Day 55 - Day Trip Dingbat

Have you ever gone on a day trip and your eating habits were suddenly out of whack?

You beat yourself up over not following your regular, comfortable eating plan?

Or maybe you feel guilty for eating more than you usually do?

What makes us suddenly become a day trip dingbat?

I have the answer for you because I did it yesterday.

Father's day trip up north was spontaneous. We decided to go and were in the car and leaving within a half hour. My usual cooler full of miscellaneous goodies fell by the wayside.

I had eaten a good breakfast beforehand.

We ate when we got there, where I felt my fullness and savored just half of my meal (at 12:30).

We ended up walking around town, looking at shops and taking in the beautiful sunny day.

At 2:00 PM I was already hungry. Here is where some who have not been trained in body wisdom and awakened eating may sabotage their day. It felt like I just ate. In fact, it seemed like just minutes ago that we left the restaurant and began exploring. When I looked at the time, though, it made sense. My hunger signal was telling me that I had been walking and exerting myself for an hour and a half - and had burned up the reserves from my small lunch.

Remember, when you go on day trips or errand runs you are most likely moving around more than you usually do. Your hunger is going to be a bigger, and for good reason. 

I ate the contents of my doggie bag (a bit ravenously) as we drove to the city center to get errands done. No bottle of water. I was thirsty.

By 4:00 PM, we left the concrete jungle of consumerism and I was feeling so depleted. The walking, bending, standing, eye-to-hand coordination and mental acuity that were required to get in and out of the hell of shopping had sucked me dry.

Never underestimate the effect of stress, no matter how enjoyable or subtle it may seem, on your biological needs. Your body will need more nutrients and hydration to deal with the added energy demands.

Driving home, with another meal in hand from the local co-op, I had to reflect. How would my day have gone if I had made sure that I honored my hunger needs with the increased demands of the day? What would it have felt like to have a crisp and cold bottle of water with me throughout the events? 

Here are some pointers to prevent becoming a day trip dingbat:

• Pack snacks in a cooler, so you have bites to eat as you move around. Most people do not want to go from restaurant to snack stand every two hours (because of budget or inconvenience) so they will ignore their hunger and gorge themselves when they finally do get access. 
• If some of the following thoughts come into your mind, remind yourself of the different nature of this day, with increased energy demands, hydration (if it is summer), and stress. Think shopping in the mall is not a big deal? You may be walking an extra 2 miles that day!
• I can't be hungry already! I just ate two hours ago.
• I should not eat any snacks.
• I already ate three meals today.
• I already had my allotted calories of the day.
• I can't believe that I ate that ice cream cone. I should not eat anything else all day.
• Always bring water! Water can give you a boost of energy when what you really need is hydration, not more food. 

A day trip dingbat is someone who forgets to listen to their body the moment that they leave their routine  comfort zone. The goal with The Awake Eating Method is to awaken your body's innate wisdom so that you feel prosperous and abundant in your body, anytime and anywhere.

To day trips that leave us feeling better than we started!