When I decided to make a drastic dietary change in my life, I knew I didn’t want to be on a “diet”.  I wanted to make a lifestyle change that would last forever.  I LOVE to eat.  I go to bed thinking about breakfast and wake up looking forward to all the wonderful things that I am going to eat during the day.

I have given myself permission to enjoy food.  

Being able enjoy a special meal with friends and family or have a piece of birthday cake at a party is all part of enjoying life.  I allow myself to go on vacation and fully enjoy foods at restaurants that I will not be visiting again for a long time (or possibly ever). It makes the whole balanced healthy diet attainable for a lifetime, not just to reach a specific goal.  I don’t want what I don’t allow myself to eat to hold me back from living my life.

Once again it is all about BALANCE.

My diet is balanced and not overly restrictive.  It doesn’t just consist of  spinach, kale, and celery. (although, I do enjoy eating those things.)  Every once in a while I will let myself have a bowl of ice cream or M&M Chocolate Chip cookies.  I enjoy every spoonful and every bite, and I do not make myself feel bad about it.  The key is to not eat the entire pint of ice cream or the whole plate of cookies.

Eating healthy is not a chore, it takes thought and preparation, but it isn’t a chore.

Since reaching my final goal weight I follow the 80/20% rule. Eighty percent of what I eat is healthy, and I let myself splurge the other 20% of the time.

I love to eat and I love to exercise, but all diet and no exercise is not right, just as all exercise and not eating a healthy diet is also not best.

Trust me I have tried to only exercise and not eat healthy! For 5 years I diligently worked out so hard, 5 days a week, 1- 1.5 hours each day.  During those 5 years I sweat a lot, I got a lot stronger, and I always ate whatever I wanted to. It wasn’t until I improved my diet that I finally started to feel amazing and see all the awesome results I had been trying to achieve with exercise only.

Giving myself permission to enjoy the food I eat and not make myself feel bad about indulging once in a while has helped me to be successful in the long run…being truly healthy is a marathon, not a 500 meter race.

What about you?  Have you been on a journey from flab to FAB?  Have you made any major lifestyle and diet changes? What do you do to keep yourself on track and accountable?

If you would like to read more about my journey from flab to FAB, you can do so by clicking HERE.

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