When Your Eyes Are Bigger Than Your Stomach

I over-did it last night. My husband and I went out to dinner, as planned, and I selected an Italian restaurant. Why? Well, I haven't had real pasta in a long, long time -- in almost a year, actually -- and I was craving it. I didn't think about how this might affect my system. I let my desire to indulge in something I had considered a no-no override my common sense. I thought, because I have been diligently watching what I eat and maintaining my target weight, it would be okay to deviate just this once. And watching portion size? Oh, I didn't have to fuss with that. Not this time.

Big mistake.

I polished off my entire plate, had a rich dessert, and when I was done started to feel sick. My stomach was in pain. I didn't want to be the one driving the car home, I just wanted to slump in the passenger seat. But my husband had a glass of wine, so I had to. When I got home, I had two Tums, a scoopful of Benefiber in a cup of tea, and a few hours later, a small mixture of some Fiber One cereal and yogurt. I remained very uncomfortable all night, and it's still lingering this morning. My body just can't handle this rich food anymore. This I learned the hard way.

It was a classic case of "my eyes being bigger than my stomach." I dare say, my stomach has shrunk considerably from the Optifast program. Before I started, I could stuff a fairly big quantity of food -- any kind from double cheeseburgers to cheesy chicken Cordon Bleu -- in my gut and have plenty of room for some decadent dessert. But not anymore. I also have to completely rethink what I can eat, order more "clean" things, and from yesterday's experience, curtail portion size to something reasonable. I don't think I'll be having Italian again for quite some time.

I am slowly coming to the understanding that what I crave, what I indulged in voraciously in the past, is not going to work for me anymore. I need to be looking for dishes on the menu that go easy on my stomach, and even more importantly, learn to leave a little bit left on my plate. Eat not to fullness definitely is a mantra I must embrace now. I am also seeing that those annoying cravings continue to plague me in maintenance. I shouldn't be surprised. It's not like they would magically disappear once I reached goal. Oh no, they are lurking below the surface. Waiting to pounce.

I'm going to resume my new eating routine immediately. It's St. Patrick's Day, and my husband is half-Irish, so I'll be cooking corned beef and cabbage and his favorite soda bread. But I'm not having any of that. Not one bite. It doesn't work for me anymore. Yes, I can still have the joy of cooking a fabulous feast for him -- something I love to do. But eating it myself is just not for me right now. And I'm glad.

When it comes time for you to move into maintenance, there is a good chance you will find as I have that your stomach cannot handle things that never caused you problems in the past. There's an upside to this to be sure. But that does not mean you won't want it. Oh, far from it. But we need to take it easy and do some serious planning as to what we put in our bodies. Believe me, your stomach will thank you for it. Bring on my oatmeal, low-sodium turkey, simple fish, and salads. My "new normal." Tummy aches be gone!