Before leaving Rochester this Thanksgiving, I had to experience one of its delicacies: the Garbage Plate. Now, ladies and gents, the garbage plate is not for the faint of heart. Nestled on a bed of mayo-laden macaroni salad and home fries, laced with healthy doses of mustard, ketchup and hot sauce, the two beef patties (or hot dogs), marinated in greasy meat sauce goodness and topped with cheese, bring this plate together. Suffice to say the locals call it “heart attack in a Styrofoam box.”
Although I do not advocate for eating this, ehem, garbage, every day of the year, I firmly believe that the secret to staying thin is actually in allowing yourself to indulge. In moderation. Indulging moderately is the trick to managing cravings and avoiding the downward spiral of unhealthy eating behaviors that come with “food guilt” and mean thoughts about your body.
So next time you head over to McDonalds for those perfectly golden fries, remind yourself: it’s okay! Just practice the following tips to prevent you from engaging in destructive thoughts and behaviors:
- Balance out with healthier meals the next day or two. No need for fancy calculations or calorie counting here. If you opt for a heavy meal or dessert one night, just go light on lunch or dinner the next day. Now, this doesn’t mean eating salad sans dressing as penance. It means having three-quarters of a sandwich for lunch and your normal-portion chicken dinner. Easy. Breezy.
- Get yourself to the gym one extra day this week. Come on, it’s just one more day. Even if it’s just for 25 minutes. The thing is, one plate of wings won’t make you actually gain weight or make you any more out of shape – food and fitness don’t work that way. The trip to the gym is more for psychological relief than anything. It’s a way to keep you motivated.
- Accept your eating choices without guilt. Instead of surrendering to food guilt, deciding that all your hard work at the gym the past three weeks has been for naught, and tossing out your whole work out routine, simply accept that you had one “bad” meal and nothing more. Okay, maybe it was two unhealthy meals. Or three. Or a whole week’s worth. That’s okay, you’re life is not over and you have not “undone” all of your other healthy choices. You just put them on hold. So pick up where you left off and don’t let the victim mode kick in!
Eating greasy or extra sugary food is not the problem. It’s eating too much of it. So I say go ahead: have your cake and eat it, too. Just don’t eat the whole thing!
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Between the garbage plate, wings, thanksgiving feast and pies-galore, I think I need to hit the gym “one more time” this week times ten!