BulgingButtons

Not bad for a fat girl

Tag Archives: Starbucks


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Healthier Living Challenge Number 3

I started with the Starbucks challenge, and it worked. I still haven’t set foot inside a Starbucks since I decided to go cold turkey (and no, I didn’t go through the drive-thru either!). That’s two weeks without those delicious (calorie laden, expensive) drinks. I hardly even shake as I drive by anymore, either.

Then last week I laid out the fruit and veggie challenge. Granted, it wasn’t very specific, but that’s okay. For me, it meant increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables in my diet by mindfully eating them every day. I did that too. Not a day went by this past week that I didn’t eat my fruits and veggies. Could I have eaten more of them? Certainly. But I could have eaten less, too, and I choose to concentrate on the small victories.

In the past week I’ve consumed the following: tomatoes, onions, peppers, zucchini, crookneck squash, broccoli, carrots, cabbage, celery, apples, tangerines, oranges, a tangelo, pineapple, spinach, lettuce, and raisins. Do raisins count? No? How about craisins? I had those too. And you know what? They were good. All of them.

So what to do about next week?Diet_Coke_with_Lime

1. Stay out of Starbucks (it’s getting easier and easier)

2. Keep eating the fruits and vegetables

3. Cut down on soda (or, to be true to my roots, pop)

OUCH. I can’t believe my fingers actually typed those words. I love soda. I drink soda every day, usually more than one a day, so my challenge is to drink no more than one soda on any given day. This will be difficult! Still, I think it will be a good challenge, and one that will benefit my body and wallet. Even though my soda of choice is diet, it still can’t possibly be good for me, and it definitely costs more than water. It’s a win-win situation, and a challenge I’m ready to attempt.

Are you with me on this one? Anyone else want to cut down on soda this week? Join in and we’ll drink our water together.


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Starbucks Success and a New Challenge: Fruits and Vegetables

fruits-and-vegetablesWell, I did it. I challenged myself to give up Starbucks cold-turkey and I did it. I haven’t been there since I issued the challenge, and I’m pretty proud of myself for that. So proud, in fact, that it actually feels good.

That good feeling got me thinking. What if I issued myself a new challenge each week? A healthy living challenge, like the no Starbucks challenge. If I could continue the old challenges while incorporating the new ones I could make some real progress.

Oh sure, these are things that I should be doing all the time, but the fact of the matter is that I don’t do them. Honestly, I was living a much healthier life back when BulgingButtons began than I am now. I don’t even want to think about trying to button up that red shirt you see at the top of the page. I have a feeling those poor buttons would pop right off.

I do like challenges, so here’s the challenge for the upcoming week: eat fruits and vegetables every day. That shouldn’t be too difficult, once I stock up on some. Maybe some baby carrots to dip in hummus and some apples to slice up. Oh, and it’s tangerine and orange season, so I might pick up some of those too, along with a couple of pre-made salads for lunch. I can do this!

If you’re someone who finds they don’t get enough produce in their diet, try it with me. Munch on some grapes or serve up some squash. Maybe add some peppers and onions to your marinara or better yet, try a veggie stir fry for dinner. I’d love to hear your ideas. Here’s to a healthy week.

 


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Quitting Starbucks Cold Turkey – Again

eccf_lI’ve come to the sad realization that with just one week of work in the 2015 calendar year under my belt, I’ve visited Starbucks no fewer than 4 times (or was it 6?) and spent no less than $30. In fact, I”m sure it was quite a bit more, since I had my son with me twice, and that ups the bill considerably. Let’s see, 52 weeks in a year times $30 a week equals $1560.00 . That’s quite a bit to spend on coffee drinks and pastries.

Still, I have a good job, and if I really want to spend $1560.00 per year on something I can, but this?  At the end of the year what will I have to show for that investment? My first response is “nothing,” but that’s not true. I’ll have the effects of a year’s worth of sugary, fatty drinks and pastries settling into my ever aging body. I don’t need that. I don’t want that. So why is it so hard to resist?

Now this isn’t an anti-Starbucks post. I love Starbucks. Too much. That’s my point. If I could handle it I wouldn’t have to go cold-turkey, but I can’t. For me, Starbucks is like some giant lab experiment and I’m the rat. I cheerfully get in line and hand over my hard earned money in exchange for items that I know are not beneficial to my health. Then I consume those items happily, temporarily satisfied until I begin to crave the next fix. Sometimes that craving hits the very same day, and yes, sometimes I give in to it the very same day. Too much is too much.

Unlike the lab rat, I have a choice. I can voluntarily leave the experiment. I have options. But damn, I love my Starbucks. I crave it. I don’t care about the money! I don’t care about the health issues! I just want my frappucino!

Oops, sorry. That just kind of came out. I can handle this. I can come up with better alternatives. I’ve done it before and I can do it again. Starting today I will avoid Starbucks. That extra $30 per week might just come in handy, and I know I’ll feel better after the first couple of days. I may even stop shaking as I drive by, after a few weeks anyway.

Now I’m going to brew a pot of tea to take in my thermos and fix myself some toast for breakfast. There was life before Starbucks, and there is life after it.