Kids eatingOne of my Weight Watchers® leaders, Michael, always uses the phrase “a close relationship with chicken, tuna and cottage cheese“.  Of course, that is just a clever way of pointing out a common peril of DIET mentality.  That you have to eat diet food.  Only.  All the time.  Same time, same chicken/tuna/or cottage cheese.

You know the drill: hard-boiled egg, slice of dry wheat toast (make it “light,” please), and a piece of fruit.  Lunch: small can of tuna on salad green with lite salad dressing.  Dinner: chicken breast – grilled and some steamed broccoli.

Boring!!

I once had a conversation with an overweight friend who ate that way and couldn’t figure out why she wasn’t losing weight.  I should say TRIED to eat that way.  I asked her what she had for her snack.  “Snack!”, she cried, “oh, I would never have a snack.”  As if having a snack is a bad thing.

Lest I repeat myself!  I will continue to pound away at this:  the only way you will lose weight and keep it off is to eat what you like! Notice I don’t say: eat what you want.  In fact, you should also what what you want, but that can be a challenging concept for those of us who grapple with portion control.

That’s the bottom line on all of this:  Moderation.  An example:  there is this pasta dish that I adore:  cacio e pepe.  It is pasta with pecorino romano and black pepper.  Made traditionally, it contains no oil.  I discovered the dish in Rome at a wonderful little restaurant called Sora Margherita, in the Jewish Ghetto of Roma.  I have written many times about cacio e pepe:  it is simply sublime!

After years of searching for the perfect version of that quintessentially Roman dish, I found it at a charming little restaurant on Bedford Street in the Village – called Quinto Quarto.

When I know I’m going to QG, I plan.  I make allowance for a big, steaming bowl of my favorite pasta.  I do not starve myself before or after.  But, I also know that I am likely to partake in such an indulgence about once a week.  So, we’re not talking sacrifice here.

It is, albeit, handier to do this while tracking POINTS® — I do my tracking on e-Tools.  But, you can do it on paper, too.  I “subtract” it from my meals for the week.

You see, I do not eliminate my favorite foods, I make allowances for them.  Do the same for yourself.  Push yourself out of the chicken/tuna/cottage cheese mindset.  Enjoy yourself.  I promise you – it works!