Leslie Landis' The Art of Overeating

The 5^th Opposite Diet Tip:

While I was writing down my husband Martin’s overeating exploits – which inspired me to write my book, The Art of Overeating, it occurred to me that for him, food equaled love.  Given his background, this made sense.  He was an only child in his immediate family, as well as his extended family.  The entire family expressed their love for him and for each other, with food.  They gathered often for extended eat-a-thons, lavishing extra helpings and treats on him – a dollop of this, a scoop of that.  Every Sunday, his mother asked him to make out his menu for the coming week – and she made everything on it.

This got me thinking about the connection of food with the emotion of love.  After all, as I point out in my book, the first love we ever receive is given to us in the form of milk from Mom.

There is nothing wrong with associating food with love or with good times.  That is why so many of us feel a sense of wellbeing when we eat our special childhood “comfort” foods.  The problem comes when we use food as a substitute for love and happiness.

When you pass the deli counter and every liverwurst is screaming out, “I love you,” every salami, “te amo,” – that’s not good.  While you can love and enjoy food, food cannot love you back.  It can sustain you and give you pleasure.  That’s it!

Food fills your stomach, not your heart.   So this Valentine’s Day, look for love in other places.  Find it in a person that will say “I love you” or an animal that will have that special shine in their eyes or that wagging tail when you are with them.

Besides a companion, there are so many ways to reap the reward of  love.  There are children and people who need your help.  There is an old friend or relative who would be so happy to see you.  There is the puppy or kitten waiting for you in the animal shelter.

Enjoy your food and live to love.  Than love will fill you up!

MY RANT ‘N RAVE

Today, my rave is, appropriately, for love.  When we express love, when we give love – we are putting out positive energy.  That helps everyone – and even the planet!  Most of all, it helps us.  Positive energy attracts positive energy.  So spread your love and reap the reward.

To learn about The Opposite Diet, go to right column and click on “About The Opposite Diet.”

The 4^th Opposite Diet Tip:

4. TAOO says “Save the environment and eat everything you order.”  OPPOSITE DIET Advice:  The idea is that if food is uneaten or left to spoil, it goes into the garbage and then into a landfill.  So, the TAOO joke is eat everything you can to cut down on landfill waste.  However, there is another important way to keep excess food out of the landfills and help the environment.  That would be to only buy or order the amount of food you can eat and need to eat.  All food production has a carbon footprint – gasoline for farm machinery, and water and fertilizer to grow the food; gasoline for the delivery of food to markets and restaurants; electricity or gas to prepare the food and water to wash the dishes, pots and pans.  In other words, a lot of energy goes into producing what you are eating.  How much better you would feel – psychologically and physically – if you ate just what your body requires and cut down on the energy waste and your waist!

MY RANT ‘N RAVE

(sometimes about food and sometimes not…)

Have you ever noticed how unhappy people like to share their unhappiness by trying to make everyone around them miserable with rudeness, thoughtlessness, anger and sometimes outright cruelty.  It might come from the unhappy store clerk or neighbor or driver. I guess that is where the saying “misery loves company” comes from.   My best advice to you and to me is to not let them affect us.  Refuse their “gift of misery.”  Don’t give them power over how you feel.  While you are walking away or driving away, feel sorry for them and think a positive thought for yourself.

What is your opinion or your Rant ‘n Rave?  Let me know.

Next week – Opposite Diet Tip #5