Magazine Addiction

I have a magazine addiction. Truly. I might even be bad enough to warrant some sort of 12-step plan. Over the past several years I have learned to control it. Somewhat. However, I still probably read 5-7 new magazines per week. I walk the media aisles at the grocery every single time I have to stop in ... just to make sure none of my favorites have new issues. The mags that are on my monthly MUST READ list, I actually subscribe to. Saves money. But there are few others that creep in. And when my local grocer's supply is dry for a few days, I will head to the local Barnes & Noble. They ALWAYS have a stash, ready and waiting, to tide me over 'til the newest issues of my faves arrive.

Mostly I read Fitness magazines, healthy food mags and crafting rags. My must reads are Oxygen, M&F Hers, Clean Eating, Cooking Light, Country Living and Eating Well. But, inevitably, I read every issue of Self, Shape, Fitness, Vegetarian Times and VEG. If there is a new fitness magazine out, without a cover model for whom I have no *Physical Fitness Respect*, I will buy it.

And, occasionally, one of them will surprise me.

Today, it was the November '09 issues of Health, featuring Jillian Michaels on the cover. (In case you go looking for it.) Often times, I find the articles in magazines such as this to be of little help to me, offering up ideas contrary to what I am trying to accomplish, or depicting foods that I would only think about on a full cheat day, once a year. However, in this issue, they were discussing challenges that women face in trying to become healthier. One of these challenges was basically, picking yourself back up after a mistake. I am going to quote "The Fix" nearly word for word because I found it to be so true ... and a really great idea.

Slip ups come with the territory, so it's vital to deal with them in a positive way. "If you ran a red light and got a ticket, would you say, 'I'm such a terrible person, I might as well run red lights for the rest of the day?'" psych expert Judith Beck, PhD, asks. "In almost any non-dieting area of life, we don't compound one mistake with another." Try this: "Write 'Big deal, I made a mistake. If I get right back on track, I will feel better' on an index card, and stick it in your purse to pull out when trouble strikes," Beck instructs. (Ingela Ratledge, Health, November 2009)

I spend every day waiting for that slip up. It hasn't happened yet, this time, but it has so many times before that I am anxiously watching for it. I am expecting it. And it will happen, I am certain, although I hope it is still a long way off. But this article offered me a very real way to be prepared for the inevitable. I finished that article and felt like ... WOW! I have a plan.

Now, when that moment comes, I will have a weapon at my disposal to use against it, to conquer it, overcome and continue on in success.

I guess that magazine addiction does come in handy once in a while!

WEDNESDAY'S FOOD DIARY
Breakfast
Egg Whites (All Whites 100% Liquid Egg Whites), 0.7 cup
Strawberries, fresh, 0.5 cup, sliced
Old Wessex Lts. 5 Grain Cereal, 1 serving
Organic Blue Agave syrup, 0.5 tbsp
Regular Coffee, 3 cup (8 fl oz)
Lunch
Flat Out Artisan Fold-it Flatbread, 1 serving
Chicken Breast, no skin, 3 ounces
Red Ripe Tomatoes, 2 slice, medium (1/4" thick)
Bib Lettuce, 1 leaf, medium
Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard, 2 tsp
Dinner
Jennie-O Extra Lean Ground Turkey, 4 oz
Mache, 1 cup
Red Ripe Tomatoes, 0.1 cup, chopped or sliced
Herdez Salsa Casera (medium), 6 tbsp
Snack
Universal Super Whey Protein Powder, 23 gram(s)
Milk, nonfat, 1 cup
Apples, fresh, 1 small (2-1/2" dia) (approx 4 per lb)
Cucumber (with peel), 1 cup slices
Wishbone Light Blue Cheese salad dressing, 0.5 tbsp