OK, so there is a slight weakness in my analogy about putting gas in your car and food in your body. Your car has a fuel gauge and your body doesn't. Wouldn't that be cool though, if you had a little meter on the back of your hand that let you know that you are running out of your fuel supply and it is time to stock up? (I am thinking about Ultraman right now and the red light that starts beeping on his chest when he needs energy and has to fly to the sun to get it.) And then, as you're eating, the needle on the gauge would slowly move up until you had eaten enough calories for the next 4 - 6 hours of activity. I think that would be super cool! Take all the measuring and weighing and guess work out of it. Just eat until the meter says you've had enough and stop! Alas, our bodies are wonderful but they don't have that feature. That is the best reason I can think of for weighing myself every day. I can measure and calculate and guesstimate calories in and calories out, but the only sure way I have of knowing if I am eating too much or eating too little is checking every morning to see how much I weigh. When I eat more calories than I burn, I gain weight. When I eat fewer calories than I burn, I lose weight. It's that simple. I don't have a gas gauge that tells me if I am eating too much right now, but I do have a scale that tells me if I ate too much yesterday. My scale is my retrospective gas gauge. It works for me. 155.0 pounds? Oops, your emotional stress got the best of you over the weekend and you lost focus on your caloric intake. You've stored a little extra, so it's time to cut back a little and get back in balance. Yes, it works for me.
It is time for me to update my recommended reading list. It has been a while. When I do update my reading list I am going to add, 'The Power of Habit,' by Charles Duhigg. It is an excellent book. Jen, I could barely put it down. It is a very compelling and motivational book because it puts your habits into context. It defines the components of habits and helps you identify those parts of the habit cycle you need to alter if you want to change a habit. I found it fascinating and appreciate the recommendation. It's extremely well written and an easy read. If you have any curiosity about habits and how to change them, I heartily endorse this book!
If only it were so easy to tell :) To me the biggest difference between food and gas, though, is the vast differences in quality. There is cheap gas and expensive gas... but, filling the body up with veggies vs with twinkies makes a HUGE deal of difference.
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