Last night we went out to eat with our friends. We were heading up towards K-town (Korea-town = lots of Korean restaurants all along west 32nd street) when someone said, “Hey, let’s go to Live Bait.” Bobby kind of pulled me aside and said, “Hon, I don’t think you will want anything there.” And I said, “I really do eat anything now, you know!” So we went.
I got fried chicken.
I got fried chicken with 2 veggie sides – collard greens and green beans.
The green beans picture is my own from a while ago… here’s that recipe (it’s an Indian dish but it looks like the beans I had last night). The collards picture is mine too – my recipe for collard greens here.
I cannot remember the last time I had fried chicken. Probably 5 years ago?
There is another personal update that I wanted to share:
I am ditching my scale until January 1st.
The scale has not been going up (or down – and I don’t want it to do either of those actions) lately aside from the 2-3 pound range that comes from eating too much salt or being bloated, but I have decided that I cannot base my day’s happiness on a stupid little number anymore. Maybe I won’t ever weigh myself again, but for now I’m giving myself a timeline of two months. When January 1st comes around I will decide if I even need or want it anymore.
I also quit the gym.
Just not for me. I should have known better. I just need daily walks and occasional (gentle) yoga. Oddly enough, when I am *not* working out I find it much easier to maintain my weight.
***
How was your weekend? Anything exciting or life-change happening for you?
P.S. Congrats to Heather, CD, and Summer (aka the HEABlet)! A beautiful family 🙂
Sounds like a plan! Nice 🙂
This weekend = spent time with great friends and family.
Wow, I love this post, Maggie!! 🙂 Good for you for eating something tasty, eschewing the scale, AND quitting the gym! You are inspiring me to try at least one of those things, ASAP.
@Tiffany: Good luck! It can be hard at first but worth it (I think).
Great post, Maggie! If fried food agreed with my belly I’d eat way more of it! You just can’t beat the crispiness, can you?
@Krista: I love crispy 🙂
Loved this post! I really used to fear fried food, but it’s so tasty. I love that you were able to tell Bobby, “I really do eat anything now.” So empowering! Also, I agree with you that taking food pictures can seem obsessive. I always feel weird doing it (which is why I don’t do it).
It’s great that you know yourself well enough to ditch the scale and the gym. After I hit my target weight, I really can’t wait to abandon the scale. I will probably have my husband weigh me blindly for a while, just to make sure it’s not going down, but then I just want to trust myself and forget about it.
You seem really happy and connected to yourself lately 🙂 So glad to hear it 🙂
@Kim: Empowering is exactly the word!!
I think a good metamorphasis (sp) is good from time to time.
I am stoked you ditched the scale and the gym.
you move and you eat great. take a breather from all the mental ick that comes from that.
xoxox
This post was very inspirational! Great for you for living life and trusting in your body! Sometimes it’s enlightening to remember that there are billions and billions of people out there that don’t have a scale and don’t restrict food groups, and they manage to all be beautiful, healthy, and happy.
@Molly: I know! They are healthy yet not at all concerned with health. It’s a very wonderful thing.
I also love this post! I must say, I also find it easier to maintain my weight since I stopped training. I find I eat the right amount without thinking about it. And like you, I’ve started to eating ‘naughty foods’ and because they’re not forbidden anymore, I don’t binge. I don’t belong to a gym, and I’m definitely not a gym person. I have swimming only membership at my old university’s gym. I like swimming because it can be either relaxing or intense workout or anything in between. And I love running now without goals, no times, no distances, no speeds. Just me and the outdoors, getting my blood flowing:)
@Elmear Rose: I do miss swimming. I was on the swim team for a year in high school and it was so fun.
i don’t belong to a gym because it’s $$ and makes me hungry like a tiger haha. i can workout plenty in my own home for far less stress 🙂 nothing life changing this weekend but a nice relaxing time nonetheless.
@melissa: Yes!! It makes me so hungry when I work out at the gym and it screws up my ability to listen to my body.
I love this post! I haven’t stepped on the scale for AT LEAST 3 weeks and it feels amazing to not associate myself with something so meaningless anymore.
As for the fried chicken, I don’t know when I last ate that! HUGE ups for you, Maggie 🙂 My goal is to go out with my friends this week and eat whatever they are eating. It’s more fun that way.
I hate gyms too! All I do now is walk and, like you, do yoga when I feel like it. Life is so much better when you do what YOU want to do 🙂
xxx
@Katy: Friends are the thing that helps me most with being normal around food. My husband is wonderful too in that respect. I just want to eat like any other normal person so that is what I’m doing 🙂
Great changes – if it doesn’t suit you, let go of it, regardless what other people do or say. I really like that!
