Monday, October 13, 2014

October 13th, 2014 Worth Every Minute

October 13th, 2014 Worth Every Minute

After another late night of weather coverage, I feared my Monday might resemble my Friday--except this time I didn't oversleep my alarm. I was up and on the air at 6am. You can always tell if I'm hurried in the mornings or more relaxed by the way I prepare my eggs. If I prepare a nice looking omelet, I obviously took time and care in whipping it up. If the eggs are over-hard, I was clearly rushed with little time for whisking or folding. I prefer the omelet style if time allows. I wasn't late this morning--but I certainly did not have time for whisking.

I found out about today's company paid lunch get-together this morning. The plan was for everyone on staff to meet at a nice restaurant within one of the casinos. I had successfully navigated this place a few times, so I wasn't too concerned. When we arrived, we discovered the restaurant doesn't open for lunch on Mondays. A snap decision was made and we all gathered steps away in the sports bar. The sports bar menu isn't as easy to navigate. I was confident I could find something--but my order wasn't automatic like it would have been in the full service restaurant.

We all shared some chips and salsa and I decided to continue what is almost becoming a joke with this chips and salsa thing. I've had chips and salsa, I don't know--I would have to go through my tweets to be certain--but at least five times in the last ten days, maybe more. I always count them, sure. I always separate my chips from the bowl, creating a psychological barrier between me and more--of course, but still...I think I'm indulging in them a little too often. But that's just me. 

I ordered one of maybe two things I could feel good about on the entire bar menu--a grilled chicken sandwich--no bun, no sauce--no bacon, no cheese and an order of sweet potato fries. I enjoyed the two tomato slices too. Okay-- I made it through the company lunch! We all met there because tomorrow night we host one of the biggest events of the year at this same casino: Ladies Night! It was a chance for us to have lunch and then check out the setup in the ballroom for this huge event.

Tomorrow night will include free wine, free food, lots of shopping and plenty of prize giveaways for the ladies attending and once again, we're expecting a capacity crowd. I will plan very carefully going into this event. One thing is for sure: I'm keeping away from the meat and cheese selection. It's too easy to eat too much, too fast.

With all of the events on the horizon, I know it will likely be my birthday on the 23rd before I see mom again, so I made my way to Stillwater to visit over dinner this evening.

On my way to mom's place, I stopped for coffee with one of the most fascinating people I've ever met. I first met Bill when he purchased my book at the Hastings signing in January, 2012. His support and encouragement of what I do is an amazing gift. Summarizing Bill's fascinating life in a sentence or two wouldn't do it justice. The fact that he's enjoyed my writings and related in deeply profound ways--enough to want to meet up again and enjoy coffee and conversation, was truly an honor and well worth the time. I'm so glad we finally took time to visit. And we did in the coffee shop inside Hastings--the same place we met at my book signing in January 2012.

I had a fabulous visit with mom this evening. We dined on the 550 calories or less menu at Applebee's. Mom is doing well. Her recent doctor visits have shown promising results in regards to her health challenges. It's always good to just relax with mom and enjoy a nice dinner and casual conversation. We love to laugh when we're together. Our sense of humor is one of many things we share.

I knew tonight would be a late night--and that's okay. It was worth every minute.

In the comments of yesterday's edition, Nancy requested some tips on how to deal with sudden changes or wacky schedules when you're trying to maintain a food plan. I didn't offer tips, necessarily--instead I offered a perspective.

She writes:
"You amaze me how you handle those crazy iffy hours and still stay tight with your food plan. "Monkey wrenches" thrown into my day I may handle one time, but over and over end up throwing me in the food dept. it seems. Can you give me some tips on how to correct this?"

Reply: 
It goes back to my philosophy about how the fundamentals of our success--the food and exercise, must become somewhat of a background program running throughout our daily lives. Like on a computer--you can do many things on the screen in front of you--all the while, one or several programs are running in the background and they will continue running smoothly unless you do something drastic to interrupt them.

It's all in your perspective. I look at my food and exercise as something I will do regardless of what's happening in the foreground. If what I'm doing suddenly shifts gears and I allow it to dramatically affect my behavior with food--then I've brought it out of the background and into the foreground. the only time I need to bring the food to the foreground is when I'm planning what I'll eat. I make the plan-- sometimes far in advance--sometimes on the spur of the moment...as soon as the plan is made and I'm good with it--the food goes back to the background and life and everything else can continue in the foreground. Does this make sense?

If we allow the food and exercise to constantly feature in the foreground of our lives--then life will get in the way or it will get in the way of life. It becomes a part of our life when we allow it to run in the background, parallel--but not in the way of our life in the foreground.
In other words--we must decide that no matter what curve we take, we do not need to sacrifice the integrity of our food plan.

It's taking the all consuming focus off of the food and onto our lives--because if it's the other way around, we will trip on the slightest unexpected change on our path.

My Tweets today:




























Thank you for reading and your continued support,
Strength,
Sean
at

5 comments:

  1. Alati October 14, 2014 at 4:02 PM

    Whew weather kept us up last night! Tons of rain and crazy winds! Sounds like you managed to navigate the sports bar menu without a problem. I'm still scared of eating out! Not quite confident yet I can do it without overindulging... Maybe because this has been one of my worse areas before. Stay strong!

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    1. Sean AndersonOctober 14, 2014 at 10:54 PM

      I'm always prepared to walk away or settle for something strange-like fresh fruit from the bar garnishments... I was lucky in that this sports bar had a few better options. Had it been all pizza and wings--I would have declined quickly and figured out an alternative away from that place.
      I feel strong. Remember 5 months ago, it was rare for me to eat out. I did once every week or two. I felt less strong back then--and needed to stay away from restaurants until I could regain some confidence in my resolve and life. Now-- I feel like I can navigate most restaurants...again, unless it's a place with limited options--then I must be willing to walk away.
      You're going at your own pace. What you've written here tells me that you're in touch with yourself and what you can handle and what you're not comfortable with--and this, Alati, is critical to your success. You're doing it, my friend!!!

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  2. NikkiOctober 14, 2014 at 9:51 PM

    Good work with that sports bar menu! It's a good thing that most of those types of places now have other options than beer and wings!

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    1. Sean AndersonOctober 14, 2014 at 10:56 PM

      Nikki--I got lucky this time. Had it not been okay--I was ready to walk away. I truly would have declined and figured out something else. I will not sacrifice myself for the sake of being social! :)

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  3. NancyOctober 14, 2014 at 11:33 PM

    Thank you SOOoooooo much for the words of wisdom about handling my approach to food while handling the stresses of everyday. Never thought about it that way - have the food choice meals be in the background while enjoying living is what is playing in the everyday.

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I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment. Thank you for your support!