Act Like a Duck

I am a fan of Grey's Anatomy. I know, I know .. it's kind of melodramatic fluff ... but snappy dialogue, real-life medical issues and fun characters have kept me glued the screen ever since the big bomb-scare episode that ran directly after Super Bowl a few years back. Recently, I saw a rerun of an episode in which Alex claims he is "acting like a duck". In a nutshell, he's not known for being a great, mature, monogamous guy in relationships, but he figured if he started acting like one, after enough time he might actually become one. In other words, if he acted like a duck long enough, he might start quacking. Of course, those words have resonated with me over the past week.

Act like a duck.

I am not a body builder. I am not a perfect specimen of fitness. I don't even look all that much like an avid exerciser. But if I act like one long enough, maybe I will start to quack. I want to be all of these things. I long for the physique, the stamina of a professional athlete. I know that I will probably not ever be one. However, if I start acting like one, start eating like one, maybe I will truly to start to look like one.

Yesterday, I rushed home after church to change into workout clothes, threw some chopped up chicken breast and green beans in a bowl and dashed out the door for the kettlebell class. On the way, I balanced the bowl on my lap, eating as I drove, listening to Eminem blasting through my speakers. The thought came from no where "Yep, I'm THAT girl. I AM the girl that eats crappy food just because it is nutrient rich fuel and will get me the physique I want. I AM the girl who makes her family switch up its routine just so she can make a specific class. I AM that crazy chick."

Of course, I'm not always that chick. Sometimes I am the girl who whines because she wants to have cake, too. Who complains that it's not fair she doesn't get to enjoy eating anymore. Often, I am the girl who can be heard retching pathetically when Maureen starts talking about eating tuna more often. But if I want to look like those people whose physique I admire, I need to eat like them, too. No amount of exercise can make up for it. A great body is built in the kitchen. It gets tuned up at the gym.

That's not to say that I am going to constantly eat things that disgust me. I actually love chicken breast and green beans. Just not at 10:00am, lukewarm from a bowl on my lap as I drive. I don't like tuna, but I think I can handle it a few times a week. It IS just fuel. I learned yesterday that if I just bake a sweet potato and use a little butter spray and sea salt, I can stomach those as well. Tosca's eating plan has me eating one every single day, but I think I can substitute beets or rutabaga in occasionally, instead. I have also learned that oatmeal, farina & millet can all be eaten plain, without sweeteners or fruit and be quite tasty.

I can't have my cake and eat it, too. If I want to have a great physique, I simply must fuel my body with foods that are clean and nutrient rich. If I want to eat cake, I have to forgo my desire to have that great physique. Yes, for those who are panicking WITH me right now, there will be cheats eventually, down the road. Rewards for making certain goals. Carrots hanging past certain obstacles to make me hurdle them faster and with less complaint. But ultimately it is a choice. Do I want to have that great body? Or do I want to eat the cake?

QUACK!

"Tell me what you eat, I'll tell you who you are." ~Anthelme Brillat-Savarin~