amount of food itself in our house has gone done. We don’t usually buy anything in bulk anymore, so trips to either Rouses or Whole Foods have gone up. I find that this project is a lot easier to follow since I live at home and have foods made for me every night, but the challenge is to resist the temptation of getting a cup of coffee from Loyola in the mornings or buying something from work at 5 Happiness for lunch or dinner on weekends.