A friend was listening to a podcast because she thought that a motivational speaker might help her overcome her lack of motivation when it comes to certain parts of her life. She found a part that was very exciting to her and couldn't wait to share it with me. I thought it was a grand idea that would work in many areas of life, even weight loss. The guy says to forget goals. Gradually create a system for each thing you want to do. Make small changes to the system until it works for you. Consistently focus on the system and positive changes will come.

This makes sense. I built systems when I worked. I tried to buy basic pieces of wardrobe in certain colors that would work together with each other then buy coordinating pops of color. I hung my clothes with pants together, skirts together, blouses together so I could find thing quickly in the morning. I would turn the dishwasher on every night after dinner and every morning while my coffee was brewing I would quickly put the dishes away so that we were ready to fill it with our dishes all day to keep them out of the sink. I had a system for showering, drying/styling my hair, putting on makeup, dressing so that I could get to work quickly. I bought a clothes sorter years ago because I HATED (still do, still use one) sorting through smelly, dirty clothes. I could throw one section in the washer every morning and turn it on in less than 3 minutes. I could throw them in the dryer as soon as I got home and have time to change and transition from my workday before I needed to fold or hang them, which took only 5 minutes or so out of my day as opposed to taking a whole day to do all the laundry and leaving it laying everywhere making me feel awful if someone dropped by (which was big here I learned when we moved her). I learned to sort the mail when it came in so that all the bills were in one place divided by what week in the month they had to be paid so that it only took minutes to sit down and do the actual paying. I would prep tomorrow night's chicken after dinner tonight so that I only had to put it into the oven the next night. I always had a salad and some rice or pasta in my refrigerator that I had prepared ahead while cooking something else so that I had quick meals. I know how to put systems in place. I think I could do this with food.

The other thing was podcast that I listened to from a very successful weight loss coach. She was talking about binge eating and over-snacking and telling people to set up times that they can eat each meal and one snack per day and get in the habit of eating only during those times. Have a list of snacks and only eat ONE thing off the list, no deviation.

It really resonated with me because for a few nights I have wished that my husband would just go to bed so I can have ________ (it's always something different). Luckily, he has gone to bed so late each night that the craving has passed, or I have just given up, but it bothers me that after years of not having these thoughts or sneaking around to eat, thinking they were gone for good, they are back. I hope that I can nip them in the bud.

It hit me that it sounds as if she is doing the same thing: building a system and tweaking it until it works, which can become a habit that would get rid of some of the crazy juggling acts and other things I do with food?

What if there was a grocery list that had only healthy items on it and I could check off the ones I wanted to buy this week and not even look at the other things that are there?

What if every meal was planned around 2 vegetable portions, one lean protein portion, one lower glycemic carb, and one fat portion? Every time.

What if all snack choices were on a list and I buy only enough for one serving per day?

What if none of the things that I crave are in the house, but I could plan and have one portion occasionally?

I can see both rigidity and freedom in those ideas, but most of all, I can see how it could become a habit and take my mind off food. I find that cravings only come when I think of food.

I remember reading a story once about an author who only eats steak and eggs for every meal when he is writing. I can't say that I think much of the nutritional value of his diet, but he reasons that he likes steak and eggs enough to have them every meal and not get sick of them. His biggest reason was that when he eats the same thing every day, he doesn't end up thinking about it. It becomes rote, something he just stops and partakes, then goes back to work. He said that when exposed to a varied menu, it often caused writing slowdowns or blocks because, out of the blue, he would wonder what was for lunch or dinner today, and it would cause him to get sidetracked and go down a rabbit hole and lose his train of thought. He had a system, as many authors do, a system that worked because he could do it without thinking, so that it became a habit in the background, not something vying for attention. Oh, for food to be in the background only.

So, I think I am going to devise a food system that works for me that can hopefully help me build better food habits, be more nutritious, and hopefully lose some weight. I acknowledge that when certain emotions build up that I have turned to food for years I can't expcet to not still do that unless I first build a system for taking better care of my emotional needs as they happen so that they don't build so and to also have other systems to deal with those things that does not involve food and that will take some thinking and work because I have never ventured into that area of my life before.

Any thoughts and ideas from you ladies will be most welcome.