+15.6 (∆ -0.4)

Yesterday, I sort of binged. I had a huge carb load—for lunch, a white flower tortilla with refried beans, cheese, and multigrain pilaf and, for dinner, Chesseburger Mac & Cheese Hamburger Helper. Usually, I would never have Hamburger Helper but my wife had a hankering, so what's a guy to do? Besides, my "eating less" isn't regulated by what I eat, just by how much I eat. I still squeaked under my daily calorie quota, but barely.

Last night and this morning, though, I felt awful. Though I'd had enough sleep, I still felt as if I'd been out drinking the night before. White flour, I thought. Could I be having a white flour hangover? White flour affects my wife to such a degree that if she eats a huge plate of white flour pasta, she has been known to fall asleep at the table. Maybe the same was happening to me?

In any event, the massive carb load got me worried, if only because my weight tends to spike about two days after I have a huge amount of food. So today, as an antidote to my bingeing yesterday, I kicked ass at the gym (524 calories!!! Woo hoo!) and had a very very light lunch.

But it's the lunch itself that really gave me pause:

• Honey Wheat Bread, 2 slices—180 calories
  
• Salame, 4 slices—100 calories
  
• Light Mayo, 1 tablespoon—35 calories
  
• Yellow Mustard, 2 teaspoons—7 calories
  
• Tomato slices, 1/3 of a whole—12 calories
  
• Red Leaf Lettuce, 1/2 cup—2 calories
  
• Red Bell Pepper, 1 cup—29 calories
  
• Soy milk, 1 serving—80 calories

Total calories: 424

I look at that kind of meal, and I think, Holy shit. Seriously? What have I turned into?? Two months ago, that same sandwich would have had twice as much meat, thick slices of cheddar, a bowl of soup on the side, and chips, nearly double the current calorie load. However, not only is the above meal completely nutritious, I found it totally filling, too. The bell pepper is my crunchy substitute for chips, and turns out to be far more flavorful. I know my eating habits have irrevocably changed when I'm making these kinds of conscious choices... and enjoying them. Two months ago, if you'd have told me I'd be full on only 424 calories of lunch, without chips, I flat out would not have believed you.