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One of the habits that I am developing is to try to shop for fresh foods more often, but in smaller, well-chosen quantities. I used to try to save time (and in theory, money) by stocking up on one big shopping trip, acquiring everything I might need in the hope that I could stretch that food for a few weeks.

Of course, as was my previous pattern by the time I left the store I was starving, eating whatever salted carbohydrate-in-a-metallic-plastic-bag that jumped off the shelf and into the cart, and having relatively little of anything that could be considered fresh.

I used to have every legitimate (or, not-so-legit) reason in the world to avoid the store. The reasons included things like: Read the rest of this entry »

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This post is a personal account of how advertising that is directed at children had a direct impact on me. If you like this article, please consider giving it a Digg or subscribing to my feed. Thanks.

Growing up, I loved cereal. I craved the sweet, satisfying taste; I loved the temperature of the cold milk mingling with the cereal; I savored the crunchy texture; I enjoyed the way the milk absorbed the sweetness and the color of the cereal. I just loved it.

I also liked the assumed feeling of commonality with other kids across the nation who were eating the same thing. It made me feel like I “fit in” in some odd way.

Of course, our Mom insisted on the non-sugary stuff, so products like Cheerios were the staple rather than the sweeter options (more on the effectiveness of that strategy later).

When I moved out on my own lo’ those many years ago, the three things that I had in my “pantry” (the closet in my studio apartment) were: a) One case of macaroni and cheese (thanks Mom), b) One case of ramen packages (complete with those delectable silver packets of MSG and who knows what else), and c) One box of Cap’n Crunch Crunchberries – my personal favorite at the time. Or, Lucky Charms, if I wanted to “get my greens.” Gotta’ cover those food groups.

So when money was tight (as it always was), which food did I choose to replenish? Hand’s down, it was the fun-lovin’ Cap’n, that crazy happy go lucky Leprichaun, or the I-don’t-even-know-what-he-is-but-I-like-it Coo-Coo for Cocoa Puffs dude, who won the priorities crown. When it came down to it, it was pretty obvious who was going home from the scratch-and-dent grocery store.

In fact, when money was really tight, I may have tried to eat cereal with water out of desperation.

I strongly discourage it. Read the rest of this entry »

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Editor’s note: This post is both a status post and a description of my thoughts on habit forming in 30 days. If you enjoy reading this article, consider subscribing to my RSS feed. Thanks.

I have reached the conclusion of the first month of my holistic weight loss experiment, and things are looking quite good. I’m encouraged.

But first, I’d like to talk about something that, having reached the end of the first month, really bugs me.

Whether this is common to most people I couldn’t say, but for me, I have these little sugar-coated pixies running rampant through the wide-open echo chamber that is my mind, bouncing off of the insides of the polished synaptic tubes that connect my right and left brain, all while giggling and whispering incessantly amongst themselves in tones that collectively sound like the dull hum of an old plugged in refrigerator being rolled down a gravel driveway.

Skipping to and fro, these pixies often stop at the little microphone horns that lead to my ears and whisper to me things like, “Hey that’s great! You lost weight – incredible! That was soooo hard. You really deserve to treat yourself. Go ahead. After all, your new habits are now a way of life, so a little indulgence isn’t going to hurt, don’t you think? After all, you’ve made it past the magic 30 day mark! Since 30 days have passed, these new habits are all solidified and permanent, right? I mean, even Science agrees on that, right?”

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