Learning to Love the Foods you Hate

I grew up with two different people-my mother and then my aunt. For the first ten years I remember being forced to eat Brussels sprouts, squash, zucchini, broccoli, cabbage soup and other things that still gross me out today. I don't know if my mother didn't cook it correctly or like I've said all my life, "My taste buds weren't meant to eat them." Now that I'm older and know how to cook, I'm going to assume the former, but don't tell my mother.

When I was in fifth grade and moved in with my aunt, I knew she wasn't a fan of the kitchen. The only person that cooked in the house was me, but we never bought things you could cook. Our fridge was filled with pop and our pantry was filled with cookies and chips. If dinner was made, it was usually from a box-Hamburger Helper, Tuna Helper, Chicken Helper-you get the idea. I say if, because our normal "What's for dinner?" conversation was picking out what fast food joint we would be patronizing. Pizza delivery on Thursday nights (Must See TV) was a weekly tradition and usually popcorn on the weekends while watching movies-yes, as dinner.

Bad eating habits have followed me into adulthood, to say the least. I haven't bought boxed dinners in years because I enjoy being in the kitchen and using my culinary skills. I ditched most of the frozen food meals long ago as well since they are so full of sodium. Canned foods, frozen pizzas, and chips still find their way into my home and stomach, but not too often. 

One of my personal rules is not to diet. I have never seen anyone diet who has maintained their weight loss, so why should I suffer and not eat yummy foods? When I started doing Insanity, I checked out the meal plan so I could try my best to make healthier choices and get the amazing results I kept picturing in my head. However, I don't eat a majority of the items on the lists. I have either never had them, or have a bad memory of eating them. I thought I would try my best to follow it, but my husband didn't want to, so I just used MyFitnessPal to track my calories and keep track of what I was putting in my mouth. 

My Fitness Pal tracks your calories and goals. 

After Round 1 of Insanity, and my husband being disappointed in his results, (What do you expect when you eat thirty-eight  wings at Hooters because they have All You Can Eat?) he decided he wanted to follow the meal plan for our second round. Since I was happy with my first round results, I told him to use MyFitnessPal with me. He was very hesitant, but I thought that would be easier for him than the meal plan. To get him to agree, I told him I would start eating broccoli at least once a week. He loves it and I hardly cook it because I couldn't stand the smell. Well, I've eaten it twice now and didn't gag or throw up. Plus, it's not as bad as I remember. 

He's been using MyFitnessPal for a couple of weeks now and he's paying way more attention to what he puts in his mouth. He's seen positive results in the weight department as well. 

I am buying foods I've never tried, just hoping I can find healthier alternatives to the junk I've come to love. 

If you have any tricks of the trade, please share. I need to learn new ways to cook the foods I've always avoided. 

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