Well, now I’ve gone and done it!
After nearly forty years of brewing coffee and a number of years quaffing Monster energy drinks, I have quit the bean.
In addition, I have refashioned my use of refined sugar and carbs to a maximum of one or two “cheat” meals or snacks per week.
Like many, I have been skirting the line between good and bad choices for years. Yes, I have had a generally healthy diet composed of mostly plants. But I simultaneously indulged in caffeine, sugar and an inconsistent exercise plan that undermine my success.
I have quit alcohol and cigarettes and neither of those was easy. In retrospect , though, quitting them were easy compared to ditching caffeine and limiting sugar. Regardless of my knowledge that I would be healthier and ultimately happier without those two substances, I clung to them as my last two vices. I was unaware, until now, that being attached to them was zapping my strength.
Fortunately, I have a partner in Beth who is as motivated about improving her body and mind as I am. Together, we have stumbled a bit, but we’ve also moved inch by inch toward our goal of improving our health and wellbeing.
A decade ago, we wrote a bunch of songs for a show we call “Beth & Scott’s Nutrition Mission.” Since that time, I became increasingly aware that there was a gulf between what we were saying to kids and what I was doing. But it has taken longer still to make the changes because I was, frankly, in denial.
Carrying around extra weight and seeing myself in the mirror every morning was enough to induce shame but not enough to create better choices…until it did. After years of avoiding the truth literally staring at me, I begrudgingly began to admit to myself that what I was doing was no longer working for me. In other words, the pain of staying the same had finally reached a breaking point.
In early November, Beth and I started making changes. One of these was embarking on a version of The Colorado Cleanse which we had done years ago and loved. In addition to a diet of mostly pants, this was when I gradually changed the ratio of caffeinated coffee to decaf and then put it down altogether. Simultaneously, we stopped eating sugar, so I was able to make a clear-headed decision that I no longer craved it in desserts, candy or carbs. Instead, fruit is my friend!
I have also created an affirmation for myself that I am using when I feel tempted to go backwards:
“I love myself. I love my body and to honor it I make good choices.”
My next step is to keep putting one foot in front of the other. We are walking nearly every day and considering purchasing a set of dumbbells and a weight bench for strength training. Of course, we both still love yoga and I find strength in connecting with friends who are in the path of better health and bowing my head in prayer, too.
It turns out that I am happier and feel stronger when my actions are in alignment with my thoughts. Denial is the surest path to suffering and I no longer want to live that lie. I much prefer being Bierko Strong.
