Dude, let me tell you, it is so hard to eat out and eat paleo. You pretty much have to settle for "good enough." My team was going for a work lunch. Originally they were talking Mexican, so I simply declined to go. Even if it weren't for the paleo aspect, I can't eat tomatoes, garlic or cheese, which pretty much rules out everything Mexican or Italian (unless, of course, I make it myself). They were nice to me, though, and ended up choosing Red Robin. I figured I couldn't go too far astray - just get a chicken patty with some avocado and maybe some steamed veggies.
We get there, though, and I realize I have absolutely zero will-power. There is something about seeing the words Sweet and Potato and Fries together that just makes me lose control. That was mistake number one. I was good, though, in that I didn't take any of the bottomless steak fries the waitress kept plopping down in front of me while we were waiting for our food. I ordered the chicken sandwich on lettuce instead of a bun, sans tomato of course, and added avocado. Did pretty good.
Until the fry sauce came, then it was over.
BTW, PSA going out to Red Robin: a quarter head of iceburg lettuce does not exactly consistute a "lettuce wrap." First, iceburg lettuce is just wrong. If we're going sans bun, give us some bibb or Boston or romaine or pretty much anything but iceburg. Please. Second, it took me a while to find that tiny little processed chicken breast in the middle of all that lettuce. I used, what, maybe 1/3 of the lettuce you gave me? Just think about it.
Interestingly, as soon as we got back to the office I had the most intense cravings for cookies. Chunky, chocolately, chipp-y cookies. And, of course, there was a package of chocolate chip cookies on the breakroom table. I walked past them once and almost caved. Got back to my office, realized my water bottle was empty, and had to go back to the break room to fill it up! What a cruel world. I took the long way to the water cooler, trying to avoid looking at the cookies. It didn't help. It was almost like their sugary energy was pulsing in every direction.
I tried to ignore them. I really did. I thought about what things I had at my disposal to eat instead of the cookies. I had chicken, stir-fried broccoli and squash with a sweet potato sauce for lunch (I wasn't hungry, just dealing with a craving, so that wouldn't do). I had a couple of donut peaches and an apple in my office. Hmm, those might work. But again, not hungry, just wanted the sweet goodness. Thought about the tea in my drawer. Sometimes tea helps with sweet cravings. All these thoughts are flowing through my mind as I'm filling my water bottle. Meanwhile, even though I'm not looking, I'm positive the cookies have escaped their package and are kicking me in the back of the head.
Fortunately I was able to shift my thinking. My first thought was from my Doritos bender the other night and how lousy I felt after and the next day. Hmm. Didn't want that again. My second thought was how not-as-good these "favorite" foods have tasted the last few times I've cheated. It's true, your taste buds do change. Was it worth the calories? I don't count calories on paleo, but I knew that cookie was in excess of 250 calories and loads of unhealthy fat. Did I really want to un-do the positive changes I was making? Not that one food can undo all the work you've done, but why eat the cookie?
I resisted. I would not let those cookies get the better of me. I took a big gulp of water, headed out of the breakroom, but stopped dead in my tracks in the hallway.
WATERMELON! I completely forgot about the container of watermelon I'd brought with me this morning. My lunch was a little on the lower-carb side today and thought I might need some fruit to balance it out (if I didn't need it I could just take it home). At this point, watermelon sounded like candy. I ran back into the breakroom armed with a new found confidence that I was going to kick that cookie's ass if it so much as looked at me wrong.
The moral of the story: don't give in to your cravings. If you make a decision to eat healthy, eat clean or have other goals, no matter how "hard" it gets, stick to them. I kicked my craving for that cookie in under five minutes. At the time, it was all I could think about. But I didn't give in. I feel good. I don't have the cookie hangover (or Doritos hangover or donut hangover or any other type of unhealthy food hangover), and I don't feel guilty for letting my stupid cravings get the better of me.
As a side note, I expect part of the reason the craving came in the first place is I didn't have a clean lunch. Had I eaten the wonderful paleo lunch I brought with me to work, I would have been satisfied. But since I didn't, it left me vulnerable to the Evil Cookie.
I win this time, and now I'm stronger, Evil Cookie. Go crumble in a corner.
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