TARGET: 128
TOTAL LOSS: 4.4
I gained a bit over a half pound from yesterday.
But I was expecting worse. Lunch was Caesar salad and I did not omit the croutons.
And dinner was the most awful choice I could have possibly made: pasta, cooked in a cream sauce.
I should have gained a lot more than that.
Why do I continue to make bad choices - especially since I know better?
I heard a report on NPR today that sheds some light on that issue. Apparently, the human brain has two systems for processing thought: a rational mind, which tackles decisions using logic... and an emotional mind, which does not.
The report detailed an experiment where subjects were given random numbers and asked to commit them to memory. Half the group received two-digit numbers (easy to remember); the others had to memorize seven-digits (hard to remember).
On their way to the room where the subjects were supposed to regurgitate the numbers, they were approached by someone who offered them a reward for participating in the study. They had a choice of a nice, healthy fruit salad... or a thick slab of chocolate cake.
Here's where it got interesting: The people who only had to memorize two-digits overwhelmingly chose the fruit. The seven-digit people went for the cake.
The scientists surmised that when the rational mind is occupied (as it was for the people who had to remember the seven-digit numbers), the primal and powerful emotional mind kicks in.
It makes sense. Stress is one of the biggest reasons I know for people to stray from healthy eating. If your rational mind is pre-occupied with -- I don't know -- trying to stay on a budget, trying to keep a job, trying to keep your family together, health issues, etc.... it's going to be that much harder to stay on track because your emotional mind is going to be telling you to take the cake. Listen to the story. It's fascinating.
So I understand what's going on when I've been crazy dealing with life issues and I reach for the box of pasta -- even though I understand the consequences. Now... how do you combat it (other than removing the things from your life that are making you stressed)?
Unfortunately, the good science reporters at NPR did not have an answer for that.