Ha, and think I maybe haven’t eaten fried chicken since my childhood! (I loved it back then, especially the fun to gnaw the meat from the bones. I never was a fan of the skin, though, too salty and icky. And I used to eat it without vegetables, but a lot of ketchup. :D)
My weekend was fine – thanks for asking! I also made some changes / decisions about changes and plan I’m trying to apply since yesterday. I feel well. 🙂 On Saturday I attended a dear friend’s birthday party which was lovely, she had cooked wonderfully, and people were very nice, so we sat together and talked and laughed until late at night.
@Kath: haha, I love the skin! And mmmm ketchup. Good to hear that you’re doing well 🙂 I love hanging out with people until late at night too.
Great post!! I haven’t been weighing myself lately either and it is SO freeing!! Glad you enjoyed the fried chicken–yum!
I loved this post! I’ve had a similar epiphany recently: I’m visiting friends in New York City this week. I was really stressed out about eating out a lot and
not having a gym (or access to a scale). I went so far as to
buy spanx underwear for the trip. Well, guess what? I haven’t weighed myself, but I can tell you that my pants feel a lot looser, and I’ve been eating out plenty and enjoying myself without feeling sick or binging. I really like that you’re giving up the scale until January 1st, I may have to consider doing something similar.
@Maeve: New York is a perfect place to eat amazing food and NOT feel guilty about it. My weight always goes down a bit when I stop worrying so much. Glad to hear that it’s working out for you too, and I hope you join me in the no scale thing! It’s very freeing.
Anything exciting? I got to see you today! I <3 you, just so you know 🙂
You should definitely just throw the scale away. It is evil. I know I would feel like a failure no matter what it did, up or down, it was just stressful. I'm glad you enjoyed dinner out! I"ve also eaten some out of the ordinary things for me, just because it's not that big a deal. I've had fries twice in the last week, and I actually really dislike them, but when you're hungry, what can you do? They were there and they were sustenance. I didn't die. They also forgot to not put mayo on my veg burger yesterday and I didn't send it back. I did scrape it off, but my hatred of mayo is purely a taste thing I've had my entire life. I've never even bothered to learn what it's made of. So yeah, the burger could have tasted better but my company was more important.
And I gain weight when I am working out consistently! It's part of the reason I do it.
I say blog whenever you feel like about whatever you feel like writing. That's what I do. See ya tomorrow!
@Gaby: I <3 you too!! I had so much fun today and can't wait to hang out tomorrow too.
That’s awesome! I’ve read your story and am continuously inspired by you… Kudos for making good decisions for YOU!
@Rebeca: Thanks! That is really nice to hear :):)
Go Maggie!!
Also, it kind of made me think of how I keep looking for that silver bullet that’s going to “cure” me of ED, help me maintain my “ideal” weight, etc. Maybe you’re sort of the same, too? As in, maybe Equinox isn’t right for you this month, but maybe next month it will be? I have fitness ADD and bounce around between the gym, DVDs, yoga, walking, hooping, and sitting on my butt (okay, the last isn’t fitnessy AT ALL!). 🙂 Like, I’ll decide that I’m JUST GOING TO DO YOGA!!!! and do that…for a couple of days. Then I get bored so I decide that I’m JUST GOING TO WALK!!!! and do that, and get bored…and so on…. 🙂
I don’t know what I’m trying to say anymore. I feel like I’m sort of getting preachy, but that’s not the intent. Anyway, I just really appreciate your honesty and your sense of adventure! I find myself echoing what you said to Bobby to my own husband — I really WILL eat anything now. 😀
You make me so proud! Now, how about you get rid of that scale FOREVER! 😉
Mmm, I gotta get me some fried chicken. Haven’t had that in YEARS!
“I quit the gym. Just not for me. I should have known better. All I need to be happy are my daily walks and occasional (gentle) yoga.”
This means a lot to me. I’ve been feeling a little guilty since not going to the gym and lifting weights and all… but then again, I walk for at least an hour every day, and my body LOVES walking. So maybe I should be happy with that!
It’s hard to re-train the mind sometimes.
i think it’s awesome having ditched the scale. i broke mine so i could ditch it and it’s been a month, but i had to go to the doctors and even though i asked not to be weighed, they told me it was essential. made my blood pressure go through the roof, but i’m trying not to let it get to me…it’s just a number. i need to have that tattooed to my arm!
Good for you! I think it’s all about everything in moderation with food and, as my mum always used to say, “a little of what you fancy does you good”
I find the same as you; when I pulled a calf muscle last summer and couldn’t exercise at all, I lost half a stone in three weeks! Weird… 🙂