My Weight Loss Journey - Part II
Posted by
Tselani
in Food and Eating, chef tse, losing weight, weight loss, weight loss journey
A little bit of history before my story begins....
Growing up, my mom did her best to feed us well. We ate organic vegetables, grew a lot of our produce, ate whole grains, chose chicken and fish over meat, etc. There wasn't a lot of candy, junk food or processed food in the house. When I would go to my dad's for the weekend however, I could eat what ever I wanted - the sky was the limit. And when having a sleep over with friends, eating mac and cheese out of a box and Doritos was a treat. I couldn't understand why my mom wouldn't let me have the same things at home.
As a result, I rebelled. Not in a big way mind you, but enough to make a difference. I would sneak candy bars and hide chips in my closet. When I went away to college and then lived on my own, guess what I ate? Instead of making healthy choices, I wanted what I couldn't have as a kid - processed food. And I ate a lot of it. I also gained a significant amount of weight. And as a young adult, it kept going up - between 5 and 10 pounds a year. At the time, it didn't seem like a lot. In fact, I thought it was quite normal.
I am an emotional eater. It's taken me a long time to admit that. When I was happy, I ate. When I was sad, I ate. Time to celebrate? Let's eat. Food was a comfort. It helped me feel full and safe.
And my weight made me feel protected as well. But as a 20-something year old, that's a double edged sword. On one hand, I didn't feel pretty (therefore no boyfriends) because I was fat. On the other, I felt like extra pounds protected me from getting hit on by jerks at the bar.
Fast forward 20 years, and my cooking and eating has come full circle. Although I don't eat exactly the same way my mom fed me growing up, I've established my own set of culinary guidelines. As a chef and someone who constantly works with food, I like to eat well. I'm not interested in eating food that tastes like cardboard. I always keep that in mind when develop recipes and videos for this site.
So that's just a brief glimpse of my food history. It helps set the stage for the lessons I've learned and the changes I've made. I'll post the most important lesson this weekend, so stay tuned!
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Reader Comments (2)
As someone who's always been underweight, I can empathize with so many of the same struggles as overweight people. The only difference is, most people don't realize that underweight people have those struggles. They think, "You're underweight? Just east more!" I've actually had people say, "Come over to my house, I'll fatten you up in no time."
Keep up the great writing.