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Skip the Salad Occasionally (And Reclaim Your Life from Mindless Eating)

This entire week, we’re featuring select posts and articles by some of the best-of-the-best writers and bloggers across the World Wide Web as part of FBG’s second-annual Guest Bloggers’ Week. Click here to see all of the great guest posts that inspire, make us think and crack us the heck up!

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Have you ever felt as though you are losing control of your own eating habits? Or that a strict food regimen has been put into place as a combatant to mindless eating?

Well, about two months ago, a friend of mine came to stay with me in San Francisco. She is a Southern peach and has, until recently, had the luxury of indulging in southern-fried anything without gaining any weight. When she turned 28, she realized her metabolism was slowing down and that it was time to trade butter for olive oil and wings for weekends at the gym. On her visit, we went out to a Chinese restaurant in San Francisco that serves some of the most delicious cuisine. I ordered the Kung Pao Chicken and my friend ordered a salad.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I am not knocking the salad routine. I highly encourage eating fresh greens as much as possible. But my friend was on vacation and all she could talk about the whole lunch was how she had devoured Ben & Jerry’s the night before, and so had to eat a salad today and that night…and the rest of the week. I just kept thinking, since when did eating become such a punishment? And why are we as women so consumed with every calorie that goes in our mouths, instead of more concerned with eating good stuff on our plate until we feel full?

Now, I have never been a “large” girl and I’ve also never been on a diet. I also am not one of those girls who has amazing genes and says to her friends all the time “I don’t know what it is; I just never have to go to the gym.” WRONG. I go to the gym, but I also eat normally. And yes, when the mood strikes me, sometimes I will eat a plate of Kung Pao chicken.

What sets us back and what promotes weight gain is the act of mindless eating. We buy portions that are too big. We get so caught up in something being “healthy” that we think just because it’s organic, fat-free, low-cal or no-cal that we can eat more of it.

The fact is that we all know how to eat healthy and what not to eat. If you look down at your grocery cart and don’t see anything green, chances are you need a little bit more fiber in your diet. Conversely, if all you are eating is roughage 24/7, chances are YOU ARE HUNGRY. In much the same way, we need to be aware of mindless eating and how that can affect your overall body image. If you aren’t hungry, don’t eat. Or if you have a choice between super-sized and medium, go for the latter.

I learned years ago to stop letting what I put in my mouth control my life. I’m not saying that it is easy, especially for women. We have so much to compete with and so many different versions of beauty being thrown at us, but do what feels right for your body. Give thanks for it and to it—it is your one true possession. —Danae Matthews

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