Motivation gets you started, habit keeps u going

Not to act like I'm your mother or anything, but it looks like you need some vegetables. I'm one to talk because I'm not great at eating a lot of vegetables myself.

Soda pop is poison! Seriously, it's like crack that makes you fat! Have you seen "super size me"? I will never forget the giant bed-ridden couple that talked about drinking several bottles a day and they were talking about the 2 liter size.

I was just planning to type those exact words: Soda is poison. Rattletrap, how smart you are. ;)

April, I think you are a super smart, awesome person, because you are questioning your world and your own habits. You will find answers and your life will just get better and better! :D

I agree with Carolyn about the veggies 100%. I know how busy you are, and my recommendation is to mostly buy veggies that don't need cooking and have them all prepared (pre-prep once or twice a week). So you get home from the grocery store, and I know you are tired, but this is so worth-it: wash, peel and/or cut carrots, cukes, peppers, radishes, celery, jicama or whatever. Wash the lettuce and put it in a tupperware thingy with paper towels. Every time you open the fridge, you've got a tasty salad bar waiting. I also like to hard boil a bunch of eggs every week for quick and easy protein.

My second recommendation is to cut back on the grains. You are having a serving of grain based food at every meal and snack. Why I don't recommend this: 1) we are not designed to digest grains, which entered the human diet only 10,000 years ago, compared to the millions of years of development of the human genome, 2) They are relatively empty of nutrition compared to the carb sources of fruits and starchy vegetables, and 3) To your body, they are the same as sugar - that's what they become during digestion.

That's the nutshell version of Sno's Happy Diet recommendations; the long version is in Garden of Eating by Matesz (and several other books). You can get it at the library.

BTW, great job on the p'ups and abs!

I love you guys...this is what happened to april after she moved in with her boyfriend...bad boyfriend bad habits!

I had no idea about grains--even the whole grains? I don't want to say that I was a perfect eater before but I was much more into veggies and fruits. I guess I love my grains!

I get to do the grocery shopping this week so I will peruse the store more for stuff that is better. And when it is his grocery week he buys whatever I put on the list. Hey atleast I'm not eating his hostess cupcakes! (yes he eats one a day)

Sno-I use to do exactly what you said--cut up all the veggies and have them ready to eat for the week. I bought frozen veggies b/c lately I like the way those taste better...but then I have to cook them....I have a little pampered chef pot that you can throw in the microwave and in two minutes you have cooked veggies...but still I odn't do it that often

Oh I should mention that when I get home from school my boyfriend will have another dinner cooked for us and I always have corn or veggies or broccoli with that. So I get one serving!

I will focus this week on no cheese and figuring out what else I can bring for lunch besides sandwiches.

And yes I know soda is poison! Rattletrap--did you have a soda addiction? I thought I remembered reading about that somewhere...

I can certainly sympathize with you--it's so much easier to eat like crap. It's convenient and it's cheap, in a lot of cases.

I can't add a lot to the conversation, but I'm a big fan of celery and carrots (and spinach--love the spinach salad) because they are easy to keep in the fridge.

The hardest thing about making good decisions is that it is difficult to make and retain good routines, while it is excessively easy to fall into baaaad habits.

p.s. I have an on/off relationship with soda. We're currently on a break.

I used to drink a LOT of soda, but quit after having kidney stones. I drink a LOT of water now. I blogged recently about my addiction to candybars and poptarts...I did back slide once and ate a candy bar since then, but I plan to stay clean now :)

great job focusing on your diet! I am impressed. my solution to the veggie conundrum is to buy mini carrots, sugar snap peas, brocolli florets and salad "mix", all at costco. its more expensive but I've failed all attempts to prepare stuff myself so now on sundays I put everything in prepared ziploc bags so its ready for lunches. don't forget about apples too!

I also had an addiction to coffee and coke zero, but wet cold turkey the last 5 weeks with the ankle, now im withholding it as a weekend treat only. :-)

Rattletrap--I use to have a BAD problem with candy chocolate bars (snickers, reeces cups etc) Well I was getting these ulcers in my mouth (the kind if you bite your lip but they were in areas where that wasn't possible) the docs didn't know what the heck they were...but they have been going on for years. They said it could be due to stress...but what I figured out was that when i'm stressed I eat candy bars...and then I got those sores...they would get so bad I couldn't eat food. So no more candy bars for me.

nicole-i need to get a costco membership...for now I will just have to get whateve is on sale at strack and van til (like a jewel)

Just another thought: let your sweetie eat how he likes; we all have to let change come from within and it will just blow your relationship if you nag or lecture. My 2c - :)

And a couple of links if you want to read more:

http://www.nutritionreporter.com/stone_age_diet.html

http://thepaleodiet.com/faqs/#Fiber

http://www.earth360.com/diet_paleodiet_balzer.html

Sno--you are such a wealth of knowledge. the Paleolithic diet reminds me of my anthropology studies (I was a anthro major before elemen school major). I will have to weave it in with my diet that I found that is suppose to help mood swings. For instance, potatoes with the skins are suppose to be good for mood but not so good for the Paleolithic diet. Same goes for whole grains.

Oh and I would never dream of telling him what to eat. Really dinner is the only meal we eat together, and as long as I have meat and potatoes for him he is happy. I make myself a side of veggies or whatever.

That must be why he looks so content in your Ravelry avatar!

My philosophy on the Paleo Diet is that though it is ideal, I cannot live in this world and also stick to this diet perfectly. So I severely limit the no-no's and enjoy them to the hilt if I have them. I rarely eat potatoes. But no power on earth will separate me from chocolate.

I think he looks content b/c we were at a Cubs game!