Food on the Brain!!!

I admit, this P90X diet has got me thinking about food ALL THE TIME. Not in the way that I fantasize about raiding a Cold Stone Creamery or devouring ten Chipotle burritos, but in the way that it is time-consuming to plan out meals, grocery shopping lists, and figure out what to bring to parties and events  (ie something that is tasty enough for everyone to eat and that I can eat too). Mike and I talk about food all the time when we are together. When we’re apart, we text each other when we are especially hungry one day, when we resist some tempting food,  or when we eat our lunches apart and think that it was particularly delicious. Then, at work and social functions we have to explain to people why we’re not eating the cake or free pizza or why we can’t drink. On occasion, someone asks what I’ve been doing to create such awesome results so quickly, which prompts me to launch into a little summary about the P90X nutrition plan and what you can and can’t eat, etc.

To sum it up, it’s getting ridiculous.

I’m hoping that since we are just starting the plan that the obsession will wear off. However, I’m kind of doubting it since each phase has a new set of food rules to memorize and follow. Now that we’re in Phase 2 and incorporating more carbohydrates and less protein (and less dairy for Mike), we have new meals to come up with and plan. After years of watching what I ate for a while and then completely not caring and going overboard, and then going back to watching everything, and then not caring again, just about six months or so before we started P90X I noticed that I had finally come to a good place where I stopped caring so much about calories and started focusing eating well as often as possible and not getting overly upset with myself when I splurged. I found that when I did splurge, most of the time I was better at listening to my body and figuring out that I was full. The result was that I slimmed down a bit without even trying. It was a good feeling.

Now, I don’t think that I could have lost the amount of weight that I have on P90X from my aforementioned lifestyle, but I do hope that after we’re finished with P90X I can go back to that way of living and maintain my new figure. I don’t like counting calories and portion sizes every day, but that’s part of the P90X program and it works, so I’m doing it.

They say that it takes 21 days to form a habit. I definitely think that I have picked up some GREAT habits from P90X– resisting the candy jar on my coworkers desk, avoiding caffeine & artificial sweeteners, starting the day everyday at 6 a.m. with an intense workout, to name a few. However, I hope that this obsessed calorie counting habit goes with it. I firmly believe that doing your best to avoid processed foods, artificial sweeteners, caffeine and alcohol will help regulate your metabolism and blood sugar, warding off crazy cravings and overeating (theory a la Jillian Michaels as well as plenty of internet research). If you avoid these things, these is no need for calorie counting because your body will tell you when you’re gotten the fuel you need.

Although I am very excited about my results so far and I really like the P90X program, sometimes I just want to wake up not knowing exactly what I’m going to eat for lunch or dinner that day. I really hope that after we finish P90X I can take the good habits I’ve formed and, without calorie counting, maintain this healthy lifestyle with just a little less thought and planning.

Until then, I’ll keep counting!