Transition is Tough

Another big adjustment...

I have made several drastic changes in the way I eat over the past several years in the name of obtaining optimum health.  I am constantly researching and discovering new things - hence the drastic changes.

And every time, without fail - I snap.  Yes, that's right, The Healthy Hoff loses it.  I'm just like you guys, there's nothing special about me.  To others, I may make living healthy look effortless, but at times I too struggle.

When I decided to eliminate red meat from my diet about seven years ago, no big deal.  Red meat always made me sick - lethargic, bloated and sleepy.  Once I made the connection that it was the meat causing these uncomfortable reactions, I kicked it to the curb without hesitation or regret.  That would be the last of my "easy" transitions.

I am an all or nothing girl, a bull in a china shop - in other words, get the hell out of my way, because I'm coming through!  Every time I make a change in my diet (I only do so if I believe in it 100%), I conduct a full kitchen sweep and clear the house of any offending violators.  Consequently, this means hitting the store to find suitable replacements and this is where my struggles begin...

The breaking point...

I hit the grocery store last night to stock up for the week.  An all too familiar scene played out - I'm not proud of it, but it proves I'm only human.  Having recently given up eating or cooking with oil, I have been struggling to find processed convenience foods containing no oil.  Guess what, nearly impossible.  (I hear you!  Why don't you just give up processed foods? That's a transition for another day.)  And like all my drastic changes before, I lost my temper.  It wasn't helping that I was surrounded by people stocking up for Labor Day parties - armed with overflowing carts of hamburgers, hot dogs, chips and ice cream.  Everything I won't be having this weekend, but oh so want.  So, after diligently reading label after label and left with a nearly empty cart, I threw a temper tantrum.  I did the whole: I hate my life!  Why do I have to live this way!  Look at everyone else being happy!  WTF!  (Word to the wise, if you see me in the grocery store during one of these transitional periods, run the other way.)

And then I came back down to reality.  I make these changes so I can be healthy now and don't wind up dealing with chronic diseases down the road.  A lot of people challenge my eating preferences with, "Don't you want to enjoy your life now?"  Hell yeah, but now and in the future.  I don't want to be stricken at the end with illness - bedridden, hospitalized and a burden to others - unable to do the things I want.  I want to go out the way I came in - like a freight train!

A little background...

My transitions have included: going Vegetarian, then Flexitarian, then Prescetarian, then cutting out saturated fat, then going Vegan and now Vegan and oil-free.  Every one of these transitions have met with some type of hardship, but every time I have figured it out and life goes back to running smoothly with my new found insights.  So while I may be struggling now with the oil-free thing, I know with perseverance I will figure this out as well and life will once again return to normal - my new normal.

In the end...

Is all this frustration, anger and sacrifice worth it?  You bet your ass it is.  I have chosen to be an active player in my health and overall life.  I won't sit on the side lines and hope for the best.  I will not bury my head in the sand and pretend if I don't know about it, it won't happen to me.  I take responsibility for my health every day of my life - from eating to exercise to stress reduction and I won't stop just because it gets a little hard sometimes.

So to all of you out there struggling to make small or big changes in your life.  Take solace that you are not alone and this too shall pass.  You'll figure it out and look back and wonder what the hell were you doing before.

woosaaaahh...
The Hoff