I want to eat healthy - but I also want pizza!

My internal fight with myself EVERY.....DAY.

I really really want a healthy tight body. But I also really really want pizza.

It's a war that I go through almost daily. How bad do I really want a fit body? How bad do I really want pizza?

Who usually wins? It depends on the day. My mood. The weather. My energy. My kids. My schedule. My friends. It's NEVER set in stone one day or the other. And I guess that's what keeps me sane.

In reality, if I really sit down to think about it, the joy of eating pizza will literally only last about 15-30 minutes, or however long it takes me to shove it in my face hole. But the guilt and shame and nasty feeling I get after eating will last a hell of a lot longer. I wish there was no guilt or shame in it. And sometimes there isn't. But if I'm feeling soft, or have been not eating very clean recently and I indulge, those guilty feelings creep up. And you have to admit, you do feel a lot better eating healthy versus eating crappy. I know I do! What you fuel your body with DEFINITELY affects how you feel.

So, really if I can talk myself out of eating pizza simply because I know I will feel better if I don't, the craving does eventually go away. But there are times when I am craving (and it doesn't have to be pizza, it can be anything) and no matter how I try to avoid eating what I crave, or put it off, in the end, nothing will make that craving go away but just going ahead and eating it.

Sometimes you just have to give in.

If I can walk away, start doing something else to keep busy, drink water, eat something else, etc. and the craving disappears, GREAT! But if nothing helps and I'm just craving like the dickens, I give in. If you aren't doing it every day, every meal, is it really THAT detrimental? I mean, unless you are a model, and literally get paid to have a nice body, does it really matter???

You have to live a life of happiness. And to me, that means balance. You HAVE to accept that you cannot be perfect all the time. No one is. And if you know someone who says they NEVER cheat on their diet or their clean eating lifestyle, they lie. Everyone has human moments now and then. NO ONE IS PERFECT ALL THE TIME. And if you think you have to be perfect to be successful, then you never will be. Cut yourself some slack. If I had to live a life without everything I love to do or eat and drink, then that is NO LIFE at all! I always chuckled at the line, "Eat right, exercise, die anyway". Because it's true.

I go on little diet restrictions now and then as a way to sort of hit the "reset" button. If I know I'm drinking a lot more wine lately than I should, I might take a 7-14 day break - just to break the habit. Same way with eating. Sometimes, I get a little too comfortable and slide back into negative habits and I need to give myself a break before it goes to far. But I would never tell myself I could never indulge again. That is just not realistic, or fun.

Don't get me wrong, I am a very BIG advocate of healthy, clean eating MOST of the time. You can help prevent a host of ailments and problems down the road if you keep your weight in check and feed your body nutritious food. All I'm saying is, if you fall off the wagon now and then, it's ok. In fact, it's more than ok! Did you know that if you've been eating low calorie/low carb/uber clean food for a long time and throw in a "cheat", it can help you lose fat faster?? Read up on carb cycling if you don't believe me!

Btw - if you are really craving pizza and really don't want the heavy feeling, or the calories, there are ways around it!!

This is cauliflower crust pizza. And YES, it's just as good as REAL pizza. Ok, maybe not exactly as good, but 95% as good, especially if you are trying to cut back. I failed my first few attempts at the cauliflower crust. My tip for making a crust you can actually pick up like a slice of pizza, is to make sure you drain ALL the water out of the cauliflower after cooking and chopping it. If you don't and it's too wet, it won't firm up.

So, I steam my cauliflower in the microwave, then I throw it in the vitamix to chop it up real fine, like rice. Next, I put it in a flour sack dish towel and squeeze all the water out of it. Twist and squeeze over and over until nothing drips through the towel. It does take a few minutes. *and let it cool off a bit first or you will burn your fingers!

There are plenty of recipes for a great cauliflower crust on Pinterest.

Here's a good one

 YUM!

Be well, friends! <3