Are you with me still?  The January No-Diet?  In my last post I mentioned the art of chewing – simple and effective. 

This week’s tip: Choose Balance.  What happens when you decide to go on a diet in January is that you are living on the extreme.  You  just had an extreme experience, the holiday season – often stressful, more food and drink than usual, more of everything.  Then you jump to the other end of the pendulum and decide to restrict yourself through dieting.  Now, I don’t have a background in physics, but I do know that if a pendulum swings to one extreme, it has to swing back.  That’s why a particular diet may work for awhile, but research shows that almost all diets result in a 10 pound gain after the pendulum stops swinging.

What you’re really seeking is balance in eating and in life.  And when you diet, it moves you further from your balance point. Dieting takes you away from your own inner wisdom, your own common sense that tells you what to eat, when to eat, and when to sleep.  We all have this ability.  What does balance feel like: cravings are curbed, mood swings stop, and you can hear what your body is telling you to make for dinner tonight.  It’s really amazing that finding your balance helps you to become clear about your food choices and gain clarity in other areas of your life at the same time.

Balance Tip:  Choose one food item that is healthy and also one that you enjoy.  Decide when and how you will begin to introduce it into your weekly meals.  Stick with this for a week and when you’re ready, add in another. 

For more tips on the January No-Diet, visit me at the Milwaukee Public Market this Tuesday for “Lose Weight Without Dieting”.  I’ll be cooking up some tasty dishes and sharing more tips for achieving balance in 2008.