Inspiration Mondays: Two of Three

It was around this time of year last year that I came home from a doctor's appointment with the news that my blood pressure was too high and that I was a prime candidate for the bp medication and for diabetes. That was a big, huge pile of bricks that landed on me that day. After that, I decided to make some changes, and a couple of weeks ago, I hit my goal weight.

I just got home from a weekend in the mountains, and I let myself have free reign in regards to food: I ate what I wanted, as much as I wanted, whenever I wanted. After the first day, I lay in bed with a sore stomach and vowed I wouldn't do that again. But I've been thinking:

I think one of the lessons I've learned is that food needs to satisfy at least two of the following conditions to truly be worth it for me:

1. It must taste good.
2. It must provide fuel for my body.
3. It must be shared with someone I care about.

If I can hit all three conditions, then bingo: I have found food with truly good value in it. When only one of these conditions are met, I'm usually disappointed. If I eat for comfort, I'm usually hiding away while I'm doing it, I feel terribly guilty, and I know I won't have the energy I need for later. But if it tastes good, and I am sharing with someone I care about, I can still feel ok about it, because I'm not hiding and feeling guilty. And since I'm not so busy beating myself up, I am conscientious enough to stay on track for the next day.

Case in point: the hubby's birthday cake, which is currently cooling on the kitchen counter. It's an Earl Grey Chocolate Cake, recipe courtesy of shutterbean here. It's gonna taste so good, and I will share it with someone very important with me. Calories, meh. (If you're curious, it's 214 per slice, if you cut it in 16 pieces and use fat-free yogurt, but that's beside the point... It will all be ok...)

The same could be said of every other indulgence I allow myself. Take my hobbies, for example. I knit and crochet and spin because they usually satisfy at least two the following:

1. It feels good.
2. They provide me with items I wouldn't otherwise purchase at good value (not necessarily dirt cheap, but of good quality that can be purchased with the funds I currently have).
3. It opens up a world of interesting people and beautiful ideas.

I like this two-out-of-three thinking. It might help to me weigh out the good and the bad, the difficult decisions, the minor choices. Things are rarely black and white for me... instead, they're usually a whole pile of what-if-I-shouldn't-be-doing-this-reasons. If there are at least two deeply satisfying outcomes, maybe that means I can feel ok about it.

Anyway, I'm off to my exercise class. I shall continue to ponder this two-out-of-three stuff, especially since I brought this bag home with me. Maybe I shouldn't have got it, but there's gotta be at least two good things in there...