The weather is HOT! Yep, it's' August! And it makes me crave cool foods. Besides plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, my freezer is stocked with different ice cream flavors. Ice cream, in my house, in the summer, is a staple. According to the International Dairy Foods Association, Americans seem to have a love affair with this cool treat as we consume about 22 pounds per capita a year.
Does this cool treat fill you with guilt? Who amongst us didn’t have an internalized “bad-food” list with ice cream at the top? It takes practice and professional help to undo the damage of our “diet culture” and to learn to see foods as “neutral”.
So how can we simply have either a bowl of ice cream or a cone without the guilt?
Here are some healthy tips:
Give yourself permission- Ultimately you can have ice cream any time of day, anywhere that you like! Allowing the decision to eat ice cream can be as simple as Do I want it? Will it satisfy me? Okay, let’s have some. Sometimes I do want it and it will satisfy me, and then my brain jumps in with a reminder: Oh I’m going to that new ice cream place that serves the vegan ice cream that I love. So, I’ll hold off so I can really enjoy that one. And then my brain shuts up. No counter-arguments, no doomsday visions of chocolate-covered fat grams. It’s just not that important. That’s the ultimate message here.
Portion Control- How about ordering a kiddie cup. The "official" serving is just ½ cup which is about the size of a tennis ball. You know the small cups of Haagen-Dazs? Well, that's a ½ cup. So, while it may look small, it's probably just the right amount needed to make you feel satisfied.
Pick your Toppings- It's the toppings that are extra. If you want a piece of candy or a cookie, don't use the ice cream as a reason to have the candy or cookie- enjoy your candy as you wish. You can also entertain the possibility of adding fresh fruit as an option.
In this age of clean eating, detox diets, and food phobias, there is an increasingly long list of foods that health-conscious women and men, girls and boys feel terrible about eating. Let’s practice the art of allowing ourselves to eat what we want. Let’s do away with the food guilt that has taken up so much space in our head.
For more information and support contact me at: rachel@livehealthynyc.com