Clean off Your Plate!

Days 18 and 19

When I was a wee lad the policy at my house was that you couldn’t leave the table unless you finished everything on your plate. Needless to say, this led to many long hours at the dining room table by myself and turned me into an expert food smuggler.

I was a picky eater as a kid and wouldn’t finish what was on my plate because I either didn’t like it or I was too full. It instilled a lifelong sense of guilt in me if I didn’t consume everything served to me at mealtime. Looking at my eating habits recently has led me to believe this is actually an unhealthy eating habit.

When full you don’t have to eat the rest. Stop when you feel full and you won’t overeat. It’s just that simple. Wrap up what you have left over and save it for another meal. Or better yet, don’t take more than what you think you can eat in one sitting and think carefully when you decide how much of a portion to take.

Eating out? Ask for a doggie bag. I love doggie bags—especially if I am currently living someplace that tends to have people begging on the streets. On more than one occasion I’ve been asked for money by homeless people when coming from eating out. If I have a doggie bag with me in this situation it is theirs. They are usually very grateful and really, if you have more than enough and they have none then the logical thing is to give them your leftover slice of pizza instead of nothing at all.

Talk to you soon.

Oh $#*%! I Had Cake!

Days 16 and 17

Tonight I had some yummy birthday cake at my youngest niece’s birthday party.

Mmmmm….cake.

Are you saying, “Jason, I thought you were supposed to be eating healthier?”

Yeah, I know it’s not the healthiest thing one could eat but it wasn’t a cake of meat. Just because one is eating healthier doesn’t mean that they can’t indulge in a celebratory treat once in a while. Just keep it in moderation folks and don’t go pigging out on it every day.

Happy Birthday Sophie!

Talk to you soon.

Is it Wrong to Eat Meat?

Day 9

Just over a week and I am still meatless and feeling good. I thank all the readers for their supportive comments on Facebook and in the blog itself.

Of course there are also the friends and people that are teasing and tempting me with meat products. They describe their steak dinners to me or promise to serve me succulent prime rib once my meatless year ends. They aren’t being malicious they just are having a little bit of fun while expressing that they love meat.

That’s great because I love meat too! I feel better physically not having it but I have nothing against the taste of it or the people that eat it. I’m not doing it to make a political point either. While I do think there are more humane ways the beef and poultry industries could treat their livestock, I don’t think the killing and consumption of animals is necessarily evil.

I have been told, “We have incisors for a reason” and there is such a thing as a food chain. Yeah, I can buy into all that.

I’m just doing this to see how it improves my health folks. So far so good.

In short, I believe carnivores and vegetarians have good reasons for choosing what they eat. A individual has the right to choose what they put on their plate.

However, trying something different once in a while never hurts. Just a thought.

Talk to you soon.