Sweet tooth

For the most part I consider myself to be a very healthy person.  I eat well, I exercise, and I generally have a low stress level which helps to maintain my mental health.  

But lately I have noticed something.  Well, a few things actually.  It started out with the realization that certain pairs of pants were fitting a bit tighter than they used to, and maybe it looked like I was a little bigger around the midsection than I had been back in the fall.  

No need to panic, I told myself.  It's just time to buckle down, stop eating junk, and hit the gym extra hard.  By the time spring hits I will be slim and trim. 

Weeks go by, I'm working out and not going back for seconds at dinner, and I'm eating an increased amount of fruit and veggies throughout the day.  But there is one itsy bitsy, teeny-weenie thing I have not been able to shake. 

My sweet tooth. 

Lord, do I love sugar.  And chocolate.  And frosting.  And ice cream.  The idea of giving up all these delicious concoctions is probably a good one, but tell me, would that kind of life even be worth living?  

To my credit, I usually will only indulge in sweets when dessert time rolls around.  Because let's face it, a small dish of cookies and cream ice cream is the perfect way to cap off one's day. Although this week I have been enjoying the leftover red velvet cake that my parent's conveniently left at my house after visiting for the weekend.  Trust me, it's worth the extra time at the gym to consume those delicious calories.  


And that brings me around to what is really on my mind.  What does it matter?  Any of it?  Aren't things like moving up a size in pants just a part of life?


I really don't feel like getting into the whole tirade of unrealistic body image and the impossible standards of beauty that exist in our society, because frankly I don't think there is anyone out there who is unaware of them.  And honestly, if looking like a supermodel requires eliminating all kinds of dessert foods from my life, I'm just not sure it's that important to me.

Losing weight has never been something I have excelled at.  For starters I've never really been "overweight," and I have always been very muscular, which is nice, but also means the scale reads heavier.  Dieting is torture for me, not that I've ever done it very long.  I love food, I love planning meals, and if I don't eat I get really cranky.  And while I realize dieting doesn't mean starving oneself, sometimes I need more than a rice cake as a snack in order to make it through the afternoon.

So where does this leave me?  Am I on a downward spiral, having sold my soul to devil's food cake and ice cream sundaes?  Does my desire to drop a few pounds mean I must also drop my sweet tooth once and for all?

I don't think it does.  I'm going to stick by the adage that all things in moderation are a-okay.  When it comes to choosing between skinny jeans and a brownie at lunch, the brownie is going to win almost every time.  Plus, I feel if I eliminated all desserts and yummy sugary goodness from my diet I could potentially suffer a mental breakdown.  The deprivation would drive me insane and Dean would come home from work one day to find me collapsed in the kitchen, empty containers of cookie dough ice cream and boxes of Oreos strewn all over the floor. Not a pretty picture. 

I feel life is too short to completely give up things that bring us happiness.  And food is a huge source of happiness for all of us....trust me, it's been scientifically proven.  And if eating a few more desserts means I have to run a few extra miles, I'll start putting that trade off into practice. 

Eventually.