*treats*, not cheats

There's a magical way to fuel your body that is so simple...stop eating grains! Or, as my daughter and son-in-law (who own CrossFit Craic) say, "No Bread...Watch What Happens".  You've likely heard it before, but grains spike your insulin levels which in turn kind of "injects" your cells with fat, and causes inflammation in your body.  Feel stiff upon rising in the morning?  Ever feel bloated after a meal?  Eliminate grains and fuel your body with good proteins, vegetables, nuts, some fruit...you know, good whole foods!  It's really pretty easy if you start the process of omission slowly!  Start by eliminating grains at dinner for a week or so, then eliminate them from your snacking, etc etc. 

I'm not going into this any deeper here as I've chatted about it before.  You can also check out Mark Sisson or Robb Wolf, both of whom have lots of easy to follow info and ideas on fueling your body successfully without grains.

What I AM muttering about here are *treats*. 
One thing that we, who choose to fuel our bodies in this manner, find ourselves sharing are our favorite "cheats".  I have always cringed at that word.  I find is carries such negative connotation.  Reality is, we have to live our lives.  Mark Sisson's philosphy is since no one is perfect, it's perfectly acceptable, and even very sensible to shoot for an 80/20 balance of nutrition.  Within that 20% lie the *treats*, as I would rather call them.

I got to thinking about this today as I was schmearing some cashew butter on a piece of a chocolate bar, but not the whole bar! :)  Since I have been eating this simple, no grain way for almost 2 years now, I rarely crave breads, rice, etc.  What I DO find is that my *treats* are things like choosing veggie chips instead carrots or celery sticks to eat with my guac, or the cashew schmear like I had today.  Once every 2-3 months I'll go for some ice cream (when I do, it's ColdStone or a fav local summer place, Toots, that makes their own right on the farm).  All of this is to say that while I KNOW when I'm choosing to eat something that is not my usual nutrition intake, I like to think of it a *treat*, not a 'cheat'.  I am merely living my life, enjoying my life, and especially since my *treats* are not even that far off balance for me nutritionally, why would I consider them a 'cheat' and feel I have to be secretive about it?  No, that's not for me.  It's important to be careful about minimizing *treats*, but generally an occasional one is good for the soul!  After all, they are just *treats*, not cheats.