great post, ennay. i love food and know that as much as it is just fuel for my body...it's delicious. food can be so many things, why should i just limit it to fuel? everything in moderation
I half-subscribe to the food is fuel theory. I know that if I've got a heavy gym and training day then I need more fuel, but that I also need good quality fuel. If I eat that amount of fuel in Mars Bars, then I will not be able to get through the day. This became completely apparent to me just before the wedding when I was cutting down to 1200kcals a day and doing a heavy weights workout, then 2 hours kickboxing. I almost passed out!
I also prescribe to the theory that yes, food can be a treat. If you haven't had a pudding in a long time, have a pudding. I'm currently hankering after a chocolate brownie, ice cream and marshmallow confection that I know they do at a restaurant near home, but I also know that after last weekend I can't "afford" to make the decision to eat it because it will set me back in my health and fitness goals.
I do love eating out, and I love going to places that serve good posh food rather than a place that serves "and chips". I also find that having food because you "deserve it" is a good way to look at treats. But I don't mean you should have it because you've had a rough day at the office, but because you've earned it by running so fast and so hard and so long and you can afford to make that decision, you just have to change the reasons! Although, often when I try to reward myself for an extra-special exercise effort, like a race or a tournament or something, the exercise kinda negates the need for the treat. I feel that even though I ran a good race I know how many calories I burned off and I'd rather they showed up on the scale rather than eating cake to make sure they don't!
I am the sole "Food is Yummy" individual in my "Food is Fuel" household! I really just recently realized this! I think I was so into my Food Yummyworld that I actually THOUGHT that I was baking those oatmeal-raisin cookies for MY FAMILY!!! Sure they would enjoy them, but they would have a COUPLE; I would eat A COUPLE DOZEN!!!! Of course that was after I had already devoured a batch of DOUGH before even baking the darn things!
I am TRYING to gain insight into how a "Food is Fuel" individual operates. From what I can tell, it goes something like this: Wake up. Put on running clothes. Eat a breakfast bar, and put two more in pocket. Hydrate with 1/2 bottle of water. Stretch. Head out the door for a 10 mile "warm-up". Return. Stretch. Shower and "have protein" (chicken breast or peanut better sandwich, strip cheese, more water). Relax and stretch some more. "Have some carbs." Plan "long run" for later. Begin preparing lunch (salad, vegetables, water). Have a "protein drink" (Carnation Instant Breakfast). Eat lunch. Rest and drink more water. More stretching. Dress for long run. Fill water bottles and put a couple energy bars in pockets for later. Do "long run" of 20 miles. Stretch. Hydrate. Stretch. Shower and have more protein (turkey with salad or vegetables, beans, water). Rest. Relax. Have more carbs (cereal with milk and Carnation Instant Breakfast). Stretch. Sleep.
Repeat.
I think the "Food as Fuel" person's head is in a very different place because THEIR primary motivation is to increase their effectiveness of their workout which will increase the effectiveness of their overall PERFORMANCE.
My son has found that his fiancee's gluten-free diet actually helps him to feel better and able to run withour stomach cramping! He's not allergic to wheat but has found that eliminating at least SOME wheat increases his overall performance. Neither of them have had carbonated drinks in over five years because carbonation hampers oxygen to the lungs as you run longer distances. The "food for Fuel" person is trying to become the best athlete they can be. Anything that interferes with that is unacceptable.
I will never BE this, but I am beginning to RESPECT it.
Can't it be both? Can't we think of it as food as fuel AND as long as we HAVE to eat, why not enjoy it?
Hmmm, maybe because every time we eat we're not necessarily using it for fuel. I think I may have answered my own question. But I still am going to think of it both ways.
Funny this got posted now, I was just reading (& listening to a podcast) from Slate.com about Emily Yoffe's attempt at the starvation diet ( http://www.slate.com/id/2158975/ ) where she encountered other people who treats food as nothing more than "an Excel spreadsheet–each mouthful tracked for its calorie, vitamin, and mineral content" so, yes, there are people out there who treats food strictly as fuel.
Me, personally? I still take great pleasures in the food & the act of eating --but now am much more aware of food as fuel too and that my gas tank of energy is beyond full, and while I have no "forbidden foods" (just yesterday I had a margarita & some insanely delish hot dog & fries with aioli), I am aware that I can't just eat anything I feel like and think that I won't get the consequences of that.
I think separating food and enjoyment, comfort and other emotions is what has allowed me to be successful in maintaining a 200+ pound weight loss for 30 years. We don't tell an alcoholic to go have a drink because he has been good and not had one for a week or because he is out with his wife and wants to extend the evening. I enjoy social occasions because I like being with people, not for the food they offer. I also found that once I got off the sugar, junk food, desserts, fast food merry go round the stuff tastes terrible to me and I have no desire for it. I read many books on the relationship between food and eating and to this day I keep a journal, record every bite taste and lick and also how I felt when I was eating. It keeps me on the straight and narrow.
Good luck to all of you in working out the best plan for yourself.
