Principles to Diet By

There are several strategies that I have implemented into my weight loss routine. I'm by no means claiming to be an expert, but I have lost more weight in the past 5 months than I have in my entire life (not that this is something to brag about, ha!) but I think some of these strategies, if not all, have played a huge part in my success. So here they are:

The Pauper Principle

Have you heard? "They" say you should eat like a King for breakfast, a Queen for lunch, and a Pauper for dinner. The idea being to get most of your calories in the first part of the day so you can burn them off and maybe something to do with jump starting your metabolism...I don't really know the science of it but I try to follow this principle. I eat between 1500-1800 calories a day. I try to eat 3/4 of them during breakfast and lunch. I still eat a lot at dinner, because that is what my body is used to, I just choose lots of veggies and other low calorie items to make up the bulk of the meal.

Throw Away the Clock Principle

I made this one up. Early on I noticed that I would get really hungry about an hour before lunch and an hour before dinner. Sometimes this would lead to excessive and unplanned snacking. Not good. One day it hit me: There is no rule that says I have to eat at certain times. I decided to move my lunch back an hour (to 11:00am) and dinner back an hour also (to 4:00pm). It worked! I was not hungry at "off" times. Plus I am done eating for the day usually by 5:00. If I get famished before bedtime I will have a low-cal snack or a cup of coffee. Usually this does not happen though. Yes, it does feel weird preparing dinner at 3:30 sometimes, but it's worth it. The point of this principle is listen to your body and plan your meals based on what it is telling you, not the clock.

Great Escape Principle

This is probably the best one of all and it is backed up by scripture so I know it works. The verse is:

No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NAS)

God will provide a way out of temptation, every time! I have found this to be true when I am praying for Him to provide those ways and am looking for them. If I am so overtaken by the sin of gluttony, then I may not be able to recognize or even notice the way of escape, but it is always there. I have two recent examples.

The other afternoon I was driving home from a long day. I was tired and hungry--not a good combo. I was about to drive by MANY fast food restaurants and my drug of choice, Taco Bueno, was one of the first ones. I had just about made up my mind to drive through when my back began hurting. I was reminded that I needed to go to the bathroom really bad. Literally at the same time my low fuel light came on and started beeping. I knew what was happening, but just to seal the deal, I looked up and saw a gas station with the angelic SUBWAY sign attached to it as well as a sign advertising clean bathrooms. Without thinking I quickly took God up on His offer and pulled in. I got to pee, fill up, and get a healthy meal all at once.

Another day last week I was at my mother's house. For some reason, when I walk into her house there is a Pavlovian phenomenon that happens and I immediately begin looking for chocolate or chicken fried steak in the fridge. This particular day there happened to be 3 chocolate chip cookies in the freezer. Once the kids went to the back of the house, against my better judgement I got out one of the cookies and stuck it into the microwave. Ding, ding! It was ready. I was just opening my mouth to enjoy the first bite of scrumptious deliciousness when my son tapped me on the shoulder, "Mommy, I want one." Because I had been asking God to make these escape routes clear I immediately knew this was what was happening. I handed over the cookie with a smile and began praising My Deliverer.

Do you think these are coincidences? I'm sorry but they're not. You'll never be able to convince me otherwise. I encourage you to ask God to help you avoid and resist temptation. Ask Him to help you recognize "the way out." These were just two examples from the past week--He has done it WAY too many times for me to deny.

Okay, so those are my principles to "DIET" by. What are yours?