The above demographic is the target audience for this blog, although plenty of men might also get a kick out of this, and there's nothing inherently unmanly about this path I am embarking on (of course that would depend on the version of "manly" you go with, for which there are a world of options). In a phrase, this path to moderation might be called "learning to savor," or, "savor school".
The inspiration for this is a book entitled French Women For All Seasons , which is the bestselling sequel to Mireille Guiliano's bestselling French Women Don't Get Fat. Wikipedia has this to say about it:
"In the fall of 2006, Mireille followed up with French Women for All Seasons: A Year of Secrets, Recipes and Pleasure.[19] Devoted to l'art de vivre (the art of living), the book contains 100 additional recipes that feature French staples such as leeks and chocolate. While her first book enabled readers to enjoy a healthier relationship with food, French Women for All Seasons sought to enable readers to enjoy a healthier relationship with life. In both, through her personal stories and illustrations, she espouses living life to the fullest by embracing quality, sensitivity, seasonality, and pleasure while maintaining a healthy equilibrium."
I am, of course, a huge candidate for savor school. For years now I have been regarding a full wine glass like it's a humanitarian crisis, and going to it with bleeding-hearted dedication. This is not savoring.
While I do tend to eat far more slowly than anyone I dine with (this has to do with an inability to focus than anything else, I'd reckon), I have lately been growing (and outgrowing my pants), and this tattles on me that I am taking in more calories than I can burn off in a regular active day as a self-employed caterer, part-time nanny and mom of a five-year-old. This is partly due to the fact that my daughter has finally become too heavy for me to pick up and horse around with (I'm only 5'1") and I haven't struck up my weight-training habit yet. The other part has to do with the immense calorie content of my favorite beverage.
Savoring is about tuning into onesself and noticing degrees of desire, pleasure, pain (habaneros--it's why the gods gave us beer, by the way, to put out the flames, right? No, no, no! That's NOT savoring! In fact, I think heavy use of hot peppers is nothing short of hitting the button on our in-house morphine supply, or "endorphins." Nothing wrong with that or masochism of any kind, as far as I'm concerned, except that the amount of beer required to put out the heat, plus time to wait out the painful throbbing of the tongue means that I'm quite tipsy for the meal instead of alert and sharp, then I wind up overeating and ordering a tequila for a digestive--again, NOT savoring.)...anyway, more on what savoring is after these messages. Thanks for joining me for a bit here.
Please note: the content of this blog is in no way intended to try to discourage anyone from going to rehab if they decide they need it. Treating the topic of rehab with irreverence makes me laugh, and for me, laughing about a topic loosens up my fears around it and gets me going on my way to greener pastures. Go everybody!!!!
The inspiration for this is a book entitled French Women For All Seasons , which is the bestselling sequel to Mireille Guiliano's bestselling French Women Don't Get Fat. Wikipedia has this to say about it:
"In the fall of 2006, Mireille followed up with French Women for All Seasons: A Year of Secrets, Recipes and Pleasure.[19] Devoted to l'art de vivre (the art of living), the book contains 100 additional recipes that feature French staples such as leeks and chocolate. While her first book enabled readers to enjoy a healthier relationship with food, French Women for All Seasons sought to enable readers to enjoy a healthier relationship with life. In both, through her personal stories and illustrations, she espouses living life to the fullest by embracing quality, sensitivity, seasonality, and pleasure while maintaining a healthy equilibrium."
I am, of course, a huge candidate for savor school. For years now I have been regarding a full wine glass like it's a humanitarian crisis, and going to it with bleeding-hearted dedication. This is not savoring.
While I do tend to eat far more slowly than anyone I dine with (this has to do with an inability to focus than anything else, I'd reckon), I have lately been growing (and outgrowing my pants), and this tattles on me that I am taking in more calories than I can burn off in a regular active day as a self-employed caterer, part-time nanny and mom of a five-year-old. This is partly due to the fact that my daughter has finally become too heavy for me to pick up and horse around with (I'm only 5'1") and I haven't struck up my weight-training habit yet. The other part has to do with the immense calorie content of my favorite beverage.
Savoring is about tuning into onesself and noticing degrees of desire, pleasure, pain (habaneros--it's why the gods gave us beer, by the way, to put out the flames, right? No, no, no! That's NOT savoring! In fact, I think heavy use of hot peppers is nothing short of hitting the button on our in-house morphine supply, or "endorphins." Nothing wrong with that or masochism of any kind, as far as I'm concerned, except that the amount of beer required to put out the heat, plus time to wait out the painful throbbing of the tongue means that I'm quite tipsy for the meal instead of alert and sharp, then I wind up overeating and ordering a tequila for a digestive--again, NOT savoring.)...anyway, more on what savoring is after these messages. Thanks for joining me for a bit here.
Please note: the content of this blog is in no way intended to try to discourage anyone from going to rehab if they decide they need it. Treating the topic of rehab with irreverence makes me laugh, and for me, laughing about a topic loosens up my fears around it and gets me going on my way to greener pastures. Go everybody!!!!
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