Why Routine Works for Me.

Today's Last Meal: Costco Frozen Yogurt Swirl. Costco's FroYo has the texture and consistency of excellent soft serve ice-cream with the guilt-free label of frozen yogurt. I'm sure it's horrible for me (that might be why it tastes so good) and so it definitely made it to my list of last meals. It's 16oz of creamy chocolatey-vanilla goodness. Mmmm. They also give you the most satisfying plastic spoon to eat it with. It almost rivals Wendy's Spoon.

I also had a Sprite with it. Fountain Sprite.

One of the most important things I learned in my formative years was "thinking outside the box", "no limits", or "be a free spirit". All that created a tremendous pressure to avoid routine an discipline. The truly realized human being doesn't need the crutch of regularity, man.

Heh.

It's taken more than a decade for me to realize that I need routine to live a healthy life. Without structure or boundaries I just drift. I'll do nothing or act purely on impulse like all those lovable, quirky characters that inevitably showed up in 90s TV and movies. The only problem is in real life that got me nothing. I do well with structure because it's reliable. In the context of weight loss, routine allows me to achieve the goals I want. I'd eat the same food at the same times everyday if it meant I would lose weight. I know this because when I eat poorly I eat the same food at the same times everyday. I think the real trick was learning that self-imposed routine is a good and healthy thing. I missed that part in high school.

Today I went back to work at my job. I'll leave out the downsides of it in order to highlight one of the best things I like about it. When I'm working, it helps me maintain a healthy diet:
4:55am - light breakfast of mostly proteins
7:00am - second breakfast! fruits and cheese
10:30-11:00am - snack of carrots, celery, or more fruit
1:00pm - lunch, 1/2 turkey sandwich, snap peas, apple
3:30pm - post workout snack, I might indulge here and have a small glass of chocolate milk
7-8pm - dinner
10:30-11pm - bed
 A routine like this helps me make sure I eat right. Without it, I'll just snack on junk food throughout the workday, feel like shit, not workout, be exhausted, sleep poorly, not have time for breakfast, get something fast, eat junk, etc...

When it comes to food, I've got to keep a tight reign on myself because I have trouble maintaining self-discipline. It's not something that comes naturally to me when food is involved. It's something I'm always thinking about. Something I've got to plan ahead for. If I'm feeling down, that need for structure makes me think I'm weak. That is I were stronger I wouldn't need the routine to be healthy. That way of thinking doesn't do me any good, but it can be difficult to fight.

I think the trick to food self-discipline is to 1) forgive myself when I screw up and 2) plan for reasonable indulgences so I can still enjoy the foods I like. If I've eaten well all week then I might relax a bit on the weekends. If I do eat unhealthily, I recover much faster if I admit my mistake, forgive myself, and get back to my diet.