After years of counting calories, or macros, or measuring, swapping, points, all. the. things. it feels so free, yet so strange to let all of that go. It’s been a huge mind (and habit) shift for me since turning to a whole foods, plant-based (WFPB) lifestyle.
I’m awake early today, just before 4am. Why might you ask? Because yesterday I was so busy I didn’t take in enough calories and I was feeling a bit hungry.
That whole sentence feels foreign to me. I’m never calorie deficient (because I was a grazer — all day, every day, and into the night), and because of that I am not used to my body signaling me to eat. For the most part, and for most of my life, I just over road any signals my body would have wanted to give me by constantly filling my body with calories. And not usually the healthy kind.
Since changing over to WFPB, trust me, it’s not because I’m not eating enough variety, or even enough food. My food is more colorful, more appetizing, more appealing to all my senses and more satiating than anything I’ve eaten before. Yesterday was just a busy day and I ate smaller portions and got back to it. And I didn’t snack, because I truly wasn’t food-focused.
I’ve always been a bit obsessed with eating. And I’ve always had some kind of scarcity mentality around it. Like I was going to run out and not be able to replenish my pantry. And let me tell you, never once have I had to worry about where my next meal is coming from.
My parents always kept food stocked and nothing was off-limits to us. I’ve always been well employed and able to provide for myself. I literally don’t know where the fear comes from, but for most of my life I’ve eaten every meal like it could most certainly be my last.
And so tracking what I eat when I’m trying to be “good” always seemed…comforting. Until it wasn’t. I’d track and do well for a few days, weeks or months and then I’d fall right off the “healthy” eating wagon and it would send me into a spiral of guilt and shame and why not throw in the towel and just feed my desire for salty, fat and sugar.
This feels different.
With WFPB eating, there is no tracking. It’s more of a fun game of how many colors can I get on my plate for one meal. Dr. B in “Fiber Fueled” calls it a game of plant points.
It doesn’t matter how many calories are on the plate, what the portion size is (as long as it is satisfying), just that there is a fun variety of colors and textures and that you feel comfortably full when you walk away. If I get hungry later but it’s not really time for the next meal, I grab a snack (carrots and hummus or a granola bar or maybe some cashews and an apple).
Falling off the wagon in WFPB I guess would mean eating animal protein in some form and I literally don’t crave that at all. And I don’t miss processed salty/cheesy foods anymore either. If I do I guess I’ll have some Doritos, which is fine, but somehow I don’t think it’ll taste the way I remember it. The point there is, there’s no guilt.
Because it’s not about what I can’t have, but what I can.
Tonight I decided to have a little adventure in the kitchen. In one of my Forks Over Knives magazines there is a 5-day meal plan. One of the recipes was for “Spicy Indian Chili”. Let’s be honest. I’m a wimp when it comes to spicy foods. I’m a “zero” in the spice scale at Thai restaurants. Maybe a “1” if I’m feeling saucy. But, I decided to try.
The recipe contains lentils, bell peppers, onion, jalapeno pepper, chickpeas, fire-roasted tomatoes (my new favorite), vegetable broth, curry, cayenne and cinnamon. (That’s right, I left the cayenne out)…and soon my kitchen smelled heavenly.
The recipe took a little longer than it might have had I pre-prepared the lentils, but all in all it was about 40 minutes to done. And oh was it worth it.
It’s the first time in a long time my dish looked just like the picture in the magazine. Complete with a side of colorful quinoa.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but it could have used a little kick of cayenne! It was delightful and light and full of flavor, but I actually missed a little kick. Next time.
I could have had two helpings for sure, but I had a late night call with Japan I needed to prep for and I put everything away, went about my call, watched a little TV and went to bed after a very full day. Just not enough calories yesterday.
And I’m not panicked about it.
I don’t feel the need to overdue it today because of yesterday. I still feel healthy and balanced and calm about things. And I’m starting to think all those “granola-types” are on to something.
And it looks like I may just be a convert.
Shrinking Shay 