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So, the other day JJ made a comment about smells of delicious foods... This has been rolling around in my head ever since...
When trying to eat wise (I refuse to use the D word!) often I hated smelling foods that I loved but was trying to stay away from.
For example, I take the bus to and from school... two days a week, at the time I come home, this local Mexican restaurant is getting into full swing for dinner and the smells coming out of it as we drive by (or heaven forbid, are stopped at the light!) are AMAZING and DELICIOUS (i love love love Mexican food!)!!
Well, I always dreaded driving by there during this time of day.... and have even been known to try real hard to NOT smell is as we go by... :)
But after reading JJ's comment on enjoying smells... I think I was on the wrong track.
I love walking around this time of year and enjoying the smells of flowers blooming and the overall smell of spring as all the new growth is coming out. Of course I don't associate this with eating, so never made the connection...
But why not enjoy the smells of food too? Why not make that a positive instead of a negative? I enjoy the smell of foods when I know I'm going to be eating it soon... but when trying to NOT eat it, the smell just seemed like temptation!
A taste (as JJ mentioned) only last for a moment... And so does a smell... And why does one have to lead to another!?
No reason I have to eat something just cause I smelled it... The two do not have to go together. And the smell all on its own can be a pleasant experience vs. a trigger to eat...
So, the last day or two I have been experimenting with this idea... When we drove by the Mexican place coming home from the farmers market.... I inhaled deeply and let the smell become an enjoyment all in its own... It was a freeing experience to allow the smell to be appreciated in its own right...
Besides, when I smell newly bloomed flowers I don't have to go pick them, take them home, put them in a vase on my table to enjoy them! Yeah, once in awhile I can do that, but generally, I don't... I just enjoy the smell as I pass by...
Why can't food be the same? I don't have to stop, place an order, take it home and eat it... Maybe on rare occasion I can have a bite, but why can't I just enjoy the smell as I pass by?
Just the ramblings of someone who is in new appreciation of her olfactory senses :) :)
When trying to eat wise (I refuse to use the D word!) often I hated smelling foods that I loved but was trying to stay away from.
For example, I take the bus to and from school... two days a week, at the time I come home, this local Mexican restaurant is getting into full swing for dinner and the smells coming out of it as we drive by (or heaven forbid, are stopped at the light!) are AMAZING and DELICIOUS (i love love love Mexican food!)!!
Well, I always dreaded driving by there during this time of day.... and have even been known to try real hard to NOT smell is as we go by... :)
But after reading JJ's comment on enjoying smells... I think I was on the wrong track.
I love walking around this time of year and enjoying the smells of flowers blooming and the overall smell of spring as all the new growth is coming out. Of course I don't associate this with eating, so never made the connection...
But why not enjoy the smells of food too? Why not make that a positive instead of a negative? I enjoy the smell of foods when I know I'm going to be eating it soon... but when trying to NOT eat it, the smell just seemed like temptation!
A taste (as JJ mentioned) only last for a moment... And so does a smell... And why does one have to lead to another!?
No reason I have to eat something just cause I smelled it... The two do not have to go together. And the smell all on its own can be a pleasant experience vs. a trigger to eat...
So, the last day or two I have been experimenting with this idea... When we drove by the Mexican place coming home from the farmers market.... I inhaled deeply and let the smell become an enjoyment all in its own... It was a freeing experience to allow the smell to be appreciated in its own right...
Besides, when I smell newly bloomed flowers I don't have to go pick them, take them home, put them in a vase on my table to enjoy them! Yeah, once in awhile I can do that, but generally, I don't... I just enjoy the smell as I pass by...
Why can't food be the same? I don't have to stop, place an order, take it home and eat it... Maybe on rare occasion I can have a bite, but why can't I just enjoy the smell as I pass by?
Just the ramblings of someone who is in new appreciation of her olfactory senses :) :)
Toast still does but fried foods and sweets don't.
Our tastes change some after surgery, and some of the stuff I think would make me sick anyway and it don't smell good anymore. Maybe that is a defence mechanisim?
I try to make Friday a "special night". What I try to do is take what I have been craving and try to make it healthier. I love Mexican food, and since moving to AZ I have been craving enchaladas, in my quest to help satisfy some of the cravings. I made an enchalada soup nummy, it satisfied my craving and I could make it healthier than if I bought it, my family loved it. they just ended up putting it in a burrito whereas I put it on top of salad. Crock Pot 2 chicken breasts on low 7-8hrs, add 1 can enchalada sauce, 1 can white corn, 1 can petite diced tomatos, and a packet of taco seasoning. Shred Chicken and add back into mixture before eating. Use salad as base top with enchalada soup, top with 0 fat Fage in place of sour cream. Nummy!
I still can't do anything about the baking bread though I love the smell, but I know I can't eat it, so like JJ said I just enjoy the smell while I am there :D
I was at a graduation party last night and someone said something about pizza. I said I don't eat pizza anymore. Pizza used to be my favorite food. Now, I can't stand the way it feels in my mouth or in my body...so I don't eat it...but I still enjoy the smell. And, I can enjoy the memory of how it tasted without feeling sorry for myself. The person who mentioned pizza last nigh knew me when I was over 300 lbs...and she looked at me sadly and said "I'm sorry." I told her, "Oh, no! I'm not sorry!!! I'm totally good with it." I don't feel sorry for myself. It is totally worth it! Nothing I can chew or swallow is worth how much physical and emotional pain I was in. NOTHING!!
Totally worth it? Heck yeah!!
JJ