Preparation!

One of the most important things on my journey so far has been learning to prepare.  A major culprit of my bad food decisions in the past has been a lack of preparation.  The old adage goes "if you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail" and it holds very true in this case.

Here are some of the ways I prepare to make sure my healthy choices aren't harder than they need to be.

1.  Prepare your pantry at home:  The first and simplest thing you can do to prepare is to remove all of the bad stuff from your pantry.  Don't worry about throwing away "useable" food, you are doing this to free yourself from having to make the choice between potato chips devoid of nutrition and healthier options.  If you feel bad, donate the food to a local food bank.

2.  Prepare for temptation:  Understand that you will be tempted by less-than-healthy foods.  You know what they taste like, and you know that the trigger the pleasure center of your brain just like a good drug.  It's ok.  They will always be there, but you are strong.  You can do this.  And if you do grab that snickers, don't hate yourself.  You haven't failed.

3.  Prepare for the grocery store:  Learn the habit of reading labels.  Make a shopping list.  Stick to it.  You will largely be shopping the outer perimeter of the grocery store.  So feel free to skip the aisles in between.  The center of the grocery store is predominantly a nutritionally-devoid wasteland of "food-like" products.  Fill your shopping cart and your plate with vegetables, fruit, some nuts, and the best proteins you can afford.

4.  Prepare for the week:  If you are busy during the week, try to set aside a few minutes each Sunday to portion food and make a plan for the week.  Preparation here will make the week a lot easier to get through.

5.  Prepare to eat out:  Eating out can be hard.  Most restaurants these days have decided their path to profit is by creating increasingly outrageous combinations of foods with increasingly outrageous calorie counts.  Simple is almost always better when eating out.  If you know where you are going ahead of time, do a little research.  Many restaurants are very good at posting both nutritional and allergen information on their websites.  If it's there, take advantage of it.  If it's not, try asking when you get to the restaurant.  When you can pick the place, choose somewhere that is a little more likely to have choices that fit with what you are trying to do.  If not, most restaurants can whip up a simple chicken salad, a bunless burger or a steak with veggies.  Don't be shy to ask for something that fits your needs.  But most importantly, don't stress about it.  You're going to make great decisions.

I wish you well.