Lately I have had many talks with people about not being "perfect" when it comes to nutrition. It is easy to believe that if we aren’t 100% perfect about what we put into our bodies that we are failures.
THIS IS NOT THE CASE.
The portion guide is a GUIDEline. Use your best judgement for application. Overthinking the specific details creates stress, not progress.
Not every food fits into a “perfect” box. Some foods may fall into more than one macro category, which may be confusing if you are thinking about it in black and white.
If you eat some chili, for instance, it is not ever going to fit neatly into one category. Would you sift it apart and measure how much meat and veggies are in your bowl?
What about the liquid ingredients?
Does that seem reasonable or does it seem like a good way to be frustrated?
Focus more on how your body is reacting to different foods and how you can use that to make a little bit of a better choice each day.
Do you need the extra ketchup with all that extra sugar?
Do you need endless fries?
Maybe you feel better if you start with some veggies and then have a couple fries at the end of the meal.
Just like each food will never fit perfectly, WE will never be “perfect”. There will always be things that come up (i.e. work functions, holidays, social situations, stress, etc.) We need to understand that one day doesn’t suddenly undo all of our hard work. It is when we let that one day get to us and give up that the damage begins. What we need to know is not how to be perfect but how to shake that day off and get back on track.
When we have days that throw us off our normal routine, the next step isn’t to judge ourselves but to LET IT GO and keep going.
Remember that your plan is different than everyone else’s.
Maybe you were thrown off because the food you tried didn’t work for you.
Maybe it was too complicated to prep certain recipes with your schedule.
Now you know!
Use it to plan for the next week and keep moving forward. If you are consistently putting in an effort to learn and improve, you will succeed.
Perfection is a myth. Consistency is the key.
“Don't wait until you've reached your goal to be proud of yourself. Be proud of every step you take toward reaching that goal.”