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A New Food Plan, A New World

For five years, I’ve been living off the same exact food plan. Four ounces of protein, three ounces of grain or starch, 10 ounces of vegetable. It served me well most of the time, but in the past year my nutritional needs have changed and sticking to the old plan made a mess of me.

Tuesday, I went to see a new nutritionist, and my diet is now changed in a massive way.

Mood music:

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Revamping the food plan has become an essential piece of my getting back on the path to OA recovery, and just one day of it has me feeling much better.

The first thing we did was dial back on the vegetables. Ten ounces had become too much to stomach. We cut the amount in half. But the biggest change is that this plan calls for more variety, an afternoon snack and dessert. The last item is in keeping with the no-flour, no-sugar mindset and will consist of things like fruit puddings.

Here’s what my food diary looked like yesterday. As I get the hang of this, I’ll start running some recipes you might find useful (click on image for larger view):Food Diary for April 24, 2013

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Starting Over

In a lot of ways, I feel like I’ve been starting everything over this past week. Not in big, drastic ways, but in little ways that will hopefully add up to something good.

Mood music:

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There’s the afternoon tea I’ve been drinking instead of Red Bull and more coffee. There’s the meditation and yoga. And there’s the significant tightening of my food plan.

What’s the reason for all this?

I attribute some of it to the mindfulness-based stress reduction course I’m taking. I’m not sure it’s gotten me to the point of a sharper attention span and ability to live every minute in the moment, but the tools I’m learning are designed to get me there eventually.

The food clean-up is more about getting back on the horse after months adrift in the Overeater’s Anonymous wilderness. I never slipped back into the pattern of binge eating, but I was certainly getting sloppy. I was using way too much cheese for protein. On the last shopping trip I stocked up on salmon to use instead. Erin asked if this was my latest obsession. It’s really just me getting back to basics. I still haven’t returned to the OA meetings or gotten a sponsor, but one thing at a time.

My return to guitar playing has definitely been a factor. When I play I’m right in the moment, where I should be. I realized I play better when drinking tea than when drinking coffee. The chords are steadier and cleaner when I’m not on coffee overload. Another example of one good habit leading to another.

It’s fitting that all this is happening in the autumn. It’s usually the time of year when my mood and grip on life start to slip. Making changes this time of the year is turning out to be a powerful thing.

It’s also fitting because autumn four years ago was when I first decided my worst addictions had to stop owning me. That’s when I kicked flour and sugar and started weighing out my food. A year later I was done with alcohol.

Temptations still come and go. But the key is to take it a day at a time and get back on the horse when you fall off.

That’s what I’m learning, anyway. Hopefully, all of this will continue.

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