Zeffryn - speaking of "compulsive looker" at the grocery store....I find myself looking at what people are buying and scolding them in my head for buying this with sugar...or potato chips or whatever. Especially when I look at what is in my cart - spinach, vegetables, unsalted soy nuts, light/fit yogurt, eggs, and skim milk, etc etc.

I feel especially bad when people are buying all the junk for their children...mostly feeling bad for the children since they have to eat what their parents buy for them.

Anyways....time to shower after my run TO the gym, washboard abs class at the gym, walk to the bike shop to pick up my bike, and my bike ride back up the hill to my house... have a great night everyone!

I sort of went through a "compulsive looker" phase around the time I first started seeing real results of my new and improved way of eating. Now I've gone into the "show off - look at me, I'm such a healthy shopper" phase

I'm like some kind of raving spokesmodel or something - positioning my fresh pineapple, spinach, raw almonds, and tomatoes just so, and commenting just a little too loudly to DH about how yummy the pineapple is going to be mixed with that fresh coconut and organic yogurt, and "look at the great price on unsweetened frozen blueberries", and yada, yada, yada. I've got to be the most annoying woman in the store. Dunno why DH doesn't just tell me to shut the up sometimes. Have no idea what has come over me, I just can't seem to help myself. Hope it passes soon, I'm starting to get on my own nerves .

yoyo- I don't really gloat as much as I just like to see what trends are. I do realize that more often than not, we have one of the healthier carts in line. Fresh produce is a luxury to a lot of people....to us as well, but we're willing to make cuts here and there to be able to afford food in today's society. We might not have the newest this or the best that, but we set our priorities to what is most important to us and the way we see it, technology is not more important than our son's and our families general health.

*as DH walks in the door with a bag full of crap from best buy*

what can I say...we're not always perfect.

I never said I eat "loads of food with artificial sweetener." You might want to re-read my post, since you quoted it and all.

I also stated that I try to avoid HFCS and aspartame. Try. I'm addicted to diet soda and have been decreasing my consumption, choosing to drink water instead. But for the most part, when I'm eating healthy and OP, (which is not always, I have my horrible screwups), I try to avoid things like that.

And stevia is a natural, not artificial, sweetener.

*clears throat*

now, now.

I'm sorry you misunderstood me. I wasn't referring to you, but rather thinking of many dieters I know or have known in the past. I only quoted you because you mentioned both HFCS and artificial sweetener in the same post. I can see how you thought I was talking about you!

I confess that there are many "fake" foods I love (but try not to eat). If only puffy Chee-toes were healthy....

Oh my... I've never heard of people looking into other people's cart before this thread! Guess I dont get out much. I'll notice a cart that has nothing but loads of one or two items. You never know what they're buying it for and I dont want to worry about trying to figure it out! I'm worried about getting in and out fast! I hate grocery shopping!

Gotcha- I see where you're coming from. I shouldn't have been testy even though I misunderstood.

Whenever I go off plan, I'm sure my little mini michelina egg rolls are full of nasty stuff, HFCS and a ton of chemicals and everything else. Sometimes stuff with that crap just tastes so good even when we want to avoid it. It's hard especially since Americans (I can't speak for other countries) are so used to eating processed things full of stuff like that. Even that powdery 'cheese' on cheetos tastes delicious and god knows what's in it.. now you've got me craving cheetos.

Speaking of grocery carts, I would have been embarrassed yesterday if anyone had looked in mine. I was shopping for my son, who's in a college dorm. I had blue Gatorade, EasyMac, saltines, Pringles...all kinds of crap. Of course I also got some healthy things for him like yogurt, string cheese, etc.

But just having that stuff in my cart made me feel guilty.

Ah, the life of a college student living in a dorm. It's amazing how creative one gets when they only have a microwave to cook with.

Eh, I don't worry about what other people think of my grocery cart. Along with my loads of vegetables and soy crumbles, I have chips and other junk food for dh and the kids, sugary cereal (yes, I am a terrible mother who allows her kids to eat Cocoa Krispies), and the occasional box of Pop Tarts!

in moderation, none of those things are death sentences.

I'm talking about people whose carts are filled with nothing BUT junkfood.