Advice

Do we believe that other people care what we eat? And if we do, do we believe that what they think matters? Even my parents recognized my sister's and my rights to establish a fair boundary in the back-seat. They might have quibbled with our techniques, but no one questioned our rights to boundaries. The same should be true of our eating. It is a uniquely personal decision, effecting no one else directly and only a limited number of people in our lives even indirectly. Why not allow ourselves the dignity of establishing a few no trespassing signs?

Low carbing can be very lonely. We low carbers are not part of the mainstream of society (yet), and finding support and information can be pretty tough. I am convinced that one of the reasons Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig have been around so long and have been so successful as businesses is because they offer real, physical places to go to and real people to talk with.

Well, the holidays are over, and for many of us, that means "getting back on track" with our eating. Maybe it was that fancy dessert at the in-laws', or maybe it was something savory and nibbly at the office holiday party that led you to eat too many carbohydrates, but now it's the new year, and you're recommitting to a new you.

Have you ever tried to refold a roadmap? I have. It's not pretty. Two hundred miles from home, toddler yelling, and dear husband giving me the look. What made me think that a road trip across country with a 2-year-old was a good idea? My inability to refold this innocuous little piece of paper seemed to be the straw to my camel. I pushed it to the floor, determined to deal with it later.

At age 15 and weighing 160 pounds, I thought I was the most humongous girl God had put on the face of the planet, but you know what? I ran across a picture of myself recently and realized that I if could had lost 20 or 30 pounds and grown a little taller, I would have been okay. I became the quintessential example of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

In the wake of September 11th, many of us are thinking about disaster preparations, things we can do to prepare ourselves for the unforeseen. Foremost in our minds at this time are terrorist attacks, of course, but there are other kinds of disasters, too. Many of us live in areas that are prone to earthquakes, forest fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, blizzards, or lengthy power outages.

Suddenly getting into those reference jeans doesn't seem quite so important anymore, does it? The tragic events of September 11th have shifted all our priorities, and looking good isn't as high up on the list as it used to be. Now we have more important things to think about. But that doesn't mean than staying on plan isn't still important.

Atkins products are specifically formulated to minimize the impact of carbohydrates on a person's blood sugar level because elevated blood sugar and the resulting excess insulin production can inhibit weight loss, weight management and increase the risk of disease and illness.

Rice and Noodles are a large part of basic Japanese cuisine. As our way of eating precludes eating both products, some Japanese recipes can be quite hard to convert. Fortunately, the range of Japanese dishes is so large that we can find quite a wide variety that suit us.

You can't always get what you want. And, it seems to me, that even if you try, sometimes you can't get what you need, Mick Jagger's opinion not withstanding.