Off the wagon...

This post is dedicated to my friend who called this morning to tell me that she “fell off the wagon” this morning. First of all, you are doing AWESOME!!! Don’t let one bad morning frustrate you. Get back on the “wagon” and keep going! I have had that problem before. I have a bad morning and I figure,”Oh well, my day (or week) is shot anyway. I might as well enjoy myself.” Don’t do it! So you had a bad morning. Keep going! What do we do? We swiiiim, swiiiim....

So now back to my theory on keeping the house stocked with “diet friendly” snacks in the house. Yes, they cost more....up front. But I really believe that in the long run, they pay for themselves not so much in monetary ways but in physical well being.

I figured it out and I probably spend about $50 a month on diet snacks, Healthy Choice meals, etc. BUT, that $50 spent is in place of food that I would be eating (and therefore buying) anyway. Plus, being on a “diet” (uh, I mean, lifestyle change) I am actually eating less than I would before anyway. So being generous, I figure I would have spent AT LEAST $25 on the food I would be eating anyway in place of the diet foods I buy.

Okay, so now we’re down to $25 a month (at most) that I spend in addition to my normal food budget to have diet snacks around. That adds up to $300 a year. How many thousands of dollars am I saving on health care costs down the road that result from my being overweight/obese? Hard to say. Maybe nothing. But maybe....lots. I would rather not take the chance.

Let me give an example of how the little snacks can be helpful. The other day, I bought some Blue Bunny fudge bars that are actually 0 points (or 1 point if I eat 2). So if I really get crazy and go on a binge and eat, let’s say 10 fudge bars...guess what? I’ve only eaten 5 points! That chocolate chip cookie that just came out of the oven and looks so tantalizing costs that much by itself!

Oh, but wait! Weight Watchers has cookies that are one point a piece. So if I really have to have a cookie, I grab one of those instead of the 5 point cookie that just came out of my oven. They even have chocolate chip ones (though I wouldn’t highly recommend them, they’re alright but not the best). I WOULD recommend the peanut butter cookies. They are actually quite good, especially dipped in a glass of skim milk (total 3 points for the snack). Even with the milk, they’re still better than one “normal” cookie. And I get the milk which is more filling.

So I guess what I am saying is that the “cost” of these snacks is all relative. I may feel like they’re pinching my budget now, but I also think they are so worth it.