It takes an elephant

I was going to do so much tonight...and now I'm running out of get-up-and-go. I was going to work on organizing this women's retreat coming up in October, I was going to write checks for the bills, I was going to work out, I was going to shop for food for my camping trip, I was going to read for school, I was going to write my bl...wait...I've done most of this already. No wonder I'm freakin' tired!

The only thing I haven't done is write the checks...the least physically taxing thing on the list. But here's the thing, I'm mentally exhausted. I've started my reading for school. I'm getting going early for one of my classes. The class doesn't start until early October, but the professor is TOUGH. Actually, she scares the shit out of me. Don't get me wrong, she's fair, her classes are interesting and she's very clear about what she expects. She just scares the crap out of me.

Anyhow, some of the reading I started talked about how we're not lazy, we're just tired. Of course, it was talking about making changes in our lives and workplaces. It was oddly appropriate. It talked about how people have 2 brains...the emotional one and the rational one. OK. There's the elephant, the emotional one, and the rider, the rational one. Get this, a little human rider only has so much strength to exert when forcing it's will on the elephant, and then our rational side becomes exhausted. This is when the emotional side can come in and take charge. Coup d'etat! In other words, will power will only get us so far when making changes in our lives. When we decide to make a change, we have to buy into it both rationally and emotionally!

It's the same with avoiding sugar. I can only force myself to avoid the temptation for just so long. Once I run out of sheer willpower, I need an emotional force to give me the strength that I need to not reach for that 'easy out'. I need the elephant. Without some emotional buy in, I'm going to give in and reach for a Snickers, or a brownie, or cake or ice cream or (insert your favorite sugary snack here). I need something...a desire to avoid an avoidable family medical history, an important friendship with some amount of a basis in healthy eating and physical activity, a sense of self that's invested in a healthy lifestyle, a deep-seated need to have the body one desires...anything, something. It may take a village to raise a child, but it takes an elephant to avoid sugar!

I forgot to photograph my dinner...I was so tired and soooo hungry. I actually ate my lunch salad for dinner. I put a small chicken breast on the salad today.


For lunch, I had daal makhani, chicken tikka masala and naan. I love Indian food!!!

Breakfast power sandwich, berries and a cappuccino. I love Panera!