Real Comfort Is Not From Food
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
I had a chat with a friend about those annoying people and situations at work. The suggestion was made to eat the some of my favorite foods. Did I really need to give myself a reason to eat my favorite foods? Not really. I can eat them when I'm happy, when I'm sad, when I'm bored and they're perfect for celebrating. Tops on my list of favorite food is ice cream and potatoes. I do have healthy food somewhere on my list of favorite food, however, I have been cutting down on sugar and carbs. Basically, I've been cutting these two things out. I haven't really been craving them, but a little suggestion enabled me to give myself permission to eat them.
I don't really know if these are simply my favorite things are they really qualify as comfort foods. People eat what they eat for different reasons. Studies suggest that happy memories may trump taste in comfort food choices. I do think taste and good memories play a role in both for me. I've always liked ice cream. Sometimes, I'm an ice cream addict with an addiction under control. No one particular ice memory sticks out. On the other hand, I do remember my grandmother making potatoes for me when we were visiting. I love boiled potatoes, mashed potatoes, baked potatoes and french fries. I think I could get them all on any one visit.
So, what did I do? By the time I decided to get some food, I didn't have enough time to cook. I was hungry. Not a good plan. I did a drive by and I hit up Wendy's. I ordered french fries, small frosty and nuggets. I really didn't want to go overboard with my little treat. While I didn't know the calorie count of my meal when I purchased it, I did look it up online.
Large Fries 184
Small Frosty 227
5 pc Nuggets 75
Total Calories 486
I was surprised that it was only 486 calories. I really didn't take me off track. I did have a few other calories. I had some sugar free Jello with some sugar free whip cream. My whole meal was below 550 calories. Not too bad calorie-wise. As soon as I finished, I wanted more. That thought lead me to my Jello. Had I cooked or brought a contained of ice cream into my house, I would have eaten so much more. I truly wanted more. I wasn't hungry, I just wanted more. I don't think the food really brought me comfort. While it was tasty, it just wasn't a ton of food. I'm working on portion control and this instance, fast food helped with that fact.
Another way to make better food choices is to know the nutrition value of what you are eating before you eat. A Cornell study of mood-food selection found that when people were sad and they knew the calories of what they were about to eat, they ate less than people who were in a happy mood. That is powerful stuff. We can stop sadness from causing weight gain.
I'd also suggest to recognize the source of true comfort. When we can focus outside of ourselves, we can stop mindless eating. We can be thankful for the blessings we have even when things are not all perfect. If we put our goal as our vision, we can work to make steps toward it.
While my eating was a deliberate and planned choice, it did let me know that the food itself wasn't really comforting. I did enjoy eating it, for the few moments it passed my lips. I think my plan to focus on my blessings is a much better strategy.
Blessings of my fast food experience:
I had a chat with a friend about those annoying people and situations at work. The suggestion was made to eat the some of my favorite foods. Did I really need to give myself a reason to eat my favorite foods? Not really. I can eat them when I'm happy, when I'm sad, when I'm bored and they're perfect for celebrating. Tops on my list of favorite food is ice cream and potatoes. I do have healthy food somewhere on my list of favorite food, however, I have been cutting down on sugar and carbs. Basically, I've been cutting these two things out. I haven't really been craving them, but a little suggestion enabled me to give myself permission to eat them.
I don't really know if these are simply my favorite things are they really qualify as comfort foods. People eat what they eat for different reasons. Studies suggest that happy memories may trump taste in comfort food choices. I do think taste and good memories play a role in both for me. I've always liked ice cream. Sometimes, I'm an ice cream addict with an addiction under control. No one particular ice memory sticks out. On the other hand, I do remember my grandmother making potatoes for me when we were visiting. I love boiled potatoes, mashed potatoes, baked potatoes and french fries. I think I could get them all on any one visit.
So, what did I do? By the time I decided to get some food, I didn't have enough time to cook. I was hungry. Not a good plan. I did a drive by and I hit up Wendy's. I ordered french fries, small frosty and nuggets. I really didn't want to go overboard with my little treat. While I didn't know the calorie count of my meal when I purchased it, I did look it up online.
Large Fries 184
Small Frosty 227
5 pc Nuggets 75
Total Calories 486
I was surprised that it was only 486 calories. I really didn't take me off track. I did have a few other calories. I had some sugar free Jello with some sugar free whip cream. My whole meal was below 550 calories. Not too bad calorie-wise. As soon as I finished, I wanted more. That thought lead me to my Jello. Had I cooked or brought a contained of ice cream into my house, I would have eaten so much more. I truly wanted more. I wasn't hungry, I just wanted more. I don't think the food really brought me comfort. While it was tasty, it just wasn't a ton of food. I'm working on portion control and this instance, fast food helped with that fact.
Another way to make better food choices is to know the nutrition value of what you are eating before you eat. A Cornell study of mood-food selection found that when people were sad and they knew the calories of what they were about to eat, they ate less than people who were in a happy mood. That is powerful stuff. We can stop sadness from causing weight gain.
I'd also suggest to recognize the source of true comfort. When we can focus outside of ourselves, we can stop mindless eating. We can be thankful for the blessings we have even when things are not all perfect. If we put our goal as our vision, we can work to make steps toward it.
While my eating was a deliberate and planned choice, it did let me know that the food itself wasn't really comforting. I did enjoy eating it, for the few moments it passed my lips. I think my plan to focus on my blessings is a much better strategy.
Blessings of my fast food experience:
- I made reasonable food selections
- I had the money to purchase the food
- I ate at home, eliminating my habit of seconds
- I enjoyed my food
- I regained my focus on my goals
- I thanked God for my blessings
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